In her upcoming film, The One and Only Ivan, Hollywood superstar Angelina Jolie brings to life the lovely characters of author Katharine Applegate. She is a talented filmmaker and artist who has entertained audiences for decades. But in a recent conversation about the film, Jolie acknowledged that she’s actually “boring” when it comes to artistry and that she spends much of her free time “studying foreign policy.”
‘The One and Only Ivan’ is based on a children’s book
Based on the novel of the same name by Applegate, The One and Only Ivan tells the story of a silverback gorilla named Ivan (spoken by Sam Rockwell) who lives in captivity in the Big Top Mall. He performs for his circus performance of Mack (Bryan Cranston) with his friends – Stella, the Elephant (Angelina Jolie), Henrietta, The Chicken (Chaka Khan), Snickers the Poodle (Helen Mirren), Murphy the Rabbit (Ron Funches), Bob the bush dog (Danny DeVito), and Frankie the seal (Mike White).
For the most part, Ivan feels like he’s living a pretty comfortable life. But when a baby elephant named Ruby (Brooklyn Prince) joins the circus, Ivan begins to question the status quo.
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Angelina Jolie produced ‘The One and Only Ivan’ and also starred in the film
Not only does Jolie take the lead role of Stella, but she also serves as the producer of The One and Only Ivan. When she spoke to ET, she revealed that her daughter, Shiloh Jolie-Pitt, first introduced her to the story.
“Well, Shiloh told me years ago that she had read a book that she loved and that she wanted to read it,” Jolie said. ‘I read it to myself and then we saw something about it together and we talked about why she liked it. Then I wondered if it was made – as you do – into a movie, and I found out it was kinda in the works, but kinda did not [been] to find out.”
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Jolie said she has remained at the top of production through the years. And they noted that they were trying to ensure that the film remained true to the book.
“It’s a very special story,” she added. ‘It’s an important real story and I think it’s resonating with all of us. The story goes, you know, it’s never too late to discover who you are and to step forward with this person and make them better [yourself] and to be a better person and to make that choice. ”
Why Angelina Jolie says she’s ‘really boring’
In The One and Only Ivan, Bob the dog suggests that everyone is a “little arty”. When asked about her creativity and artistic prowess, Jolie Collider said she did not have much to offer.
“I feel really bored,” Jolie admitted. “I spend a lot of time studying foreign policy.”
But the actor / producer also stated that she finds inspiration in her children. “My creativity is my kids, being with them and making stories before bed or just being stupid with them,” Jolie added.
‘It’s really nothing I do, just see how each of them becomes unique who they are, and are around, and go into each of their rooms and talk to them. It’s about the conversations you have or the parts of their thoughts that you develop. ”
Jolie’s new movie, The One and Only Ivan premieres August 21 at Disney +.
