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preview: Heath speaks

On Ang Lee's reticence: The only words that do escape his mouth are--usually, if not always--about your character and the story and the movie.

On his audition for the role of Ennis: I just sat awkwardly in [producer] James Schamus's living room, sipping tea while Ang kind of sat there, looking at me. James did most of the talking.

On his love scenes with Jake Gyllenhaal: We had gotten ourselves into this story--we were knee-deep into it--and so the only way out, we figured, was to absolutely commit to it.

On deciding not to bulk up for the role: I think in the end I just compensated with the strength I tried to bring into his character rather than his body.