A Taste:

Fiona Apple, Patti Smith, Alanis Morissette

Elias Koteas breathes life into each character he portrays, and that’s especially true for Reverend Popescu in The Haunting In Connecticut. “You want to be able to move people and give them an experience,” he says with a big smile. “If you can help someone see their experience through your art, your work is done. We go through life comparing notes about how we’re surviving our lives and what we’re doing. We’re all in the same boat.”

From Crash, Fallen and The Prophecy to The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Thin Red Line and Ararat, Elias has done some diverse flicks. His musical taste is just as diverse.

“Sometimes, I go through periods where there is no music,” he explains. “Right now, I’m in a Fiona Apple and Leonard Cohen mode. For some reason, that’s all I’ve been listening to for the past month. I like Sam Cooke a lot. I love a lot of rockabilly stuff. Right now though, Fiona Apple is on my mind [Laughs].”

In addition to Miss Apple, he’s got a lot of other favorites that he was psyched to share with us in this exclusive feature.

Check out Elias Koteas’ Playlist below and don’t forget to see Haunting in theaters Friday.

Elias Koteas’ Playlist:

1. Fiona Apple

“She’s so lovely! I love her voice and her lyrics. It’s tremendous music. I saw her sitting at a table a few years ago. We stared at each other for two seconds and both went on our merry way [Laughs]. I don’t think she’d remember!”

2. Alanis Morissette

3. Patti Smith

“My tastes are very eclectic. I really like Patti Smith”

4. Otis Redding

“He comes right up on my iTunes. I love his voice!”

5. Chet Baker

6. Sam Cooke

“I go all over the place. I listen to a lot of jazz.”

7. U2

“Sometimes when preparing for a part, it’s about choosing the right music. I was at a party, and this U2 song called “Numb” came on. It was 1996, and I was working on Fallen. I had been trying to find this character and I hadn’t yet. Right when “Numb” on, I found the character in the high notes of that song.”

8. Exorcist — Soundtrack

“I have a funny story about Max Von Sydow and The Exorcist from when I was working on Martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island. One day, I was in the trailer putting on this makeup and Max Von Sydow walked in. He has a very lovely energy—very reserved and quiet. He sat next to me to put on his makeup. The ringer on my cell phone is ‘Tubular Bells.’ So I’m sitting there putting on the makeup and saying to myself, ‘Please, somebody call me, so my phone rings!’ The trailer was so quiet out of respect. I thought it would create a laugh. Nobody rang me. I didn’t think enough to call up my girlfriend and say, ‘Could you call me?’ That way, the phone would’ve rung and we could’ve shared a laugh. That was a moment that could’ve been funny. I was only on Shutter Island for a week, but I felt like I was on a week long love affair with a beautiful woman and suddenly she was out of my life [Laughs]. I’m left with the most incredible experience and memories. I felt like I was home working with Martin Scorsese. It was a gorgeous set, a great environment and the quietest setting I’ve ever worked in. I didn’t feel nervous, but I played a very strange part. Marty was just generous, and it was an experience that I’ll never forget. It was short-lived but tremendous.”

—Rick Florino
03.22.09