Fast Chat: Racing Cars And Hearts

Emile Hirsch drives the Mach 5 in the hit film "Speed Racer." He spoke to NEWSWEEK's Ramin Setoodeh after the London premiere. Excerpts:

Setoodeh: After doing this movie, are you a better driver?
Hirsch: It's all green screen. But I'd come off "Into the Wild," where I'd done intense preparation, so just out of habit, I prepared quite a bit, even though I didn't have to do a lot of driving. I got in contact with Jimmy Johnson, the NASCAR pro.

What do you drive?
A black Toyota Prius. But I go-kart like a mofo.

Do you feel like a heartthrob?
Sometimes. I mean, I guess a little bit because people say that. But you don't necessarily want to indulge in the idea of that. It doesn't seem like the most productive idea to sit around and go, "Oh cool, I'm a heartthrob." Those are the makings of a jackass.

Have you heard people say you look like Jack Black?
That's pretty cool. I feel like maybe I'm his little brother.

Have you ever met him?
Yeah. He kind of f–––ed with me a little once. I was like, "Hey, my name is Emile." He's like, "Emo?" I was like, "Emile." He was like, "Ego?" It was funny.

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