"Sliding Doors"

Opening "Doors" Gwyneth Paltrow; Sliding Doors; Sydney Pollack
John Hannah talks about co-star Gwyneth Paltrow and the making
of "Sliding Doors"

by Josh Wolk
EW daily news
April 29, 1998, 12:00 a.m.


When Gwyneth Paltrow joined the cast of "Sliding Doors" and
director Sydney Pollack ("Tootsie") became the film's producer,
actor John Hannah realized that the project he had supported
for months would finally get made. But the Scottish actor, who
is best known on these shores for delivering the W.H. Auden
eulogy in "Four Weddings and a Funeral," wondered if this
American invasion would compromise what was originally
conceived as a small-scale, low-budget British film.

With a Hollywood star comes increased attention (along with a
substantial $17 million budget), and Hannah worried that the
film might suffer from the increased scrutiny of the media and
movie fans worldwide. "On the positive side, having someone
like Gwyneth in the film means there is going to be interest
from distributors, because they'll see the film will be able
to open," says Hannah, 35, who plays Paltrow's love interest.
"The downside is that British people tend to imagine that
American stars are going to be in some way different or less
human."

Fearing that Paltrow might be a picky prima donna who enjoyed
basking in her celebrity, Hannah was pleased to discover that
"the reality is she's an actress turning up to do her work,
same as everybody else." At the same time, Hannah's
preconception that Hollywood filmmakers were only in it for
the money was tempered by producer Pollack's careful attention
to the film's script, among other details. "It would be easy
to say that American production is more cynical, more
financially driven," says Hannah. "But Sydney had a thorough
way of working that was really interesting."

The thoroughness of cast and crew, including first-time
director Peter Howitt, has so far paid off at the box office.
On its opening weekend, "Sliding Doors" had the highest per-
screen take of the Top 20 films, earning $7135 per screen at
117 theaters. Says Hannah, who is now filming Universal's "The
Mummy" with Brendan Fraser, "In the past I've done art house
films that I'm really proud of, but luckily this film should
be seen by a lot more people."