COVER STORY
Susan Sarandon: Purpose, Passion, and ...Ping-Pong
LEFT TORIGHT:
©ORION/COURTESY EVERETTCOLLECTION,
©MGM/COURTESYEVERETTCOLLECTION,COURTESY EVERETTCOLLECTION (2),
©BARRYWECHTER
SUMMER 2010
celebratedliving.com
28
O
On-screen, she’splayedavarietyof challenging roles,
froma sexybaseball groupie (
BullDurham
) anda
dyingdivorcedmom (
Stepmom
) toagun-totingwait-
resson the lam (
ThelmaandLouise
) andanunwho
befriendedan inmateondeath row (
DeadMan
Walking
). But perhaps it’s theoffscreen roleof empty
nester that remains themost challenging todate for
SusanSarandon.
The accomplishedAcademyAward-winning
actress is themotherof three—daughterEva (25)
and sonsJackHenry (21) andMiles (18).Motherhood
isa role inwhich she clearlyexcels, havingkept the
childrenof show-businessparents—Eva is the
daughterof ItalianfilmdirectorFrancoAmurri, and
JackHenryandMilesareher sonswith formerpart-
ner, actorTimRobbins—groundedandonaneven
keel.All threehavepickedup the familyfilmgenes;
Eva isafilmand televisionactress (motherand
daughterappeared together in the 2002film
The
BangerSisters
), Jack is studyingdirectingat theUni-
versity of SouthernCalifornia, andMiles recently
appearedwithhismother in the2009film
TheGreatest
.
Mileswill be the last to leavehome, asbothmother
and sonareanxiouslyawaiting college-acceptance
letters, althoughSarandon feels “theremaybeagap,
ashe is reallyagoodmusician.”As for emptynesting,
theupbeat actress is “veryexcitedaboutmynext
stageaswell as thenext stageofmy children’s lives.
It is somuch fun to seepeople [her children] that you
want tohavedinner, laugh, andgoplaceswith. I am
more curious thaneverand feel like I have shifted in
agoodwayanddon’t have to checkon thekidsevery
two secondsandplanmeals. Everything changes
whenyouhave tobehome in theeveningandget kids
up for school in themorning!”
One thing thatwill not change, however, isher
acting career.At a timewhenparts forwomenover 50
inHollywood are few and far between, longevity
appears tobe the 63-year-oldactress’ strong suit (she
is ingreat companywith contemporariesMeryl
Streep,HelenMirren, SigourneyWeaver, andJessica
Lange). Sarandonhasappeared inmore than 50 fea-
turefilms, on television, andonBroadway sinceher
breakout performanceas thenaiveJanet in the cult
classic
TheRockyHorrorPictureShow
in 1975.
Sarandon’s recentwork includes thebiopic
You
Don’tKnowJack
, onHBOearlier in thespring.Actor
AlPacinoplayed the roleof the infamousDr. Jack
Kevorkian,whoassistsdyingpatientswithend-of-life
suicides, andSarandonplayedcivil rightsadvocate
Janet Good. Also out in the springwas her film
Peacock
, apsychological thrillerabouta residentof
tinyPeacock,Nebraska,who livesan invisible life.
ThisSeptember, Sarandonappears in thehighly
anticipated
WallStreet:MoneyNeverSleeps
fromTwen-
tiethCenturyFox, thevery timelyyetcautionarysequel
to the1987AcademyAward-winninghit
WallStreet.
MichaelDouglasrepriseshisroleas the“greed isgood”
financier turnedparoleeGordonGekko.Thedrama
revolvesaroundareformedGekko,whoattempts to
adviseWallStreetbefore thestockmarketcrashashe
alsorepairshisrelationshipwithhisdaughterand
avenges thedeathofacolleague.SarandonplaysSylvia
Moore, anursewhogetscaught in thereal estate
crunchandhas toborrowmoney fromherson, ayoung
A
STAR
IS
BORN
,
LEFT
TO
RIGHT
:
Susan Sarandon in
Bull Durham,
Thelma and Louise, Dead Man Walking, Peacock,
and
Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps
