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We all have a Woody Harrelson story, don\u2019t we?<\/p>\n
There are very few megastars with such well-earned cred and balance in both their artistry and activism. As B-I-G a movie star as Woody Harrelson unquestionably is, he\u2019s also irrefutably a cannabis superhero and he\u2019s been pulling off this deft trick for more than four decades now. But this very moment, right now, could arguably be when all the pieces in his life that matter most to him\u2014love, craft, action\u2014have aligned as never before. Woody Harrelson is, once again, riding high.<\/p>\n
Moments after walking into theWOODS, the kind of amazing, buzzy dispensary\/cannabis club\/Zen sanctuary on Santa Monica Boulevard in the heart of West Hollywood, CA that Harrelson co-founded with partners Devon Wheeler and Jay Handal and expertly designed by Thomas Schoos, I\u2019m struck by how very much the same the longtime weed advocate seems. I\u2019ve been running into this guy for the better part of two decades and he looks, acts and comports himself similarly each time. That, too, scores major points on the authenticity scale. When it comes to Woody Harrelson, what you see is precisely what you get\u2014hardly a given in this City of Angels. <\/p>\n
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<\/a>For most of us, Harrelson will always be the impossibly na\u00efve and lovable \u201cWoody\u201d from the iconic 1980s television series, Cheers, <\/em>and to others he more closely resembles Marty Hart, Matthew McConaughey\u2019s Louisiana crime-solving partner in HBO\u2019s award-winning series, True Detective.<\/em> Here\u2019s the thing: If searching for the real <\/em>Woody Harrelson isn\u2019t exactly an exercise in frustration, it\u2019s certainly a most welcome challenge. Is he funny? Is he smart? Is he passionate? Is he stoned? All valid questions to be sure, and ones I was pretty determined to find out for myself. So I did.<\/p>\n In fairness, I\u2019ve run into the Midland, TX native several times over the years, and at each encounter, Harrelson was either laughing or otherwise happily regaling famous friends with anecdotes. The first time I saw Harrelson was back in 2004 at Nike House in Venice, CA at a casual party honoring Nuyorican actor Rosario Dawson. Harrelson, relaxed in a gray hoodie, was on the step-and-repeat posing for photographers alongside Jason Lewis, the model and actor featured in Sex and The City <\/em>(Samantha\u2019s younger boyfriend, \u201cSmith\u201d). As I watched Harrelson and Lewis goof around, it struck me how alike they seemed in both appearance and demeanor, as if Harrelson was the younger man\u2019s favorite uncle. I must say, the moment left me with a deeply positive impression of Harrelson.<\/p>\n A couple of years later during the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City, I saw Harrelson at Lotus\u2019 exclusive afterparty following the screening of The Grand. <\/em>There, huddled in a corner just out of earshot from the rest of us mere mortals, Harrelson and Curb Your Enthusiasm\u2019s <\/em>Cheryl Hines were literally howling with laughter. Again, that left me with a strong \u201cgood vibes only\u201d imprint on my growing visual r\u00e9sum\u00e9 of Harrelson.<\/p>\n Then, a little more than a decade ago, I again catch Harrelson, this time in WeHo at the legendary Chateau Marmont, at a Golden Globes party where the irresistibly charismatic actor was in mid-story, smiling as he spoke to a small group that included Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes and Ben Stiller. Again, all eyes were on Woody.<\/p>\n Back to theWOODS.<\/p>\n As the movie star warmly greets the assembled team\u2014photographer, stylist, assistants\u2014he listens to the ideas he\u2019s given in advance of the photo shoot and with a quick nod, signals his approval. As the first set-up in the lush outdoor patio is being prepared, I can\u2019t help but compare this easy-breezy celebrity encounter with the countless, much more difficult interactions I\u2019ve had with other famous subjects over the years. Given his long, celebrated acting career that includes nominations for three Oscars and nine Emmys (one win) as well as being a recipient of four Golden Globes, a BAFTA (British Oscar) and a whopping seven Screen Actors Guild awards, Harrelson doesn\u2019t seem to let any of it get to his head\u2014or his soul. <\/p>\n I mean, his Best Actor Oscar-nominated turn in The People vs. Larry Flynt <\/em>remains an undisputed acting tour de force; but lest we forget his indelible roles in White Men Can\u2019t Jump, Natural Born Killers, Indecent Proposal, Hunger Games, The Thin Red Line, EDtv, Money Train, The Messenger<\/em> and on and on and on.