We recently chatted with actor Paul Dano (Little Miss Sunshine and There Will Be Blood) who will be appearing at 92YTribeca with director Matt Aselton and columnist Steve Ramos for a special preview screening and discussion of Gigantic on April 1.

We’ve seen you hanging around 92YTribeca before. What did you see, and how did you like it?
I think the last thing I saw there was standup comedian Zach Galifianakis. Very funny.

What attracts young people to downtown New York?
Movies, music, bars, coffee, women (or men), and the occasional freak show. Or a tranny bar.

In Gigantic, you play a mattress salesman. What was the worst job you’ve ever had?
The worst and best job I have ever had is being an actor.

Did you do any special research for getting into this role? Hang out at Sleepys a lot?
Actually, I did hang out at Sleepys. In fact, I talked to such a sweet and charming salesman that I ended up buying a bed, which was not my intention. The next day I had to cancel my order, which I still feel very bad about. Hopefully I can go back and actually buy a bed from that guy someday, so he gets his commission. I also got Chinese language tapes with the intention to try to learn a little (as my character Brian did). 

Your character meets and falls in love (with Zooey Deschanel’s character) while at work. Have you ever met somebody special on the job?
Yes. I’ll leave it at that.

You’ve already been in a few mega-hits like Little Miss Sunshine and There Will Be Blood. Did you have a defining moment of working on either film?
Getting to work with Daniel Day-Lewis and Paul Thomas Anderson was a defining moment. In every way. The chance to work with them, learn from them...I was very fortunate to be there.

You had less than a week to prepare for the role of Eli Sunday in TWBB, while Daniel Day-Lewis had over a year to construct Daniel Plainview. What was the process like of creating the character that quickly and opposite one of Hollywood’s greats?
I had to throw myself in, not looking back. With a very short research period, it was mostly guts and instincts. There wasn’t much time to second guess myself. I had a strong impression of the character when I read the script. I started with that, and then it was out of my hands.

What was it like working with Zooey, and do you plan on doing any projects with her in the future?
Zooey D is great. She is fun, very lively, and very easy to work with. I would most certainly work with her again, and I hope to. I think we had a good time together, and I’m also a fan of her work.

What was it like to get “beat up” by Daniel Day-Lewis?
It was a thrill, although it was an even greater pleasure to get to slap him back in the face. As committed as Daniel is, he is quite generous and kind, so although there were moments of true terror, it never felt unsafe, and was actually quite fun. You have to give it all you have for the sake of the film, even if it means digesting some mud.