Jeremy Strong has said that watching Bruce Springsteen perform live, and seeing the reaction of his longtime manager Jon Landau, was one of the most inspiring experiences of his career.
The Emmy-winning actor, who plays Landau in the upcoming film Deliver Me From Nowhere, recalled attending a Springsteen concert in Denmark and seeing the bond between the two men up close.
He described Landau’s joy and wonder at watching Springsteen perform songs he has known for decades as "a kind of lock-pick moment", showing him what artistic renewal looks like.
"Bruce is still giving everything that’s in him," Strong told RTÉ 2FM's Michael Cahill. "He’s summoning everything that is true in him every time."
Reflecting on his own approach to acting, Strong shared a piece of advice from one of his directors that continues to guide him.
"A great director once told me, ‘Whatever you do, don’t nail it.’ It frees you from that sense of control. Every take is a leap off a cliff - you don’t know what will happen. You hope you’re prepared enough, but it’s always a process of discovery. If you’re doing your job the right way and you’re locked in, everyone else disappears. Jon being there, Bruce being there - they disappear. But it does turn the gas up a little bit."
Strong said having Springsteen and Landau on set created a rare atmosphere of encouragement and humility.
"If I were in their position, I would’ve been a John Landau to my own self - protecting my own honest impulse," he said.
"They understand that what you’re trying to do as an actor when you make a movie is essentially what Bruce is doing when he records songs alone on the edge of his bed. You have to create a sense of privacy and do something very private for the world. They were there as cheerleaders, which was beautiful - so unusual."
He added that he had never experienced that kind of support before.
"You have to have enough conviction in what you’re doing to know that if John tells you, ‘I’d sit in that chair,’ your answer is, ‘Well, I’d sit in this one.’ Their presence was one of encouragement and humility."
Deliver Me From Nowhere, directed by Scott Cooper, tells the story behind Springsteen’s acclaimed 1982 album Nebraska. The film stars Jeremy Allen White as Springsteen and Jeremy Strong as Jon Landau and is set to open in Irish cinemas on 24 October 2025.