<\/p>\n So, it\u2019s not a huge surprise, then, as we wrap up the shoot and move to a quieter spot to converse, that the first question I pose is about acting: \u201cDo you think you\u2019ve ever had a role where you said, \u2018You know what, I cannot do better than that\u2019?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWell, I never have felt that way. I always feel like I could do better,\u201d Harrelson says, smiling. \u201cEven Cheers<\/em>?\u201d I counter. \u201cWell\u2026no, not Cheers<\/em>,\u201d he says, suddenly bursting into laughter in that familiar way I\u2019ve witnessed him doing all of these years now.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n At this very moment, being the reason why Harrelson is laughing so genuinely now, satisfies me in ways I\u2019m not quite fully understanding. Could it be that I want <\/em>Woody Harrelson to like<\/em> me, as he seems to like so many in his presence? That was unexpected.<\/p>\n \u201cTo answer your question about the perfect role, the other day I was biking when I started thinking about [the 2017 film] War for the Planet of the Apes <\/em>and how I would\u2019ve done my character so much better,\u201d he says. \u201cI had a whole different take on the character, some kind of behavioral modifications that I was integrating that would\u2019ve made the character so much more interesting and better than what I did. How do you have some kind of character remorse like that six years later? I never feel my performances are perfect. I never feel it. But I liked the movies and I liked my performances in both LBJ<\/em> (2016) and Glass Castle <\/em>(2017), but both of these films also attain the same level of greatness in the US since nobody saw these movies!\u201d Woody Harrelson is laughing hard once again.<\/p>\n If Harrelson\u2019s status as a legit movie star is beyond reproach, then, certainly his role as cannabis royalty is similarly established. A National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) advisory board member for the past two decades, Harrelson is one of the Hollywood OGs when it comes to advocacy and activism for the plant, particularly for small farms and outdoor (sungrown) cannabis.<\/p>\n No less an authority than Tim Blake, the founder of the prestigious annual cannabis awards show and mega event Emerald Cup, weighs in. \u201cWhen Woody was on the stage to receive the Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award, he said,\u00a0\u2018You know, these are my people. This is my community.\u2019 And he felt it. He\u2019s protested before, he\u2019s humble, he knows the scene. It was really touching. I\u2019ll love Woody forever for that. Everything we are fits with him. Woody\u2019s evangelizing for sungrown small farmers\u2014he\u2019s putting his name on the line. He\u2019s the real deal.\u00a0I can\u2019t thank him enough for doing what he did.\u201d<\/p>\n With the results of the recent 2022 midterm elections, Maryland and Missouri have joined the 21 states (and the District of Columbia) where adult-use cannabis is legal. I wonder what Harrelson\u2019s take is given the relative speed and scope of the legalization movement occurring in the US. His answer surprised me.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m 100 percent against the legalization movement,\u201d Harrelson says without hesitation. \u201cI believe in the\u00a0 decriminalization<\/em> movement. If you only say legalization, now you leave the government\u2019s hand in the pie. It\u2019s going to be in the pie regardless. Decriminalization is a much better way to go. So, yeah, I don\u2019t believe in this whole \u2018who are they to tell us it\u2019s OK for us to smoke?\u2019 or \u2018why does the government have that right?\u2019 If you think about it, the only thing that should be illegal is if you hurt someone else or their property, right? That\u2019s<\/em> what should be illegal. Here\u2019s the bottom line: Weed shouldn\u2019t be more regulated than alcohol. It hasn\u2019t caused anywhere nearly as many deaths as alcohol or ruined as many lives. I\u2019m not sure if my life\u2019s been ruined\u2026 I don\u2019t quite remember! [Laughs]<\/em><\/p>\n But I do <\/em>want him to remember as I\u2019m ever curious about how his love for the herb began. Surely there\u2019s a story there.<\/p>\n \u201cMy mother used to say to me, \u2018Son, if I ever find you smoking marijuana, it\u2019ll just kill me,\u2019 so that kept me away from herb until my senior year in college. And there was a guy named John St. Angelo and I knew that he smoked. And, ironically, all through high school, I always looked down on pot and those who smoked it. I looked at myself more in the athletic mode and I looked on them as just stoners, you know, when they\u2019d be hanging out smoking. And I\u2019m embarrassed to say it now, but I did<\/em> judge them. I really did.\u201d<\/p>\n The star takes a pause, presumably recollecting what his college life looked like.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, I remember John St. Angelo always offered herb up to me, and we went out and smoked and it was out of those things, I think you call them a steamroller. We smoked a hit and then he opened this box\u2014he\u2019s got like five or six different types of herb. And then he opened a specific one, and we both did one hit each. After that, John put everything back together and placed everything back in the box. That\u2019s it\u2014one hit. And I felt phenomenal.<\/em> I mean, it was like I was tripping on a joyous euphoria, you know? I kept thinking that I couldn\u2019t believe I had waited so long to try this. One thing was certain, I was going to make up for lost time. And so I did.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Harrelson\u2019s cannabis CV is extensive, so much so that I told him about my picks for the Mount Rushmore of celebrity advocates which include Willie Nelson, Snoop Dogg, Jerry Garcia, Tommy Chong and him. \u201cWow, I\u2019m flattered by it,\u201d he says, smiling that smile of his. \u201cAnyone I left off the list you think may be a candidate?\u201d I ask. \u201cWell, there are a lot of people, of course,\u201d Harrelson says. \u201cBut did you know Paul McCartney went to prison for days?\u201d Our talk then veered into the time Harrelson himself was arrested by the state of Kentucky in 1996 for planting organic hemp seeds (Kentucky didn\u2019t differentiate between non-psychoactive organic hemp and THC). To see Harrelson speak about herb, there\u2019s no question how much he loves it. His passion for hemp, though perhaps not as globally known, burns just as bright.<\/p>\n \u201cI think that day is coming,\u201d Harrelson says about the need for hemp to become a leader in fashion, architecture and more if we\u2019re to survive on this planet. \u201cI feel like we\u2019re going to make hemp available in any number of ways. Well, the point is we have to become more sustainable and hemp is a route towards sustainability because it\u2019s really easy to grow and you can use it for so many different things and it takes so little water when compared to other crops.\u201d<\/p>\n For all his knowledge and loyalty for all things cannabis, Harrelson says he took a break from it for nearly two years and, unsurprisingly, how he found himself back to it entails a pretty epic story. Enjoy.<\/p>\n \u201cI took off about 20 months, but Willie [Nelson] is so crafty because he\u2019d offered me already 5000 times to smoke with him and I\u2019m being strong telling him, \u2018Willie, remember, I\u2019m not smoking.\u2019 \u2018Oh, yeah. OK, then.\u2019 And then he\u2019d host a poker game at his house with me, him and six other friends, and I\u2019m feeling that anxiety that, you know, temptation. So, Willie offers me some herb, and I\u2019m like, again, \u2018Willie, remember? I\u2019m not smoking.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2018Oh, OK, buddy. OK.\u2019 And then I lose a hand. Now, Willie\u2019s real smart. He\u2019s cagey. So he offers me herb right then when I lose the hand, and you\u2019d think from the pain of losing that hand I\u2019m gonna take a hit? \u2018No,\u2019 I said, \u2018Willie, remember, I\u2019m not smoking\u2019. And he says, \u2018Oh, yeah, man. Oh, yeah.\u2019 Well, finally, he used reverse psychology on me when I win a hand. So, I\u2019m jubilant and right then he offers up the herb and it\u2019s Willie\u2019s Reserve in a pen. And I\u2019m thinking to myself, you know, it\u2019s a pen, it\u2019s not, it\u2019s not actually<\/em> smoking. You know, I don\u2019t know what I thought, exactly, but the point is, I grabbed it, took a hit and Willie turns to me and says, \u2018Welcome home, son.\u2019 He\u2019s something else.