FROM THE DIRECTOR OF ELECTION AND ABOUT SCHMIDT
Paul Giamatti isn’t nearly as amused as fans think he will be when they send him over bottles of Merlot in restaurants. And, after two decades of hearing it—sometimes yelled in his face at great volume—the Sideways star could definitely do without people repeating the film’s iconic line to him. Giamatti isn’t even all that into wine, but Alexander Payne, the film’s director, says he couldn’t see anyone else in the role. In fact, according to Rex Pickett, the author of the novel that served as its basis, production had stalled until Payne finally found his Miles in Giamatti. Payne and Giamatti teamed up again in last year’s gem, The Holdovers. “I would do anything that guy wants me to do, anytime,” Giamatti said to Deadline of Payne. “He’s one of the greatest American directors alive … I’ll do anything he wants.”
We asked the Academy Award-winning filmmaker to look back on Merlot and more, two decades after the making of his iconic movie.
“I never, ever could have imagined that one little joke in the movie—one line—would enter popular culture. I guess it hit a chord.”
How has your interest in wine changed or evolved since?
