Colorado native Scott Takeda wasn’t able to attend the Academy Awards Sunday night, but he has come a long way from being a “lambkin” at Fort Collins High School.
The Hollywood actor-director had a vested interest in Sunday’s Oscar results. He had a part in the popular “Dallas Buyers Club,” the much-acclaimed film that earned a Best Actor Oscar for Matthew McConaughey and a Best Supporting Actor award for Jared Leto during Sunday’s 86th Academy Awards ceremony.
Call it a far cry from a journalism degree at CU Boulder. But Takeda still lives in his beloved Bonnie Brae neighborhood.
He worked at KCNC-Channel 4 for two years from 1992 to 1994, then left for a brief stint in Philadelphia. Why does he stay grounded in Denver when the bright lights of Hollywood can be intoxicating?
“My family’s here,” he said. “I married my very lovely bride. When I’m not in front of the camera, I’m behind the camera. I’m used to flying to do corporate films. I’ve (flown) 17,000 miles in six weeks.”
Takeda said that he has six agents around the country who scout potential film roles for him. As for landing his part in “Dallas Buyers Club,” he said, “My Louisiana agent contacted me about that role. Probably a couple of weeks passed. I got the call back when landing in Denver. I walked off my flight and happened to see a flight leaving for New Orleans and walked on that flight.”
As to the message of the film, Takeda is well aware of its significance.
“The topic that it brings up is so important,” he said. “AIDS awareness, and we still don’t have a cure. It’s important to say that there’s still no cure. A lot of times you shoot a film and say that’s the way it goes. But we found out in May that it debuted in the Toronto National Film Festival, which gave it such great exposure.”
As far as working with McConaughey, who lost 40-some pounds for his role, Takeda said that surprisingly the hunky actor “had a lot of energy.”
“I found him to be a complete gentleman, right up there with Will Ferrell. Really easy to work with. I was seeing the effects of his weight loss, but it was impossible for him not to be incredibly nice. He stayed in character, but during periods in the makeup trailer, he would drop character.”
In addition to Takeda’s role in “Dallas Buyers Club”, his movie credits include “Everything Must Go” with comedic actor Ferrell, “Little Fockers” with the great Robert De Niro, Disney’s “Lemonade Mouth” and Lifetime’s “Secret Lives of Wives.”
For now, Takeda just returned from Los Angeles shooting “Gone Girl,” starring Ben Affleck, which will come out in October. He’s also appearing in a new CW series “Star Crossed,” slated to air on April 7.
“My lovely bride and I are passionate about the Denver Dumb Friends League (as am I), and we’re raising money for the Furry Scurry. We’ll be raising money actively for the next two months.”
Denver resident Scott Takeda has a small part in the Oscar nominated film, “Dallas Buyers Club,” that stars Matthew McConaughey. Takeda attended Fort Collins High School and the University of Colorado. He lives in the Bonnie Brae neighborhood in Denver. (Photos by Truth Entertainment II/Voltage Pictures and Courtesy of Scott Takeda)
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