Interview: Shawn Hatosy

Shawn Hatosy and Amy Smart in "Outside Providence."

By Jack Garner
Democrat and Chronicle

(Sept. 1, 1999) -- As a young actor, Shawn Hatosy has crept up on viewers -- first as Kevin Kline's gay student in In & Out, then as captain of the football team in The Faculty.

But, if teen magazines and fan Web sites are any indication, Hatosy is fast becoming the flavor of the month, especially among teenage fans. One magazine even labeled him "the next Tom Cruise."

Hatosy is the first to admit such recognition is nice, but it has a built-in danger: Who'll be the flavor of next month?

"I don't want to run into the whole teen sensation thing," Hatosy says, frankly. He says he's looking for staying power.

That's why he's thrilled that Outside Providence is finally arriving in theaters. Though he shot the film some two years ago, it's been polished and packaged for an optimum release this month.

Anticipation is high because the film is from the Farrelly brothers, the writers of the mega-hit, There's Something About Mary. And the soundtrack of vintage '70s music has attracted notice.

But for Hatosy, the release marks his debut in a lead role, and he's hoping his portrayal of a working-class Rhode Island teen will earn the sort of respect that can translate to staying power as an actor.

"It would be great if people could take me seriously."

Hatosy plays a blue-collar teen with a rough-and-tumble relationship with his widower father (Alec Baldwin). After getting busted by the cops, the boy is given a choice -- prep school or jail. He opts for prep school, which leads to a class-conscious comedy-drama about a poor kid at a snobby academy.

"It was a great script," Hatosy says. "Every time I turned a page, I could identify with so many things. It's not often you find a script about younger people that's honest and truthful, and not a cliche.

"The relationship with the old man also was nice to explore. I think most kids, when they're 16 or 17, have a falling out with the old man."

Now 23, Hatosy grew up in Maryland, the son of a graphic designer and a loan officer, and knew he wanted to act for as long as he can remember.

"I really responded to being the center of attention. I enjoyed garnering reaction from everybody around. There wasn't a point when I knew I'd be an actor, because I always wanted to do it.

"But acting isn't brain surgery. It's a weird craft, and you can't talk about how you do it."

Hatosy originally planned to take the academic route to acting, and applied to Julliard. But when he was turned down, he just started taking roles wherever and whenever he could land them.

He did commercials, and appeared in two projects filmed in nearby Baltimore -- an episode of TV's Homicide and Jodie Foster's film, Home for the Holidays.

Then he moved to New York City, did more commercials and a spot on TV's Law and Order, and that led to In & Out.

However, the release of Outside Providence makes 1999 a pivotal year for the young actor, especially since it's to be followed shortly with two other films, Simpatico and Anywhere But Here.

Hatosy has moved to Los Angeles to capitalize on his blooming film career.

"But I hang around with a Maryland contingent. They're old friends, so if I get too big a head on my shoulders, they're perfectly willing to give me a kick in the butt."