Photographs by GREG WILLIAMS

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Actor, director and screenwriter Danny Huston tells Hollywood Authentic about wild swimming, his favourite tipple at 33,000ft and what he hears his dad telling him…

How important is a little bit of nonsense now and then to you?
Nonsense keeps me alive, keeps things light-hearted. It is an artistry of sorts; it’s the spoonful of sugar that helps the bitter medicine of life a little more palatable.

What, if anything, makes you believe in magic?
The unseen. When something happens that has a majesty that makes one be utterly spellbound by the magic of it all. Magic is the things that we don’t see, but we feel. Gravity is magical. A moment on screen is magical. Shadows and shapes can become magical. A twist of fate. The magical look in somebody’s eyes. Magic is everywhere. It is all around us. It is the sleight of the hand.

What was your last act of true cowardice?
I don’t consider myself a coward. But a few weeks ago, on New Year’s Eve, I hesitated jumping into the Irish Sea. There were a couple of hundred mad Irishmen who went into it ahead of me, so I couldn’t back down. And it was absolutely glorious, completely rebooted me. So those cowardly moments are really there to test us, and to make us jump into the unknown – in this case, the rather cold but yet welcoming Celtic Sea. 

Do you have any odd habits or rituals?
I have a few rituals – one a Bloody Mary, spicy, extra lemon when I’m on a long flight. Usually when the plane has reached about 33,000ft of altitude. Nothing like it. 

What is your party trick?
Pulling a coin out of someone’s ear.

What is your mantra?
Howl at the moon like a mangy old dog. Helps me keep connected to the cosmos. I have a few internal, repetitious voices that I suppose are mantras. One is inhabited by my father, and he just basically says, ‘You can do it, kid. You can do it.’ 

What is your favourite smell?
That sharp, cool breeze that skims over the sea, gently lifting the salt. The intoxicating smell of jasmine on a summer’s night. Coffee. Cigars. A good red wine. The smell of the ocean mixed with suntan oil. A freshly cut lawn. To name a few….

What do you always carry with you?
I’m ashamed to say. My phone.  

What is your guilty pleasure?
Dark bitter chocolate with nuts. Playing backgammon deep into the night with my nephew. That is a shared guilty pleasure. 

Who is the silliest person you know?
My nephew.

What would be your least favourite way to die?
A long, endless fart performed in front of all of my family. That would be a rather embarrassing last gasp of sorts. And of course, some terrible execution. The guillotine would be a tense expectation to have.

What’s your idea of heaven?
My idea of heaven would be having no fear, no regrets, no anxiety. Lifted somewhere in a stage of blissful joy. Celebrating a world without war, poverty or illness. A blissful, happy, somewhat light state of suspension. Floating ever so gently through space and time.

Danny Huston made his acting debut at the age of 12 in The ‘Human’ Factor and later went onto star in projects as varied as Birth, 21 Grams, The Aviator, The Constant Gardener, Wonder Woman and
Stan & Oli. On TV he’s appeared in Masters Of Sex, American Horror Story, Succession and Yellowstone. His father, John Huston, produced his feature-length directorial debut Mr North, with Danny going on to direct The Maddening and The Last Photograph. On stage, he appeared in The Kid Stays in the Picture on the West End. He recently appeared in the rebooted The Naked Gun.