Entertainment

Life of Reilly

How many actors have worked with the great Terrence Malick, been nominated for an Oscar in a musical (“Chicago”) and also appeared opposite Will Ferrell in a pair of tighty-whities? By our count, just one.

The versatile John C. Reilly’s latest is “Terri,” an indie not-quite-comedy, not-quite-drama in which he plays a blowhard vice principal attempting to connect with an overweight, 15-year-old loner (Jacob Wysocki). The movie from director Azazel Jacobs premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival and opens on Friday. Reilly sat down with The Post to discuss his name, his career and to dish some sage advice on how he managed to memorize a seven-page monologue in “Terri” (much of which was cut): “One word at a time.”

Do you use your middle initial because John Reilly was already taken by someone in the Screen Actors Guild?

Yeah, the union made me do that. I’ve met the other [actor] John Reilly. He’s an older man who was on soap operas. My father’s name was also John Reilly. He didn’t want to make me a junior, but he wanted something similar, so he gave me another middle name.

Did playing a vice principal dredge up any memories of trips to the principal’s office?

As a kid, I was in the principal’s office a lot. I went to a Catholic boy’s high school, and there was a Dean of Discipline. He was a scary guy who used to march around the halls beating people up. You had to be pretty hardcore to misbehave in my high school. But [my character] did remind me of mentor relationships I’ve had. I didn’t have much of a relationship with my high school guidance counselor, but I loved having that guy there. I remember the first time I went to him, something he said scared the s – – – out of me. He said, “I don’t want you to feel that any problem is too small or too big. I got kids coming in here, one kid is sick of having peanut butter and jelly each day, and another guy got his girlfriend pregnant.” I didn’t even have a girlfriend at the time, but the thought of getting someone pregnant just freaked me out.

“Terri” has an unusually quiet tone. Were you surprised with the finished film?

I don’t think I was surprised. I was relieved. The character felt a little more broad when I was doing it. He’s so over the top and a no-BS guy. When I saw it, I realized it was coming across more subtly than when I was doing it. It’s a great surprise whenever you get to watch a movie [you’re in]. It feels like a strange scrapbook of your life that’s out of order. Even though it’s in order in the movie, you shot it in a different order than when you’re seeing it. It takes a while to see it objectively.

You seem to be one of the few who can land a variety of roles without getting pigeonholed. How?

If you feel like you start to get pigeonholed, you have to say no and wait it out. Hopefully it won’t be too long until something else comes along. For me, I’ve never played a certain kind of character over and over. When people start to know me for one thing, I start to look for something [else]. The truth is, actors don’t have a lot of say over the opportunities that come to them. The work you get is largely dictated by other people and how they see you.

What movie do people on the street most want to talk to you about?

It depends on the person. Lately, it’s been “Step Brothers.” It’s a weirdly popular movie across the spectrum: young people, old people. Will [Ferrell’s] mom at the premiere said, “My friends and I just loved it!” I was like, “What? Why? We knew boys would be into it, but why did you and your friends like it?” She said, “Oh, we just wanna take you boys and grow you up.”