Harry Lennix

And I know you can’t say much on “Man of Steel” but how exciting was it to get that role?

HL: Oh man! “Man of Steel” is going to be a very big deal when it comes out in Christmas of 2013. I was like a kid in a candy shop. Superman has always been my favorite superhero, it’s not even close. I guess a close second would be Spider-Man, but I’ve always been a fan of Superman since I was a little boy. As a teenager I saw the reboot with Christopher Reeve and I’ve watched that many, many times, and the second one with Christopher Reeve many, many times. To be a part of something this traditional and this foundational to the American myth is a great honor and I’m pleased to say I have a good role in it and I was honored to have been a part of the whole process.

Is your General character a little different as an authority figure than some of the other authority figures you’ve played in other films?

HL: Well I’m not at liberty to say much about it, but all characters are a little bit different. I don’t know what authority figures your referring to precisely…

Well, you played an authority figure in “The Matrix”!

HL: Right, I was a commander, and in this I’m a general. I’m sure there are common threads but I try to imbue each character with a different take every time I do it, but I do certain things well. I’m glad people like using me in things I do well. I also like expanding my horizons, and I think that’s something “Mr. Sophistication” and “A Beautiful Soul” does.

As an actor you’re able to go back-and-forth between doing a film like “Man of Steel” and then an independent film like “A Beautiful Soul”. Does doing a bigger film help you market a smaller film that doesn’t have as many dollars behind it?

HL: Generally speaking actors, certainly those who enjoy the process of acting and aren’t trying to be movie stars, we just like the process of playing interesting parts in good films. It doesn’t really matter what level the budget is or how much attention is brought. I’ve done a lot of movies over a lot of years at every level of production. Some of my favorite ones have been the smaller movies, some of my favorites have been the big ones. It really comes down to the part. I don’t look at it as an overall career strategy. My career is what it is right now, and there’s always room to expand or growth, but I like my career and I like these movies that I’ve done for the most part. Some of them have been turkeys, but none of the ones I’ve done recently qualify for that term. I’ve enjoyed just about everything I’ve been able to work on.

Do you have any more films or TV projects in the works?

HL: Yes. Right now I’m doing what I think is the first black Shakespeare film ever done, which is called “H4″. It’s a reconfiguration using Shakespeare’s language of “Henry IV Part I and II”. I play Henry IV in it along with an estimable cast including Keith David, Angus Macfadyen from “Braveheart”, we have a number of young and talented actors. We’re extremely proud of what we’re coming up with on this. At this point I’m looking to produce more movies. “Mr. Sophistication” and “H4″ represent my first production efforts and now I’m looking at all sorts of other scripts and trying to figure out ways to get these movies done. There’s a need for content. The success of “Think Like A Man” shows that there’s an audience for the content, and I think “A Beautiful Soul” will prove the same thing. We are very sanguine about the potential for this movie to get into the national consciousness. We want to be responsible for making these images of ourselves, and who better to do it than people who are like-minded. Yeah, I got a number of things up my sleeve.