Inspiring Words: Jason Schwartzman
Actor and musician Jason Schwartzman encourages kids and parents to embrace whats makes them different.
We think Jason Schwartzman has arrived. The star of such offbeat films as Rushmore and The Darjeeling Limited, the 30-year-old actor just reached the pinnacle of cool with us by lending his voice talents to the animated version of The Fantastic Mr. Fox, which is based on the classic Roald Dahl children’s book. It’s one of our favorites.
Schwartzman plays Ash, the young son in a family of foxes that wages battle against three mean farmers. The actor, who grew up in the wilds of Los Angeles, fit the part perfectly, because although he’s no longer a child (“I’m not a fox, either,” he says with restrained irony), he understands how to think like one. “I love that kids’ minds don’t work linearly—and that they believe that everything is possible. It’s so freeing.”
Judging by Schwartzman’s screen persona, we think that free thinking is the key to his appeal. You’re never quite sure what’s going on inside his head. Some might call that quirky or unpredictable. But it’s clear that Schwartzman believes that everyone should follow his own star. When asked what he wants kids to take away from Mr. Fox, he replies, “I hope that they see that the things that make them unique and different are the things that make them great.”
