Hugh Jackman on Adventures With Oscar
 ELIOT PRESS/Bauer Griffin |
While his dad Hugh Jackman shot the epic film Australia, 8 ½-year-old Oscar Maximillian learned an important lesson in life — be careful what you wish for! During a Friday appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Hugh revealed that prior to the film his son had never expressed an interest in acting. Living in the outback was apparently enough to persuade Oscar to toss his hat in the ring, however. "We shot for eight months, and I gave in after about six months because it was hard for him," Hugh recalled. "He was going to school with the other kids on set, all the aboriginal kids that he was hanging out with and they’re all in the movie, and he couldn’t understand why he wasn’t." The 40-year-old actor reluctantly "relented" and green-lighted Oscar’s appearance in the film, and it worked out in Hugh’s favor!
"There was this one scene he was in, where it took four days to shoot and it was perfect because after four days he came up to me and said, ‘Dad, you have the most boring job in the world. I never want to do it again.’ I was like (pumps fist), ‘Alright, son. Whatever you say.’"
The experience was still a happy one for Oscar and his 3-year-old sister Ava Eliot, however. Together with their dad and mom Deborra-Lee Furness, the family of four ventured into some of the most remote areas of their homeland while making the film. "It was unbelievable," Hugh explains. "I made Oscar do school, he had a teacher, so for an hour and a half he’s like doing nothing and then the rest of the day he and the aboriginal kids would go out, go hunting, and painting, and finding grubs and eating them and having the time of his life."
Click ‘more’ to read about Oscar’s eventful trip to a L.A. Lakers game.
Hugh, who describes himself as a ‘jock,’ admitted that after welcoming Oscar he mistakenly believed he had inherited "the greatest day pass in my life, for the rest of my life." "I thought, I can now say to the wife, ‘Hey, Oscar really wants to go, he wants to go to the game, he wants to play ball, I know it’s 9 o’clock at night…’" Hugh explained. "[But] he’s never really shown much interest in sports." Undeterred, Hugh took Oscar to a Los Angeles Lakers playoff game earlier this year and thought that courtside seats would be enough to pique his son’s interest. Recalled Hugh,
"It was an unbelievable match. We were sitting next to David Arquette and Sacha Baron Cohen. Three minutes into the first quarter, he says, ‘I wanna go home, this is so boring.’"
Sacha suggested that Hugh find Oscar something to play with and a disposable camera temporarily did the trick as Oscar entertained himself by taking photos of the players and the lights in the arena. Hugh was just getting into the game, when he felt Sacha tap him on the shoulder. "I turn around, and Oscar is taking photos of David Arquette’s crotch," he said with a laugh. "Oscar thought this was brilliant." The situation was about to go from bad to worse, however! Said Hugh,
"And then I had the stupid idea of giving him Skittles…He grabbed the bag, and spilled the bag. Thank God it was a time-out. Literally we’re on the court, picture me and Sacha Baron Cohen [on hands and knees, picking up Skittles from the basketball court]. Sorry Kobe! Sorry mates!"
Australia is in theaters now.
Source: Jimmy Kimmel Live!