\u201d<\/p>\n Turning to more current endeavors, we then talk about his latest acting gigs: the Cannes Film Festival sensation, Palme d\u2019Or-winning and Golden Globes-nominated film Triangle of Sadness,<\/em> directed by the celebrated Swede Ruben \u00d6stlund, where Harrelson plays a Marxist alcoholic boat captain of a super luxury yacht in the comedy with a message movie. Next up is Champions,<\/em> a film where Harrelson is reunited with fellow cinematic cannabis icon Cheech Marin and portrays a former minor-league basketball coach ordered by a court to manage a team of players with intellectual disabilities. Big-hearted and inspirational doesn\u2019t begin to cover it. Lastly, with what just may be another nominated turn, Harrelson stars as E. Howard Hunt\u2014opposite Justin Theroux as G. Gordon Liddy\u2014in HBO Max\u2019s highly anticipated Watergate miniseries, White House Plumbers,<\/em> premiering March 2023.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, I had so much fun portraying my character in Triangle of Sadness,\u201d<\/em> Harrelson says. \u201cRuben is one of my favorite directors and I think he\u2019s a true master of his craft. I have to say, it was a privilege to be a part of that movie. The film sends up the super-wealthy, but you never feel like you\u2019re being preached to at all. It\u2019s funny.\u201d<\/p>\n As our talk gets deeper, easier, friendlier, cheekier\u2014for the entirety of our encounter, Harrelson has been merrily puffing on a Spanish Lime Haze joint from Pure Beauty\u2014I sense the actor in front of me is in complete synch with his current environment. Harrelson not only lends his considerable star power to theWOODS, but he palpably wants to hang out as much as possible right where he is. The effect is the equivalent of taking a deep breath and exhaling: heady and relaxing.<\/p>\n \u201cThe designer of theWOODS, Thomas Schoos, did all the heavy lifting,\u201d Harrelson says. \u201cYou know, it\u2019s not my design at all. If it was up to me, it would\u2019ve been pure hippie, completely psychedelic. But a picture does paint a thousand words. I mean, look around. You don\u2019t get this in Amsterdam anywhere. No you don\u2019t. So, to me, I wanted a beautiful space for people to be able to come and enjoy. I wanted a very comfortable space, a very homey space.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhy West Hollywood?\u201d I wonder out loud.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s interesting, I\u2019m glad you asked me that, Richard,\u201d Harrelson says. \u201cWest Hollywood has really done great by us. It\u2019s amazing that this is here. And we\u2019re also set to open a bar in March [2023]. theWOODS is definitely at the forefront because of West Hollywood\u2019s broad-mindedness. I was going to say magnanimity, but if you think about it, we shouldn\u2019t be regulated at all so it\u2019s hard for me to use that word. I\u2019ll just say the City of West Hollywood is definitely broad-minded. And good for them and for us.\u201d<\/p>\n Harrelson isn\u2019t so generous with his sentiments when it comes to California generally, and what he perceives to be unfair treatment of the cannabis industry by the state.<\/p>\n \u201cI do feel like the state government treats us badly,\u201d Harrelson says. \u201cThey don\u2019t treat any other industry like they treat us. They tax the shit out of us. I feel like for all the money the state of California makes on cannabis taxes, shouldn\u2019t they be treating us a little better? It\u2019s a matter of fairness, my friend. Straight up.\u201d<\/p>\n To know Harrelson at all is to know that a large part of his herb advocacy stems from his deep-held beliefs that sungrown cannabis is the best in the world. \u201cFor me, the best herb is definitely sungrown, soil nourished and water purified,\u201d he says. \u201cYou know, water is something that I never used to think much about. And then on a relatively recent trip to Trinity County [CA], I started thinking about the Trinity River, and how key the water source is for herb. So, you have these indoor grows that use fertilizers that aren\u2019t necessarily healthy, and this plant takes in more sun than any other plant. Herb is the highest receptivity to sun of any plant; did you know that? So this plant is meant to thrive in the sun. I\u2019d rather take a joint and pass it around that\u2019s been grown outdoors naturally every single time.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis plant is meant to thrive in the sun. I\u2019d rather take a joint and pass it around that\u2019s been grown outdoors naturally every single time.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n I then sneak in a fun question: \u201cIn a lifetime of smoking weed and clearly having amazing experiences with the coolest people on the planet while smoking herb, is there one moment that stands out where you said, \u2018I can\u2019t believe I\u2019m here smoking herb with X person?