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"It is the responsibility of the actor to tell the truth and
to not judge a character," Hiddleston, who plays Williams in the
drama film "I Saw the Light," told Reuters.
"Everybody has his bad days ... I have something in me that
makes sure I can control my impulses."
"I Saw the Light," which premiered last week in Nashville,
details the meteoric rise and fall of Williams, from his
breakthrough in the 1940s to his death at age 29 from heart
failure in the back seat of his powder-blue Cadillac on New
Year's Day in 1953.
It is the latest leading role for Hiddleston, who is best known
as the villainous Loki in Marvel films, commands a loyal fanbase
of 'Hiddlestoners' and can currently be seen as the seductive
Thomas Sharpe in gothic romance "Crimson Peak."
The 34-year-old Londoner said he mastered Williams' southern
Alabama drawl with help from Nashville singer-songwriter Rodney
Crowell, who schooled him in all things Hank Williams.
"It was like climbing up a mountain,” Hiddleston said.
Williams' story has been told before, but director Marc Abraham
said he tried to understand the contradictions of a man who
released God-reflecting tunes like "I Saw The Light," while
boozing, popping pills and womanizing his way through "Lovesick
Blues" and "Honky-Tonkin'."
"We knew he led a troubled, often painful, spontaneous life,"
Abraham said.
As his fame rose, Williams' relationship with his wife Audrey
became more tempestuous with his growing reliance on alcohol and
painkiller drugs.
"I felt sorry for her," said Elizabeth Olsen, who plays Audrey.
Just as Williams lived and died after a fast-paced life, Abraham
said he drew inspiration from gritty films like 1974's "Lenny"
and 1980's "Raging Bull" to tell the story, based on Colin
Escott's "Hank Williams: The Biography."
Hiddleston said the intense shoot, filming more than 150 scenes
in 57 locations over 39 days, allowed him to take risks in
capturing the "common humanity" of the man who lived with "joy,
mischief, rebellion, loneliness, sadness and shame" - much of it
self-inflicted.
"I Saw the Light" is due for release next year.
(Reporting by Tim Ghianni; Editing by Piya Sinha-Roy and Diane
Craft)
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