Actor Jeff Bridges struck a hopeful note while discussing the results of this year’s presidential election in an interview this week.
In a brief conversation with Entertainment Weekly to discuss his summer sleeper hit Hell or High Water, the 66-year-old actor said he believes the Western action film “shines a light” on why the election went the way that it did, with Republican Donald Trump triumphing over Democrat Hillary Clinton, and on why so many Americans are “disappointed” in their government.
“They have little faith in it, and we’ll see. I hope we don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater here,” Bridges warned. “But I’m rooting for the guy, Mr. Trump.”
The actor continued:
“One of the things that’s most appealing about [Trump] is his unpredictability. A less kind word might be his hypocrisy, but unpredictability and hypocrisy are things that each of us human being share. It’s something we all struggle with and work with. I was pleased to hear his acceptance speech. Taken out of context, that would be wonderful. Talking about unpredictability, who would have thought that he would be praising Hillary Clinton and thanking her for her wonderful work after trashing her and inviting all of the people who didn’t vote for him, that he’d be looking for guidance from these people, all of these wonderful things? I’m rooting for the guy, but we’ll see how it all goes. You just don’t know how it will all work out.”
Bridges added that he is “fascinated” by Trump’s potential Cabinet and administration appointments and is waiting to see how it all shakes out.
“It’s kind of like that Zen story,” he said. “We’ll see. President Obama has set a good tone, and so has Hillary. I like what Elizabeth Warren said. She had some good things to say, so we’ll see, as the farmer said.”
In a June interview with the Daily Beast, the Oscar-winning actor said he was supporting Clinton in the presidential race and said he did not “dig” Trump.
“I don’t go the Trump way,” he said then.
Bridges’s willingness to see where Trump’s presidency goes makes him one of the few celebrities in Hollywood to take a conciliatory approach to this year’s election result. Other stars like John Legend, actor Michael Shannon and the rock band Green Day have continued to speak out against Trump following his victory earlier this month.
Bridges’ Hell or High Water opened to rave reviews earlier this summer and took in just over $27 million at the box office on a reported production budget of just $12 million, despite playing in just 1,500 theaters.
The film, which also stars Chris Pine and Ben Foster, will be released on DVD and Blu-ray on November 22.
Follow Daniel Nussbaum on Twitter: @dznussbaum