Matthew Goode is the element of Watchmen that makes you the most nervous. And he knows that, and it kind of makes him nervous in response.
When I visited the set back in October of 2007, I was really impressed by Goode; more than almost anyone else in the movie, he was there on sheer faith. He wasn’t a comic book guy, he didn’t have a lot of time to prepare, and the character he was playing was the most flamboyant, the least explored and, in many ways, the most pivotal in the book.
I think he did a terrific job as Adrian Veidt, aka Ozymandias, the smartest man in the world. In a movie that is exceptionally faithful to the book, almost every element of Ozy has been tweaked in some way, and Goode has created a character that feels very fresh and very different, which also retaining what it was that made the character originally work.
This interview is heavily filled with spoilers, so those who have never read the book beware. It’s also a little shaky; I’m filming these video interviews on my Flip Mini, which is palm sized. Hopefully my camera technique will improve in the future.
Matthew Goode Interview from devincf on Vimeo.