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But her career is more textured and strange than that.
The thing is Posey hasnt spent much time in New York lately.
(There, I just gave you an ending!
shell say frequently.)
She cant stop herself from making word or idea associations, even when theyre incomplete.
I realized I speak in shorthand.
Ill say something, but I wont finish the thought.
Is that an actor thing or a COVID thing?
Maybe its atwinthing as well in fact, I know it is.
Its easier when I feel like Im just sharing.
You know what I miss about it?
When it was fun, it felt like a community.
Do communities only happen in your 20s, then they kind of fade away?
Is that it, or is it you?I think its [waves iPhone].
It might be phones.I do think so.
Like, whenParty Girlcame out 27 years ago
It was rereleased in theaters this spring.
How did that feel?Feels great.
You know, its so long ago.
Some company bought it, distributed it.
Then they sold it, but they have homes in the Hamptons now.
It just reminds me of the scamminess of showbiz.
So there are some negative associations there, as they say in therapy.I remember taking this meeting withStuart Cornfeld.
Go have her do the meetings.
It was really sweet.
I dont think thats negative per se.
It is what it is.
But whats fun about this time is there are younger people who have theCriterion Collection.
I feel like cinema is coming back.
We used to trade VHSs of great movies you couldnt get anywhere.
Did you have a little hoard of movies?Yeah, we used to camp out on the weekends.
Id come over, lounge around, and watch a movie and order Chinese and just stay in.
Do you know a lot of young people?Theyre very 90s.
Theyre kind of grungy.
How were their questions?They seemed open.
Scream 3holds up really well.
Its a great meta text.
Weve decided the kids are okay.
If they werent, what are we going to do about it anyway?Protest.
Being disappointed in New York and its lack of fun is a hard thing.
I dont want to be negative!
Maybe Ive just been away from New York so long that I dont know.
I mean, word on the street is that its coming back.
Are you out at two in the morning?No, I dont go out till two anymore.
Are you ever scandalized by anything you did in your 20s?And now youre going to remind me.
Unfortunately, I wasnt there.c’mon dont.
Well, I ran.
I think all of my creativity and output was me running from myself and into stories.
I still dont know where to be, but I think thats an actor thing.
When I was doingMr.
& Mrs. Smithwith Donald Glover and Maya Erskine, I saw that they didnt know where to be either.
It seems like all of my friends are going, I dont know where to live right now.
I think were still shook from COVID.
Since the internet, vanity handbags, Jivamukti, Gawker, and the rise of likes.
People on the subway are coughing on each other.
People say these blanket things like, Oh, well, everyones this, but were not.
Im not good at taking on political arguments.
It just feels so heated right now.
I have questions about age to ask you.Oh, yeah.
Im not going to ask you about menopause.Say the dirty word.
Youre going to be burned.
Youre going to catch on fire.
I call it the perimenopausal puppet troupe.
Its a beautiful hellogood-bye of several years.
But it does a number on your body, and its very confusing.
In my time, it was having to work onLost in Space.My body was an alien.
WasLost in Spacea good job?Oh my God, yes, they paid me.
Was there a world in which you just moved to Vancouver and never returned?Yeah.
I could make home wherever.
Youre getting it ready for the next person.
Im just really transient, as much as I love my cozy comforts.
I dont need a lot, but I do want a vibe and warmth, right?
Are you a fan ofTheGreat Pottery Throw Down?
I never watched this and I really should.Oh my God, you have to.
I mean, isnt that the point now that Im at CAA?
How much these A-listers make next to the scrappy little indie people is crazy town its unfair and bananas.
Its rotten bananas, which makes the best banana bread.
That nasty I am such a stupid fan ofTar.I talk about it, like, five times a week.
Shes so great.Todd Field!
Lets talk about how little support the biz gives filmmakers whove made excellent movies before.
It takes Todd Field 15 years to get another movie off the ground.
Can you talk to CAA about that?Id love to work with European filmmakers.
I wish I spoke another language.
I learned French really badly.
I want you to write a piece about me quitting the business and moving to France to act.
Here, theyd be like, Who cares?
She left us long ago.
Im being stupid now.
Then Im going to see this in print and Im going to regret it.
Because I dont read my press.
Its one thing to say mean things about me and my acting.
But a whole other blow to say mean things about my poodle.
It is one of the most generous, optimistic, pure, committed, dedicated, ridiculous shows.
