I had a ton of fun talking with Matthew Chapman, the great-great grandson of Charles Darwin and writer-director of The Ledge. Though he’s written two books grappling with faith versus reason, this is his first feature film; the thriller sympathizes with atheist Charlie Hunnam, who steals fundamentalist Patrick Wilson‘s wife Liv Tyler. A UK native who’s lived both in Los Angeles and New York, Chapman might be considered someone who lives on the fringes of Hollywood, but he’s had enough experience to judge Tinseltown’s relationship to religion.
It’s always exciting when an interview turns into an actual intellectual discussion, as when Chapman and I talked about the labels of “atheist” versus “agnostic,” the concept of original sin, and unforgivable acts. He was also just really funny. But then again, I’m biased since I’m agnostic. More »