Bruce Willis: Not so cuddly after all

Bruce Willis tells Gill Pringle that his latest animated character represents 'the criminal element in woodland creatures'

Bruce Willis and I just got into a fight. I guess it was my fault, really. I mean, it probably wasn't de rigueur to ask him about his politics when we're both technically here to discuss his role as the voice of a cheeky raccoon in animated children's comedy Over The Hedge. But having quickly exhausted topics relating to the challenges of standing in a sound booth and pretending to be a cartoon character, we somehow ended up discussing Iraq, thereby starting our own little war.

In all fairness, things had been a little weird from the outset when Willis first arrived, sinking into his seat and pulling his baseball cap down so low that only his trademark smirk was visible.

Politely answering questions about what inspired his portrayal of RJ the raccoon, he says: "It took around four months to really nail it down and find where the character's heart was - representing, as I do, the criminal element in woodland creatures. I kind of take advantage of those other woodland creatures because of these other things I get involved with as I come to find that I am a lonely little raccoon living in the woods. Cuddly, right? Cuddly raccoon," says the decidedly un-cuddly actor.

"I would say that I kind of stole the character from David Addison in Moonlighting, so if you see the film, watch it with that in mind because there's some David Addison in there," says the 52-year-old actor, referring to his TV persona responsible for launching his career two decades ago. "The biggest challenge with RJ was just trying to be funny. That's always the hardest thing there is - you can make people cry, you can scare people, you can do a lot of things to them on an emotional level. But the hardest thing to do is make someone laugh.

"It's also the most rewarding thing to do and that's probably the most challenging thing that I had to do as RJ, the squirrel, umm, I mean raccoon. Are you sure I'm a raccoon in the movie? I'm sorry - I played this movie as a squirrel and apparently it works for squirrels and raccoons because I was elected the national spokesperson for the NRA - the National Raccoon Association... And it's been two-and-a-half years now, and still the dreams come - every night. Wow! I want to do it all over now..." babbles Willis, evidently losing the plot. More "over the edge" than Over The Hedge.

A long day of discussing cute forest creatures would be enough to unravel almost anyone, so it seems like a good opportunity to change the subject. I tell him that I'm a little confused about his politics because, on the one hand, he seems very pro the Republican-backed invasion of Iraq, and yet, just a short while back, he had US television audiences in stitches doing a sketch on David Letterman's show in which he was made-up to look like US Vice President Dick Cheney's hunting victim Harry Whittington. It suggested that Cheney and his hunting pals had all been drunk when they set out on their shooting party. "No, I'm not [pro the war in Iraq], so let me stop you right there," scowls Willis. "I'm not pro-war but what I am is that I like to support the young men and women who are over there participating in the war."

The actor has offered $1m of his own money for any person offering information that would lead to the capture of Osama bin Laden. He has also visited US troops, both at home and in Iraq, recently attending the homecoming of Seattle-based members of Deuce Four, the 1st Battalion of the 24th Infantry.

Given the minefield topic of the actor's private life - a string of much-younger girlfriends following a highly public divorce from Demi Moore in 2000 - you'd imagine that he might be more comfortable discussing Iraq than his private life. Not so, as he demonstrates by offering a huge smile at the mention of the couple's daughters, Rumer, 17, Scout, 14 and Tallulah, 12. "I love that I have three girls, and I couldn't be happier. I get a big kick out of my life. I'm pretty happy. I've always been an unconventional kind of guy, but I try and conform for the sake of my children," volunteers the actor, whose ex-wife wed the actor Ashton Kutcher - who, at 28, is 16 years her junior - last year.

"Being a good dad is more important to me than anything. I tell them about drugs and alcohol because it's important to expose them to the truth, all the better to protect them. Children of famous people are saddled with great responsibility. It's a problem. People watch their every move. In my private life, I continue to struggle to be the best I can be, both professionally and personally.

"I've known since I was fairly young that life is really short; even if you live to be 90 years old, it goes by in the wink of an eye. You don't have anything to say over when you're going to die," says the actor, whose younger brother, Robert, died of pancreatic cancer five years ago. "The only choice you really have is to try to live it up while you're here, and don't postpone happiness. I'm just happy- go-lucky. You know, I'm still a kid at heart. I wake up laughing. I have been doing that for a long time now. And I have three kids who keep me young, and keep me on my toes, although I'm pretty lazy still. As hard as I work, I'm also as lazy to the same degree.

"I don't know if I'll ever marry again, although I don't rule it out," continues Willis, himself recently linked with up-and-coming young actress Tamara Feldman, whom he met on the set of his upcoming film Perfect Stranger, a psychological thriller co-starring Halle Berry. "I'd like to have some more kids. I don't know if that's possible or not," says the actor, who is currently in pre-production with four new movies as well as considering a script to reprise his role as John McClane in a long-anticipated Die Hard IV.

"I said I wouldn't do any more Die Hards after the first one," he says. "And I get asked all the time about it and we're probably as close as we've ever been to doing Die Hard IV. We'll see. It depends upon the script. It always is dependent upon the script."

While few critics have ever taken Willis seriously, it's interesting to note that when he does break out of formulaic action hero roles or lame comedy, he's surprisingly mellow and versatile. If Willis's own personal favourites include 12 Monkeys, Nobody's Fool, Pulp Fiction and The Sixth Sense then they've also been the critics' favourites. In many respects, Willis has proved to be as resilient as some of his characters, bouncing back from colossal box-office bombs like Hudson Hawk, Color of Night and The Bonfire of the Vanities.

These days, the actor doesn't enjoy living in Los Angeles, yet he does so because of the work and also because his ex relocated to Hollywood with his daughters three years ago. "I happen to live in Los Angeles and it is probably one of the most toxic environments on Earth," says Willis, whose palatial spread in Hailey, Idaho, now serves as little more than a holiday retreat.

"People live here and they know that the air is poisonous. They know that children are affected by the air in Los Angeles. They say that growing up in Los Angeles is the equivalent of smoking a pack and a half of cigarettes throughout your entire childhood. It's horrific when you can actually look at the air and see it - you're not supposed to be able to see the air. I think that was something I learnt in science class when I was a kid; you're not supposed to see the air or crunch on it. Get that crunchy sound when you get a mouthful of it.

"I grew up in the country and then I lived in cities for a long time. A few years back, I spent about 12 years in one big chunk up in the country. I'm a huge fan of the country and nature and clean air and animals. I like both worlds. I love New York, though I'm not as big a fan of Los Angeles. But still we live here, and millions of people still come here every year and people flock out here to live and try to find the Hollywood dream out here. But it really is a toxic place to live. I've lived in a really clean environment in Idaho and I'd much rather live up there. It's like wearing a wool sweater, living in LA."

'Over the Hedge' opens nationwide today