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Cameron Crowe has directed many stars throughout his storied filmmaking career, from Tom Cruise in beloved movies like 1996’s Jerry Maguire and 2001’s Vanilla Sky to Kate Hudson in his 2000 hit Almost Famous.
But it was John Cusack, who Crowe worked with in his 1989 movie Say Anything, who taught him his most important lesson as a filmmaker, the Academy Award-winning director tells PEOPLE for a story in this week’s print issue.
Crowe, 68 whose new memoir The Uncool hits shelves on Oct. 28, says he wasn’t originally going to direct the cult classic. He was set on finding someone else for the job, until producer James L. Brooks suggested Crowe take on the role himself.
“I was like, ‘What do I need to know about directing?’” Crowe recalls. “[Brooks said] ‘It’s not as difficult as you think if you know the movie you want to make.’”
The resulting film, about the budding romance between recent graduates Lloyd (Cusack) and Diane (Ione Skye), is now a fan favorite. It also marked Crowe’s first time directing a feature film, after the 1983 documentary Tom Petty: Heartbreakers Beach Party.
“I have all these people on my shoulder because it’s a first time guy,” Crowe recalls of filming. “[Cusack] finished this take and immediately all these people were on my shoulder. Cusack’s standing there on set, and he motions to me.”
“We go for a little walk. He goes, ‘I’ve worked with some really good directors. I’ve worked with Rob Reiner and John Sayles, and I just want to say I’m here to throw down for you,’” Crowe says.
“‘You’re going to meet other actors like me, and they’re there for you. So when I finish a take, I don’t want to look up and see a huddle of people whispering. That s— doesn’t work with me. I want to see you and me locked in. Are we doing it together?’”
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Crowe says that Cusack’s advice has followed him to every project he’s directed since.
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“You literally cannot pull me away from being as much there for the actor as possible because they are throwing down for you,” he says. “They’re going to give you their best stuff to do what you want to do with it. So f——g be there for them.”
In The Uncool, Crowe looks back on his one-of-a-kind career, from his days as a teen reporter for outlets like Rolling Stone to his critically-acclaimed profession as a filmmaker. After decades spent telling other people’s stories, however, the author says that penning his own memoir reminded him why he loved writing to begin with.
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“I could never be in a band, but I can write something that can summon the feeling that a song can give you,” Crowe says. “And I love that.”
The Uncool will be published on Oct. 28 and is now available for preorder, wherever books are sold.