But Im not doing it by myself, so they better be finding somebody to help me out.
You always joke thatToni Collettetook all your roles.She took all my roles!
Do you say that with rancor or do you think its funny?I think its all funny.
So youre always joking.
Toni, mesee, Im always pitching some new ideas.
Its your entrepreneurial streak.Id like to produce, but I havent produced anything in the real world.
Toni and I were talking about the indie days.
These are things that I didnt really think of back then.
I just did what I felt like doing.
As we get older, we get a little more calculated, maybe.Savvy.
No one sat me down and took me by the hand and said, Listen, Parker.
Who was mentoring you through this?Nora Ephrondid a bit.
She was like, Parker, you will have to get work done.
I dont know if thats good mentoring.Yes.
She got her hair done once a week.
It was just right.
You made abrilliant trilogywith legendary indie director Hal Hartley.
I hope the movie he started working onthree years agois still happening.
Youre younger than he is, but I feel like youre just opening yourself up to reinvention now.
Or do you feel youve solidified into who you are?Well, Iwrote a book.
I am a storyteller.
I think the idea of the story will have another reinvention.
If your conception of yourself is wide, then it doesnt matter.Make art of your life.
I go, This speaks to me.
To reinvent is to reinvent; you dont stop.
To reinvent is to reinvent, you dont stop.
Look at all these questions I havent asked you.
[Gestures at a coffee cup containing 100 cutout paper questions.
]Wait, you jot down them out and put them in a cup?
That is so cute.
I thought you might like the gambit.
[Reads a question.]
How has that been for you?
Do you think its fair?
Are you talking about Ryan?
I meantRyanand I meantLouis.Louis.
And I think I meantWoody.And Woody.
Thats three.I like how you say disinvited.
I knew Ryan a little.
Hes very brilliant.Yeah, and youre like, I bet hes a terrible boyfriend.
I wouldnt want to date him.
Rock stars arent great boyfriends.
I would say they crossed the line beyond not-great boyfriend.Well, yeah.
But these lines have been crossed for centuries.
Artists, a lot of them who are men, are very uncomfortable with their feminine side.
Thats why they make music.
Do they have unhealthy relationships with women?
And do they treat them badly?
How did I do?
Then we were finally like,You know what?
Fuck this.We grew up with a lot of douchebags.
We called themdouchebagsback then, which is misogynist.
I was so naive.
Im still so naive in some ways.
Are you?Im a late bloomer.
You want to hear my latest idea?
What do you think about a cruise ship and a retrospective of some of my films on the cruise?
Where would the cruise go?It could be around the Statue of Liberty.
Youve Got Mailhas also held up well.
So you dont learn from your performances because youve never seen them.Thats right.
Thats my best side.But Im not like that.
So I should decide to do something else.
Do the movies feel painful to watch?It feels like the end ofOur Town,you know?
The screening for the 27th anniversary ofParty Girl?
I didnt watch it.
Michael Clancy did the wardrobe, and he passed away last year.
You could ask for favors and people would be up for supporting them.
She said, Can I take your picture with this sign?
I said, Do I have to?
I didnt feel like a person, right?
She goes, Oh, so youreforviolence against women?
Im like,I dont know if I can live here.I may have outgrown it.
It really may have changed.
But New York is always changing.
I do appreciate you not dumping that whole cup of questions onto the table.
Doing press these days is a brave act.
I mean, you could get canceled; I could get canceled.
I hope I do!Lets get canceled together.
Lets have a cancellation party, then cancel it.
The good news is people are willing to argue about stuff.
People have more complicated conversations about shitty behavior.The acceptance of complication, right?
Like, Oh, thats kind of weird that we were punishing people so severely.
We still exist together.They didnt burn, and they didnt catch fire.
Theyre walking around buying groceries because they have to eat.
Theyre taking care of their parents.
You like how Im yelling right now?
I tried and after, like, three times, I said, You know what?
Its not meant to be.
I posted a lot about my dog Gracie when she passed.
She was my star of Instagram.
When did Gracie die?In 2019.
I was really happy I got to properly transition her and be with her in nature.
I wasnt working, and it was such a precious time.
I would see her walk behind the bushes in my friends garden, looking for a portal to leave.
She was ready.She would go into boot soles in my closet.
Then she would put her face in my boobs.
She was saying hi again.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
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