Twenty-five years after his first Academy Award nomination, Ethan Hawke is back in the Oscar race – and feeling the time wrap.
Recently nominated for Best Actor for Blue Moon, Hawke can’t help but look back at 2001’s Training Day, the gritty thriller that first landed him on the Academy’s radar.
“I was the youngest in my category and now I’m the oldest,” Hawke, 55, told People magazine. “And it happened so fast. It feels like six years ago that Training Day came out to me in my brain, so it’s hard not to think about a lifetime spent doing this,” he continued.
“I’m incredibly grateful to be here and to still be doing this dance because I enjoy it a lot, but it does make you think a lot about time.”
Back then, he was riding shotgun opposite Denzel Washington in a career-defining role.
“I was having a great time in 2001. I don’t know if I needed a lot of advice,” Hawke says with a laugh. “I knew how fortunate I was to be there, to get to do this whole event with Denzel. He’s one of the greatest actors who’ve ever lived, and so to get to ride shotgun — that wasn’t lost on me what a special experience that was.”
He added, “I’ve always been patient. It wasn’t like I was here like a bag of anxiety [or] nerves. I enjoyed every second, and I’m trying to do the same now.”
Blue Moon marks Hawke’s ninth collaboration with longtime creative partner Richard Linklater. “We’ve been pushing each other and driving each other for 30 years. And we’ve made films that are really meaningful to us. And when other people like them, it feels tremendous,” said Hawke.
The Oscars, hosted by Conan O’Brien air March 15 on ABC and stream on Hulu.
Full circle? Maybe. But Hawke’s still enjoying the ride.
