Simon Rex describes going from the ‘no-plan van’ to starring in ‘Red Rocket’

Simon Rex has kept busy over the years: He’s been a model, an MTV veejay, a rapper (aka the comedic persona Dirt Nasty) and an actor in TV shows and films like “What I Like About You” and “Scary Movie 5.” In his youth, he even paid the bills by doing a few solo pornographic scenes that have haunted him ever since.

Now, at 47, the California native’s life has changed forever thanks to “Red Rocket,” the new film by “The Florida Project” director Sean Baker. Rex, who has been living out near Joshua Tree, is suddenly winning awards at film festivals from Newport Beach to Mill Valley and even generating Oscar buzz for his rambunctious yet poignant portrayal of Mikey Saber, the self-absorbed whirlwind who blows into Texas City, Texas, trailing trouble in his wake. 

Mikey is a porn star, who hit a rough patch and has returned home to lick his wounds and plot his triumphant return, although that actually gives Mikey a bit more credit for planning than he really deserves.

Mikey imposes himself – with impulsivity, recklessness and a not inconsiderable amount of charm – on his estranged wife, his neighbor, the local weed dealer, and a 17-year-old named Strawberry (Suzanna Son) who works in the donut shop.

Eating berries and bacon during a video interview, Rex, who now has new career options including a children’s music album, reflected on the movie and how it has changed his life. “I knew this would be a good experience, Sean Baker doesn’t do bad movies,” he says, but the awards and attention took him by surprise. “I can’t even wrap my head around it. It’s still surreal.”

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Q. How much did you draw on Sean’s research, on people you’ve known and on your own life to create Mikey?

Sean showed me archetypes of the person in interviews with people he had met in the industry. I got it quickly; these crazy, delusional sociopaths are everywhere, in every field of life. Everyone in Hollywood is a delusional narcissist, dreamers who come to L.A. thinking, “I’m better than everyone; I’m going to make it.” You have to be a little crazy and that probably includes myself when I was younger. So it wasn’t too hard to pull up those delusions of grandeur. 

I also relied on the script, which was very well written, and then it was mostly instinct and using my imagination.

Q. Mikey behaves terribly throughout the film — he’s either making bad decisions that lead to self-inflicted wounds or behaving selfishly and inflicting that damage on those around him. How did you find a way to make us relate to and even root for him most of that time?

I’ve always played the sitcom guy – safe characters who are coloring within the lines so to play the guy where the audience just thinks “Shut up, stop, you’re just putting your foot in your mouth” was really fun.

On the page, it oscillates back and forth as to whether he does have a moral compass. He gets upset when people are doing drugs or pretending to be in the military, but you have to think about whether he really does care or whether it all comes back to being all about him. Maybe he doesn’t know what he’s doing and doesn’t have bad intentions. So I likened him to a cute puppy that pees on the rug and you want to get mad but he’s cute and doesn’t mean to do it. 

Q. The quiet scene where Strawberry reveals her secret ambition by playing her music for Mikey is pivotal in their dynamic. How did you approach that? 

While we were filming, I was just staring at her, remembering a famous movie where a famous actress, who I can’t remember, was watching her whole village burn down. At first, she was sobbing but the director said no, just give a blank stare – less is more, let the audience put it together. So I just sat there. You can decide what Mikey is thinking. 

Sean has so many of those moments left open to interpretation. Most movies give you fixed answers in a tightly wrapped bow. That’s too easy and kind of boring – why not have nuance and things to talk about? 

Q. Sean casts non-professional actors and shoots on a small budget. What was that like for you?

We were shooting the movie on the edge, with a low budget, a ten-person crew, and Covid testing. It’s really ambitious, but made with no comforts, no luxury, which I think served the movie. I had no trailer to retreat to between scenes, I’d go sit in my rental car with the air conditioner on. I don’t think Mikey Saber would have been chilling in an RV; he’d be in a rental car— he would have illegally gotten his with a stolen credit card. 

Working with the cast was really refreshing and made it easier. I’m in southeast Texas with real local Texans in a real house, not on a set with a bunch of extras who moved from all over the country to LA to make it doing fake accents. 

Being in that real environment adds to the authenticity. When I show up at the door and you see my mother-in-law, no actor can portray that woman’s history that you see in her face and body. Why aren’t more movies like this? 

Q. You’ve talked in the past about how your mother taught you how to be comfortable alone. But you also tell the story of being at an Oakland A’s game as a teen and flipping off everyone on the Jumbotron and reveling in the crowd’s reaction. Do you still make time for both sides of yourself?

It’s about the balance. I can do the circus I’m doing now with this movie where it’s all about me-me-me. But then I go sit in the desert under the stars and have some perspective and calm down a little bit. 

Blaise Pascal said all of man’s problems come from people’s inability to sit alone in a room. Before cell phones, boredom was okay but now we’re always stimulated. I try to make myself step away from that and give myself peace and quiet or I could go crazy from all this.

Q. You’ve talked about winging your way through life and relying on a “just say yes” philosophy. Will all that change now?

I heard once that “Life minus expectations equals happiness” because you’re pleasantly surprised all the time. I like the improv rule, where you say, “Yes, and…” I’m always willing to just go for it. 

Don’t say yes to everything – not to “Here’s a heroin needle and some meth” — but I like going through life without a plan. When you don’t overthink things, that’s when the magic happens. Most of the time it works out well. I bought an RV a few years ago. I call it the No Plan Van. I jump in my mini-RV and drive up the coast. I don’t know where I’m going and it always seems to end up that I find great restaurants, meet interesting people. 

I’m not going to I’d retract that statement, but now with my career I’m getting all these offers and saying no to a lot of stuff because suddenly I don’t need to say yes to everything. So the way you live life in your RV should not be universally applied and now I’m in a different position. I’m still trying to figure it out.