Chiwetel Ejiofor says the COVID-19 lockdowns have taught him to slow down.
Chiwetel Ejiofor
The 43-year-old actor has been staying at home more than ever in the past year because of the ongoing pandemic and has said he has been using the time to re-evaluate his lifestyle, which used to involve “living out of a suitcase”.
He said: “When you’re trying to build a career, you live out of a suitcase. It is second nature. So even if you’re able to slow a little, it’s still your instinct to be moving. It can be isolating. Having to stop took more adjusting than I thought. It took me a while to understand that, probably, this isn’t a healthy way to live.”
Chiwetel is now thinking about how to “re-enter” the world of acting once the pandemic is over, and although he hasn’t made any “grand decisions” about his career, he has still found the past 12 months “disorienting”.
He added: “There are choices to make. And ways to impose a set of parameters about what’s important, and if the work is the foremost part of your experience. Or secondary. Tertiary. Or if there’s something else to be experienced, you know? In being forced to stop, it helps you choose how you re-enter a profession. I haven’t made any grand decisions, but I hadn’t expected to confront that. It’s disorienting.”
And beyond missing being in front of the camera, the ‘Locked Down’ star also admitted he has missed being able to “influence” people.
He told The Sunday Times’ Culture magazine: “I realised that what I’d missed is the benefit you can give to other people. It’s more about how you can influence people you care about and strengthen those bonds. These are, maybe, things I should have learnt years ago. But, for whatever reason, I didn’t.”
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