BEVERLY HILLS, California — When Edward Cullen was 18 years old in 1919, Hollywood superstars Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford came up with the idea for United Artists — a studio that would give actors greater control over which films they got to make and take the creative decisions away from commercial-minded studio execs. When Edward was 68 years old, Paul Newman, Sidney Poitier and Barbra Streisand made waves with their First Artists Production Company, pledging the same actors-first mentality.
Now, Robert Pattinson is determined to mark Edward's upcoming second-century teenage period with a similar endeavor, using his newfound star power to make the kind of movies he wants to see.
"I definitely think it would be nice for the artist to have more of a say in their work," RPattz said when we caught up with him recently, expanding on past comments that his dream is to use his newfound clout to launch an ambitious effort that will return power to the actor.
"I want to open my production company. What I hate the most in an actor's life is the idea that you have to wait until someone else decides what you have to do," he told Italian Vanity Fair recently. "I don't like this feeling of powerlessness, the total loss of control. I always admired Warren Beatty's career: actor, director, producer."
Following up on those comments, Rob told MTV News he wants to produce and star in all sorts of movies. "I don't really have a specific type. I mean, I look at film, my taste in film is just eclectic," said the star, who's been known to recommend everything from the NC-17-rated "Last Tango in Paris" to Godard's "Prenom Carmen" to the 2001 Chris Kattan bomb "Corky Romano." "What I appreciate is reflective of stuff I want to do as an actor.
"I guess, just from my experience in the industry and stuff like that, I'd like to make it a lot easier for the creative people to get their thoughts heard," Pattinson continued. "Because I think it's difficult."
Over the past 12 months, Rob has seen some projects fall apart and others come out of nowhere, and as his stock has soared, the indie-minded star has seen how difficult it is to get good films made.
"There's so much money involved, and it's such a huge investment to make a movie, and it's difficult to make money in this climate," he explained, already sounding like a producer. "But when you hear about [people] at film festivals saying, 'There are no passion purchases anymore at all,' like, when people just say, 'This is a great movie, and I want to distribute it because people wouldn't be able to see it [otherwise].' There's none of that anymore.
"So what I'm saying is that I'd love to invest in stuff which wouldn't make any money," he laughed, before turning serious. "But I think there is a compromise in between the two."
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