Arts & Entertainment
Kevin James: The ‘Here Comes the Boom’ Interview
K
evin James was born on April 26,
1965, in Mineola, N.Y., but raised in
Stony Brook, L.I., where he
excelled at both wrestling and football. In
college, he majored in sports management
while playing fullback on the football team,
but dropped out after three years to pursue a
career in stand-up comedy.
Kevin got his big break when he landed a
recurring role on his pal Ray Romano’s sit-
com, “Everybody Loves Raymond.” In
1998, he parlayed those appearances into
his own hit sitcom, “The King of Queens,”
which went on to enjoy a nine-year run.
James has made just as a big a splash on
the big screen, starting with a memorable,
feature film debut opposite Will Smith in
the hilarious romantic comedy, “Hitch.”
Since then, the versatile funnyman has
starred in everything from “I Now Pro-
nounce You Chuck & Larry” to “Paul Blart:
Mall Cop” to “Grown Ups” to “Zookeeper”
to “Hotel Transylvania.”
Kevin and his wife, actress Steffiana De
La Cruz, live in L.A. with their three chil-
dren. Here, he talks about his new film,
“Here Comes the Boom,” where he plays a
biology teacher who moonlights as a pro-
fessional mixed martial arts fighter to raise
enough money to save a colleague’s job.
Kam Williams: Hi Kevin, thanks for the
interview. I’m honored to have this oppor-
tunity to speak with you.
Kevin James: My pleasure, Kam.
KW: I really enjoyed “Here Comes the
Boom.” It’s a very entertaining, family film.
What inspired you to write it?
KJ: I’m glad you liked it! Basically, I’ve
always been interested in the mixed martial
C ELEBRITY
I NTERVIEW
by Kam
Williams
arts, and I had some ideas about how to
show the sport in a different light. But I also
wanted to give some props to all the great
teachers who had helped me and served as
very positive role models when I was grow-
ing up, especially since they continue to
influence me to this day, so many years
later. I wanted to show how much of a dif-
ference a teacher can make in a child’s life
by putting them on the right path.
KW: Was there one teacher in particular
you’d like to give a shout out to?
KJ: Yes, Mr. Betcher. I named the princi-
pal in the film after him. He was a great
teacher, but I had a bunch of them who were
fantastic, I really did, who were cool with
me, supportive, and taught me to be a good
man. That’s important. You don’t realize the
effect it will have.
KW: Editor/Legist Patricia Turnier asks:
What do you want the audience to take
away from “Here Comes the Boom?”
KJ: Because it’s a comedy, I primarily
want people to escape, have fun, and really
enjoy themselves for a couple hours. But,
secondarily, it does have an inspirational
message about the amazing effect that one
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Kevin James
can have on others when you start becoming
the better version of yourself. We all
become complacent at some point in our
lives, and sometimes it takes the inspiration
of others to get going again. In the case of
this movie, I not only help Henry Winkler’s
character save his job, but my actions uplift
the students and other people around me. It
sort of pays it forward.
KW: Patricia also says: You wear many
hats, as an actor, comedian, writer, and pro-
ducer. Which do you enjoy the most, and
which is the most challenging?
KJ: They’re all challenging when you’re
wearing them simultaneously. They’re all
rewarding and can be kinda scary, and the
responsibility becomes that much greater,
obviously. But I surround myself with great
people who keep me in check, which is
important. For instance, they’ll always help
me to get to that place where I need to be, if
I’m not doing what I need to be doing in a
certain scene, creatively. Then I have some
other people in my life like my makeup lady
who’s the worst, but then she has a tough
job, too. [Laughs]
KW: Harriet Pakula Teweles says: If
‘faint heart n’er won fair maid,’ you should
have won a lot more women than Selma
Hayek in “Here Comes the Boom.”
Congrats on a wonderful romantic-come-
dy performance, a genre at which you’re a
master.
KJ: Wow! That’s very sweet, Harriet! It’s
nice to show that, with a little extra effort, a
guy who’s not only an underdog in mixed
martial arts but an underdog in love can pre-
vail in both.
KW: Harriet also asks: What other types
of roles do you see yourself in that are still
out there waiting for you—even if it means
there’s no Selma for you at the end of the
film.
KJ: It all depends on the story. It always
has. It’s not like I say, “I have to do another
comedy next,” or “I have to do a drama
next.” Wherever the story takes me and
whatever moves me in a fresh direction. I
like to let it just happen.
KW: Harriet was wondering whether
there’s a remake of a classic movie you’d
like to star in? She suggest doing Kirk Dou-
glas’ role in “Detective Story?”
KJ: Wow! I’ve never seen Detective
Story, but I’m sure it’s a great movie. I’ll
definitely look into it, if she feels it’s wor-
thy of a remake. That could be very cool.
KW: Dinesh Sharma asks: Would you say
this film used mixed martial arts as a
metaphor
for
school
reform?
KJ: Absolutely! It’s a metaphor for any
obstacle you might have in your life. This is
not to say that taking up mixed martial arts
will solve your problems. [Chuckles] It’s
not that at all. Rather, it’s used to show how
far my character, Scott Voss, would go for a
friend. He’s willing to lay down his life.
There’s no greater gift than that.
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