Franz Rogowski Still Wears His Passages Costumes

Anyone who’s ever loved a grade A narcissist will immediately recognize that person in Franz Rogowski’s Passages character, Tomas. In the film, directed by Ira Sachs, the German actor gives a breakout performance as a charming yet romantically manipulative film director who leaves his husband (Ben Whishaw) for a young schoolteacher (Adèle Exarchopoulos), only to insert himself back into his husband’s life when he attempts to move on. Driven by impulse and passion, Tomas lives life according to his whims and with zero empathy for how his actions affect others. Here, the former dancer discusses how he related to the role and why hitting the red carpet feels like a military operation.

In Passages, you play a very self-centered person. Was it difficult to walk in and out of that kind of character?

It was an adventure. Ira Sachs told me that I didn’t have to prepare too much because I was perfect for the part. I felt like, Oh wow, that's weird, because my character’s quite an extreme guy, and I'm not sure I would want to be with somebody like him. But the more we experienced those scenes, the more we got to understand that Tomas actually wants similar things as his partners: recognition, love, intimacy. He wants to be seen and to settle down, but at the same time he wants to be alive. That struggle is something that I can very much relate to.

Your character has an interesting wardrobe: lots of cropped, tight T-shirts and a furry coat.

The costumes are half of my character. The top I’m wearing in this movie is a bit too short to make friends with your new girlfriend’s father! Some of the pieces from the film are in my wardrobe today. My favorite is a green sweater and leopard pants, but I wear them on private occasions.

Passages is a complicated love story, almost a love triangle. Did you shoot it in sequence, or was it all over the place?

It was all over the place. Love is a crazy thing; you can't really control it. We all try to understand what it is and what it means and how we can be careful and passionate at the same time. I guess that's also what we tried while shooting this movie. Even though it might appear aggressive and self-centered, at the end of the day it's a creation that we did together.

Did you always want to become an actor?

I didn't. I feel like I've been slightly traumatized by high school, and I was wondering what could I do that has a bit to do with art and sport and also ethics, which was a philosophical subject for those who wouldn't go to the religious classes. I figured acting might be an answer to those three interests of mine, and then I started to write a monologue in the cornfields of my hometown. I remember sitting on a little bench, smoking weed and writing a monologue about my parents and my pain. And that got me into acting school.

You started your career as a contemporary dancer. What was your first role as an actor?

A mumblecore film called Love Steaks. I played a massage therapist in a hotel spa. He’s clumsy but also gifted. He gets into all kinds of trouble.

Do you still dance?

I don't. I stopped because I was in pain. I had a lot of back and knee pain and all kinds of different aches that told me to find another profession.

Do you still choreograph, say, for films?

I feel like acting is like dance choreography, since most of the things that we want to say, we actually don't say. We feel them or we translate them into looks or subconscious responses toward someone or something. I love those little silent monologues or dialogues. For me, the silent conversations are the ones I like the most.

Do you like to sing?

I never listen to music. I think it's due to my hearing. The problem is when you are half deaf like me, you never know the lyrics. When I was a child, people would dance and sing along to music, and it was terrible for me. I started to lip sync what they were singing, but I had no idea what it was about. It has stayed that way. I don't know a single song's lyrics. Sometimes you don’t have to hear everything. It’s surprising how much of the stuff we say is unnecessary.

Do you ever get starstruck?

I saw one of the Safdie brothers, and I felt a bit stupid for approaching him, like, "I love your film so much." I can't wait to see his next movie.

Is there a famous person that you've had a crush on?

I guess I've never had a crush on famous people. It's due to my upbringing. I'm a Swabian, and we're very grounded in work discipline. If somebody is famous, you always doubt them a little bit, or you feel sorry for them, or you don't want to put them on a pedestal because they deserve to be treated normally. The people I had a crush on in my life were people I bumped into on the street. People that you meet in the weirdest moment of your life, not people that you meet on the red carpet. On the red carpet, I often feel a bit like a soldier on a mission.

Senior Style Editor: Allia Alliata di Montereale. Senior Fashion Market Editor and Menswear Director: Jenna Wojciechowski. Hair for portfolio by Mustafa Yanaz for Dyson at Art+Commerce; makeup for portfolio by Emi Kaneko for Tom Ford at Bryant Artists; manicures for portfolio by Michelle Saunders for Chanel. Set design by Peter Klein at Frank Reps. Special thanks to Ms. Bebe at Outfitters Wig Shop in Hollywood.

Produced by Connect the Dots; Executive Producer: Wes Olson; Producer: Zack Higginbottom; Production manager: Nicole Morra; Production coordinator: David Cahill; First photography assistant: Trevor Pikhart; Second photography assistant: Jeremy Eric Sinclair; Digital Technician: Brendan Pattengale; Postproduction by Lucas Rios Palazesi at Quickfix; Fashion assistants: Tori López, Tyler VanVranken, Molly Cody, India Reed, John Celaya, Kaamilah Thomas, Emily Cancelosi, Allie Kessler, Juliana Bassi, Karla Garcia, Jacqueline Chen, Cosima Croquet; Production assistants: Mateo Calvo, Aspen Miller, Nico Robledo, Griffin Koerner, Danielle Rouleau, Nicolo Battaglini, Juanes Montoya, Juan Calvo, Lily Cordingley, Nathan Gallie, Cameron Hoge, Jack Fahey, Cole Ewing, Karlie Ofstedahl; Hair assistants: Takao Hayashi, Andres Copeland; Makeup assistants: Amelia Berger, Willie Huang; Manicure assistants: Rachel Messick, Marissa Asprer; Set assistants: Christopher Crash Richard, Winston Willingham; Tailors: Irina Tshartaryan, Elma Click, Gayane Mnatsakanyan at Susie’s Custom Designs, Inc.