Playboy's 20Q: Amanda Peet

Born and raised in New York, Amanda Peet attended a private Quaker school until she was seven, when her family moved to London. Upon the Peets' return four years later, she completed her Quaker schooling, then attended Columbia University, from which she graduated with a major in American history. Interested in acting throughout school, Peet was accepted into theater coach Uta Hagen's class while in her junior year at college. Over the next few years, Peet auditioned for roles, winning a Skittles commercial, doing off-Broadway, small parts on Seinfeld, Law and Order and Spin City, and acting in a load of forgettable, low-budget independent films such as Grind, with Billy Crudup. In the mix were a few mainstream movies, like One Fine Day, starring George Clooney, and Edward Burns' comedy She's the One, where she gained attention playing Jennifer Aniston's sister. Peet stole scenes and gathered momentum in the underappreciated Simply Irresistible, Body Shots and Isn't She Great, with Bette Midler and Nathan Lane. The WB network took notice and signed her to star in Jack and Jill, in which the former tomboy played Jacqueline "Jack" Barrett. The series had a two-season run. Her breakout film role arrived in The Whole Nine Yards, opposite Bruce Willis, in which she shows off her comedic talent shooting two guys while nude. She followed with Whipped, co-starring her now ex-boyfriend Brian Van Holt, and Saving Silverman, playing a bitchy psychologist opposite Jason Biggs and Jack Black. This year, Peet had three major-studio films: Changing Lanes, with Ben Affleck and Samuel L. Jackson, High Crimes, costarring Ashley Judd and Morgan Freeman, and Igby Goes Down, playing Jeff Goldblum's heroin-addicted mistress.

Robert Crane caught up with Peet at the Coffee House in West Hollywood. He reports: "Amanda is smart, beautiful and easily bored, and has exceptionally attractive feet. She's also the first person I've interviewed who has the attractive ability to stretch her upper body across a dining table, all the while purring into my tape recorder. She occasionally sat back and sipped a cup of tea."

1

[Q] Playboy: How much of the Quaker has rubbed off on you?

[A] Peet: A little. The Quakers have a literal interpretation of the Bible. I find the antihierarchical pacifism and "Love thy neighbor" powerful. Most people have a misconception about Quakers, that they're gray, austere and conservative. But the truth is they're politically radical. It's not sexy, but there are some sexy Quakers.

2

[Q] Playboy: Can you name any?

[A] Peet: There were some sexy teachers at my school. I had a big crush on my math teacher. He was a Quaker, very sexy. I almost liked math because of him. Too bad I was dreadful at it.

3

[Q] Playboy: What school did you attend?

[A] Peet: I went to Manhattan Friends Seminary. My mother loved the school. She's Jewish and wanted me to go there.

4

[Q] Playboy: List the advantages of a Quaker education.

[A] Peet: You can call teachers by their first names. You don't get grades until ninth grade. You're not allowed to punch anyone. If you do, you get into big trouble, even if you're not on school time. You have to participate in a race day. It's the opposite of a Sixteen Candles school. You were deemed inferior if you didn't know what was going on in politics and didn't perform well in school.

5

[Q] Playboy: Are there important differences between Shakers and Quakers?

[A] Peet: I think Shakers get up and convulse during their meetings, whereas Quakers sit still unless they are moved to speak. Then you have what's called a popcorn meeting, where people get up and speak and then sit down. Everyone's allowed to speak because there's no priesthood. The idea is that the light of God is equal within everyone, so that precludes any kind of hierarchy. No one's closer to God than anyone else. I don't know the difference, really. Shakers sound sexier, though.

6

[Q] Playboy: Account for Columbia University's dismal football team.

[A] Peet: Everyone's too busy talking about bullshitism. Our football cheer is: "Our football team may not win, but at least we're not in New Haven." My sister went to Yale, so I used to sing it to her.

7

[Q] Playboy: We understand you toss the football around. How tight is your spiral? Do you get good speed on it?

[A] Peet: It's tight. On occasion, it veers ever so slightly. Its precision is flawless. My father was a quarterback at Yale.

8

[Q] Playboy: Did the gun you used in The Whole Nine Yards have a kick to it?

[A] Peet: Yes--I fell over and screamed the first time I shot the thing. And for a while they considered keeping that take, but then they thought I should be more suave in my handling.

9

[Q] Playboy: Is it possible to be topless and maintain firearm safety?

[A] Peet: Yes. I came out of it unscathed. No discharges--from my gun, anyway. Dealing with a gun is scary whether or not you are wearing any clothes. It was liberating, actually, kind of like skinny-dipping. (concluded on page 154)Amanda Peet(continued from page 113)

10

[Q] Playboy: We've heard you're not comfortable flying.

[A] Peet: That's true. I'm getting a lot better, though--I flew to Vietnam by myself. Twelve and a half hours to Osaka, six and a half hours to Bangkok and one hour to Ho Chi Minh City. I'm not just a prissy actress. I've been to Nam! People need to go there soon, because it's about to change. But I think getting drunk is the key to flying comfortably. A couple of bloody marys or several glasses of champagne, and suddenly it's like you're on a roller coaster.

11

[Q] Playboy: So, the mile high club is out.

[A] Peet: No sex would be good enough or distracting enough to mitigate my fear of flying. And I've had some good sex.

12

[Q] Playboy: Several of the celebrities we've interviewed have made People magazine's 50 most beautiful people list. You were in the 2000 issue. Did you look for yourself in the next year's issue?

[A] Peet: No, I knew I wasn't going to be in it. I'm starting to come to terms with the fact that it was a one-shot deal, as some special things in life are. I'm just now getting over it. It took me two years and I've been through a lot of therapy. Besides, I didn't look as good in 2001--I partied too much at the millennium.

13

[Q] Playboy: We understand that you are one of those gifted women who can belch beautifully. Can you do the alphabet?

[A] Peet: I don't have attenuated burps. Mine are short and sweet.

14

[Q] Playboy: Do you say words?

[A] Peet: No. Sometimes I say "Balzac" but that's just because it's what Matthew Perry says. Balzac the writer, not ball sack.

15

[Q] Playboy: Do you do impressions?

[A] Peet: You mean in general?

16

[Q] Playboy: No, while you're belching.

[A] Peet: Just Matthew Perry.

17

[Q] Playboy: When guys meet a beautiful woman, do you find that they are most often stupid or just shy?

[A] Peet: Often they're both. I know a lot of lovely, smart men who aren't shy or stupid. If I hung out at some club for 22-year-olds, I'd probably be really upset. But you can avoid those men.

18

[Q] Playboy: What advice would you give to a guy who wants to meet a beautiful woman?

[A] Peet: Beauty is only skin deep. If you go after someone just because she's beautiful but don't have anything to talk about, it's going to get boring fast. You want to look beyond the surface and see if you can have fun or if you have anything in common with this person. Beyond that, I would say just be yourself, because it's exhausting otherwise. It's important to have a good laugh at yourself and at each other. And don't be a person who ruminates on grudges.

19

[Q] Playboy: When filming a nude scene, are you more likely to be nonchalant or stressed out?

[A] Peet: Well, I try to behave nonchalantly, but inside, I'm having embarrassing bursts of neuroses. I just try to breathe deeply and look the other way. My job is to have the imagination to pretend I have a relationship that doesn't really exist, that I have a love that doesn't exist, and that I can casually wake up next to someone with whom I don't have a relationship--and make it look real. To me that's a lot of fun, though it may sound asinine to others. It's a strange thing for a grown-up to do. A noble art.

20

[Q] Playboy: What if your boyfriend is an actor doing a love scene?

[A] Peet: I'm on the set that day.