Greg Kinnear on ‘Thin Ice’ with Co-Star Alan Arkin: “I just basically steal from great actors like Alan”

It’s hard to believe that actor Greg Kinnear, who is best known for his roles in Little Miss Sunshine and As Good As It Gets, has never had any type of professional training when it comes to acting, but that’s what the forty-eight year old recently stated when talking to NBC New York.

Discussing his reunion with Alan Arkin in the upcoming movie Thin Ice, where Kinnear plays a sneaky Wisconsin insurance agent, Kinnear shared that he was a Journalism major before becoming an actor. 

“Not really any formal training to speak of. I started in college as a drama major and I had a few drama classes, but no, most of it has been real-time experience. That makes it sound better!,” he said. 

“And then on the other side, yes, I spent quite a few years hosting different shows and stuff, and I guess there was some comfortable element around the camera. I do think that helped a lot, the idea of that experience. Most of my experience as a host was looking directly at the camera and talking right to it, so I keep looking for a movie where I get to talk to the camera and I’ve never gotten one. I got one line in one movie years ago where I got to say something to the camera. But it’s a learning process still for me.”

Working with some of the great talents of the film industry over the years has no doubt rubbed off on the performer.  “I think I just basically steal from great actors like Alan and take everything I can, load it up in my little leather satchel and head on to the next one.”