A Better World
Esquire Singapore|December 2020
A lovelorn tennis player, a gangster striving to be numero uno, a vampire slayer, Geoffrey Chaucer, and lately, a superhero robot… Paul Bettany plays these roles and more. In a career that allows you to be someone else, Bettany talks to Wayne Cheong in an aspect of so many Americans: anxious voter.
Wayne Cheong
A Better World

It is the day after 3 november and Paul Bettany sounds weary over the phone. “I’m just a little shell-shocked.” His words have that leaden air of someone who is exhausted. Like most Americans, Bettany stayed up all evening and into the wee hours of the morning, just waiting on the results of a continuous election.

“[Joe] Biden is still predicted with a 90 percent chance of winning. But yet again, the polls got it wrong, the media got it wrong… I just don’t know how democracy survives if there are two sets of facts. How do you vote if both sides have been fed by their own media outlets?”

Bettany is political and is aware that his celebrity might get in the way of said politics but he couldn’t just be quiet on social issues. So, four years ago, when Donald Trump was inaugurated, the British actor filed for US citizenship. He had already lived in New York for about 16 years then and wanted to dig in to save the republic. “I’ve lived here for a long time and I understood the political processes, what the electoral college is, which is the remnant of slavery, and that is still deciding our elections, instead of the popular vote.

“And so, I’ve decided to vote. I decided to get involved.” Then a weary beat. “What I didn’t realise is that I should have also moved to Florida [to make some sort of difference].” Bettany catches himself. “I mean, this isn’t the conversation you were probably expecting.”

It wasn’t. But I wasn’t surprised either. We were supposed to be talking about Bettany’s latest project, WandaVision, but given the climate (Nevada still hasn’t finished tallying the votes), politics will seep in and momentarily take control of the conversation.

This story is from the December 2020 edition of Esquire Singapore.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the December 2020 edition of Esquire Singapore.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM ESQUIRE SINGAPOREView All
THE MILD HANGOVER
Esquire Singapore

THE MILD HANGOVER

Hangovers get a bad rap. We know. If you’ve gotten this far in the magazine, you’ve surely divined that we’re mildly hungover most of the time.

time-read
2 mins  |
November 2022
AN ELECTRIC FUTURE
Esquire Singapore

AN ELECTRIC FUTURE

Polestar, the minimalist electric Swedish car brand, turns the voltage up on its competition.

time-read
3 mins  |
November 2022
LET'S GET REAL (ESTATE): LUXURIOUS LONDON
Esquire Singapore

LET'S GET REAL (ESTATE): LUXURIOUS LONDON

Royalty, shopping, the best tea and scones the world has to offer, and a lifestyle worthy of what you're working for. Here's why London is ripe for your next investment

time-read
4 mins  |
November 2022
NEXT UP....ZARAN VACHHA
Esquire Singapore

NEXT UP....ZARAN VACHHA

As Co-founder of the events and talent agency Collective Minds and Managing Director of the Mandala Masters, Zaran Vachha is definitely not new to the culture scene, but he's certainly shaping what comes next.

time-read
6 mins  |
November 2022
WHAT I'VE LEARNED...
Esquire Singapore

WHAT I'VE LEARNED...

I DON’T WEAR SOCKS except in January.

time-read
3 mins  |
November 2022
The Body Is a Language
Esquire Singapore

The Body Is a Language

A bad handshake is such a turnoff; we feel irked when someone rolls their eyes at us; we can't stop pacing when we're nervous-ever wondered how certain body language has the power to change how we feel instantly? We explore why.

time-read
4 mins  |
November 2022
EYE OF THE TIGER
Esquire Singapore

EYE OF THE TIGER

Hailing from Singapore, Japan and Brazil respectively, Evolve Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) athletes Darren Goh, Hiroki Akimoto and Alex Silva are proof that the ring demands as much from mind as it does from matter.

time-read
10+ mins  |
November 2022
THE ADONIS COMPLEX
Esquire Singapore

THE ADONIS COMPLEX

With the rise of superhero culture making a return and bringing with it the celebration of the classically ‘masculine’ body type, can men really overcome the pressure to conform when culture keeps getting in the way?

time-read
8 mins  |
November 2022
FUNNY BUT TRUE
Esquire Singapore

FUNNY BUT TRUE

A comedian, an iconic Singaporean, and now a man much evolved. After overcoming two years of pandemic limbo, unlocking career milestones one after another and undergoing a life-defining physical transformation, Rishi Budhrani is ready to emerge into the world renewed-and anew.

time-read
10+ mins  |
November 2022
LIKE NO OTHER
Esquire Singapore

LIKE NO OTHER

With its horological triumphs, Hermès has truly come into its own as a watchmaking maison. In this exclusive interview with Esquire Singapore, CEO of Hermès Horloger, Laurent Dordet sheds some light on his timepieces' rising stardom and the importance of being different.

time-read
4 mins  |
November 2022