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWow, yeah\u2014I did<\/em> smoke with some really amazing people,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Anyone you\u2019d like to smoke with? I ask. \u201cMaybe Jesus,\u201d Harrelson says. Somehow, I\u2019m not remotely surprised. Of course Woody Harrelson, America\u2019s chillest actor, would like to smoke with Jesus because even being in theWOODS, anyone can get its singularly spiritual environmental vibes (there are several Buddhas throughout the establishment).\u00a0<\/p>\n I then logically ask about the future of the dispensary and cannabis club: \u201cAny other locations to look forward to?\u201d Harrelson shuts that down in a minute.<\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t really think of anything but this one spot right now,\u201d he says. \u201cEven the amount of labor it\u2019s taken for this location precludes doing another one. I simply can\u2019t even wrap my head around it. It just seems too colossal. I\u2019m telling you, Richard, if this thing doesn\u2019t succeed, you\u2019ll be able to contact me in my mother\u2019s guestroom, in Ohio.\u201d Oh, yeah, there\u2019s that laugh again.<\/p>\n Wanting to wrap up our bonding sesh on a high note, I ask this quintessential American celebrity and lover of herb, to finish this sentence: Cannabis matters because\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cIf used medicinally, it\u2019s powerful and good,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s also the most important plant on the planet. It\u2019s time to end the political stigmatization of this amazing plant.\u201d<\/p>\n At this point, I tell him what a mega-famous celebrity relayed to me when I had asked him to complete the \u201cwhy cannabis matters\u201d sentence. \u201cPot excites and heals\u2014what else does that?\u201d \u201cOhh,<\/em> I like that!\u201d Harrelson says. \u201cWhy didn\u2019t I <\/em>say something like that?\u201d Harrelson is having another full-throated laughing moment and it\u2019s something else to watch.<\/p>\n Then it hits me: Harrelson is completely having a moment, his best <\/em>moment of his life. He\u2019s happy in a way that seems, well, scripted, but it\u2019s so clearly not. I share my epiphany with the affable and eternally youthful legend: \u201cWoody, are you living your best moment right now?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThank you, Richard,\u201d Harrelson starts, clearly moved by my question. \u201cI like to look at it that way. So, yes, I think that\u2019s true, this is the best moment of my life. You know, it\u2019s funny, there\u2019s not much that I do that I don\u2019t want to do. And I don\u2019t really like doing press at all, but you made it kind of fun and easy.\u201d<\/p>\n Could this be? Does Woody Harrelson like<\/em> me? I look up to see his face, and of course he\u2019s laughing that laugh of his. Yeah, it\u2019s definitely Woody\u2019s moment once again.\u00a0<\/p>\n This story was originally published in the\u00a0print edition<\/a>\u00a0of Cannabis Now.<\/em><\/p>\n The post [Exclusive] Woody Harrelson Rides High Once Again<\/a> appeared first on Cannabis Now<\/a>.<\/p>\n
We all have a Woody Harrelson story, don\u2019t we? There are very few megastars with such well-earned cred and balance in both their artistry and activism. As B-I-G a movie star as Woody Harrelson unquestionably is, he\u2019s also irrefutably a cannabis superhero and he\u2019s been pulling off this deft trickContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":480,"featured_media":64220,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[50,85,16767,488,3230,2903,17100,7314,2948,5419,17101,15903],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64219"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/480"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64219"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64219\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":64221,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64219\/revisions\/64221"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/64220"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64219"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64219"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64219"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/a><\/a>\n
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\nRead More: [Exclusive] Woody Harrelson Rides High Once Again<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"