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I’ve always felt that if you back down from a fear, the ghost of that fear never goes away. It diminishes people.
I was probably more scared of my high school exams than I was of the Oscars. At the time you think it’s everything and if you don’t do well, your life’s over. Opportunities are gone. So the more you do it, the less the fear is present.
I’m doing a new musical on Broadway, which opens in October called ‘The Boy from Oz,’ where I play Peter Allen. For those of you who don’t know, he became first famous in America for marrying Liza Minelli.
My parents were drawn to the idea that there was space and opportunity in Australia. For the meagre sum of £10, you could sail your entire family out to Australia, so that’s what my father chose to do.
I’m not a kid. You don’t get in this business for anonymity. It’s not like I have posters of myself on the wall, but at the same time, I’m kind of ready for a little bit of it, but I worry for my little one, and my family – their privacy. That’s what I’m more protective of.
My kids are not that interested in my movie career, by the way. My son, in particular, never talks about it. He just wants me as his dad.
I’ve never heard my dad say a bad word about anybody. He always keeps his emotions in check and is a true gentleman. I was taught that losing it was indulgent, a selfish act.
My friends say, ‘Man you’re going to have kids sleeping on pillowcases with your face on it! You’re going to be on toothbrushes and magnets and stuff.’ I guess now that I’m a dad, I’m thrilled about that.
Now I meditate twice a day for half an hour. In meditation, I can let go of everything. I’m not Hugh Jackman. I’m not a dad. I’m not a husband. I’m just dipping into that powerful source that creates everything. I take a little bath in it.
I once sang ‘Summer Nights,’ from ‘Grease,’ at a bar in Melbourne with John Travolta, who’s a good friend of mine. He looked cool singing the part of Danny – sitting in an armchair, smoking a cigar – while I got stuck playing Sandy.