Kurt Russell: I’m a court jester

Veteran actor Kurt Russell feels celebrities should stick to being entertainers, and refrain from being vocal about other issues.

Russell opened up in a joint interview with Goldie Hawn in The New York Times, reports people.com.

“I’ve always been someone who felt we are court jesters. That’s what we do,” he said, adding: “As far as I’m concerned, you should step away from saying anything so that you can still be seen by the audience in any character,” he said, adding: “There is no reason entertainers can’t learn just as much as anybody else about a subject, whatever it is. But I think that what’s sad about it is that they lose their status as a court jester. And I’m a court jester. That’s what I was born to do.”

When Hawn shared that he is “not always funny”, Russell said that being funny isn’t always the job of a jester.

“A court jester isn’t always funny. A court jester is the only one who can walk into the castle and put the king down as long as he doesn’t hit too close to home. I think that’s been a big, important part of all cultures throughout history, and I’d like to see it stay in ours,” he said.

To this, Hawn said: “But we did have a president who was an actor, Ronald Reagan.”

“Like I said, actors can learn as much as anybody else can,” Russell said.