'Money nearly spoiled success'
--Ricky Gervais's Christmas InterviewRICKY GERVAIS hits our screens tonight in the final ever Extras – all about the perils of fame and fortune.
The Christmas special follows his character, desperate actor Andy Millman, through the extraordinary lengths he’ll go to just to cling on to his celebrity status.
But in an exclusive interview with The Sun, Ricky insists he couldn’t care less about his own fame.
Gervais ... 'I'll die in England'
“I’m more famous than I should be,” he says. “I was never proud of having money — it nearly ruined becoming a success for me.”
Despite TV smashes The Office and Extras plus a dazzling array of awards, the comic genius reveals he doesn’t watch his own shows — adding that his family would give him a slap if he got too big for his boots.
In fact, the only thing he’s splashed out on is a new home in Hampstead, North London, to share with girlfriend Jane Fallon and their cat Colin.
The security-conscious star says: “I’ve turned it into one big panic room! It has steel shutters, just in case. It’s like James Bond — if I could have lasers on the gate I would.
"We’ve already got the security cameras. Actually, if you come near my house I can put you on YouTube!”
Not starry ... Ricky
Jet-lagged Ricky has just returned from New York after three months filming Ghost Town, his first starring role in a Hollywood film.
In the supernatural romantic comedy, he plays dentist Bertram Pincus.
Ricky says: “Bertram is quite Scrooge-like. He dies for a few minutes on the operating table during an embarrassing procedure and when he wakes up he can see ghosts, who start to drive him mad.
“So he does a deal with the main ghost, played by Greg Kinnear, who will keep them off his back as long as he breaks up his widow Tea Leoni’s new romance.”
Ricky likes New York so much that he and Jane have been hunting for a pad in Manhattan. He says: “I think I’ll die in England, not too soon I hope! But the second best place in the world is New York.”
The funnyman is soon to film another movie in the Big Apple with Hollywood beauty Jennifer Garner called This Side Of The Truth.
And he is turning his TV idea for a sitcom called Man At The Pru — about young men living in a seaside town in the Seventies — into a film with comedy partner and co-star Stephen Merchant.
Despite having millions in the bank and a host of celeb pals including movie legend Steven Spielberg, Ricky insists: “My values really haven’t changed. If you knew my family and friends and Jane you’d know that I can never get away with anything.
“My feet are firmly on the ground. If I ever started being starry, I’d get a slap. I’m more famous than I deserve to be.”
Giggles
He adds: “Obviously, my circumstances have changed. I don’t work in a normal environment any more really.
“I’ve had the same five friends for 20 years. I’ve got some new friends and a lot are in the media but that’s because it’s my job now.
“People think it’s odd that I know David Bowie. It’s not odd. I’ve worked with these people . . . it’s like saying it’s odd I know Martin Freeman.
“It would be odd if I only had famous friends. Now that would be suspicious.”
There’s an obvious theme arising here as Ricky giggles: “I think the Beckhams are famous enough now. They’re probably a very sweet couple — but really! They don’t need to do any more photo sessions.
“I think that when fame is your job that’s a problem. It’s bizarre. Sometimes I see people and think, ‘What are you doing this for?’”
Same values ... Gervais
The 46-year-old star confesses: “I don’t even watch me! I haven’t watched The Office since it went out and I won’t watch Extras either.
"I’ll be with my family — they’ll Sky Plus it and watch it when I’m gone. The last thing they’ll want to do is watch it when I’m there.”
Tonight’s Extras special is a star-studded event — with the likes of Clive Owen and long-forgotten comedy duo Hale and Pace popping up.
There’s also a jaw-dropping appearance from George Michael, who turns up on Hampstead Heath alongside camp panto director Bunny (Gerard Kelly).
Ricky grins: “I still can’t believe that George didn’t have a problem with what we gave him.”
After scooping a FOURTH Emmy back in September, Ricky is riding high.
It’s a far cry from his character Andy and he admits: “Andy is me if I’d made all the wrong decisions.”
Andy’s priorities are even more muddled in the festive special and he ends up on Celebrity Big Brother with whining C-listers including Lionel Blair.
Ricky says of BB: “They’ve stopped asking me on these shows now. I would never do it — never. I won’t do it even if my career takes a turn now and I lose my money, I’ll work in a bar.
“I really think it’s like the Victorian freakshows. On Big Brother and the X Factor you’ve got people bordering on the mentally ill. Where will it end?
“It just worries me that they’re fodder for entertainment . . . and I’m the worst, I watch it. It’s my guilty pleasure!”
He's Extra special ... George Michael, left, and Ricky in last ever Extras
Ricky goes on to tell how the Extras team tried to make a film on the sitcom budget — and the 120-minute special certainly feels like a movie.
He adds: “We’ve always praised ourselves on aiming high, even if we fail, or crash and burn. We wanted to let people know this is always a show about friendship. Despite the stars, it’s about four friends.
“You’ll see a lot more of the agent and Barry (Shaun Williamson) and we kept Maggie (Ashley Jensen) the same, but changed her circumstances drastically, so you see someone who has everything and doesn’t appreciate it and someone who’s got nothing but clings on to get through life.
“Andy’s obsessed with himself and has left his best thing behind — his friends.
“We took Andy to the darkest place we could without making it impossible to redeem him, but we get him back.”
The star says he worries that fans will think the ending is too dark but adds: “Think how dark Dickens’s A Christmas Carol is — and It’s A Wonderful Life starts with a man about to commit suicide!
“I love the timeless Dickens themes — that being rich and mean is evil, and being poor and gracious is noble. I was brought up with that.
“I’m proud of doing the best work I can . . . but of course I still want to win an Oscar!”
