“We were never jealous of each other, Bud Spencer and I were friends for life” – Terence Hill
Legendary actor, Terence Hill, rarely speaks about his faith, but speaking to the Austrian newspaper we were able to glimpse his soul. He also talks about his legendary friend, the unforgettable Bud Spencer.
โMy relationship with religion is a very personal, intimate one: fun, serious, even angry. I think it’s hard to talk about it because it’s a relationship that you have to go through. I am a practicing Catholic. I don’t talk about it often, because trust is a precious and extremely personal thing to me. When I was a child, my father read me a book about Saint Francis. He is my idol. I’ve been a believer ever since.”
During the conversation, he also told a story: once, the border guard was suspicious because he had many photos:
โI have been practicing Divine Mercy devotion for many years. Once I was stopped at the airport because I had a lot of photos in my suitcase. The police recognized me and thought I was hiding a weapon under them.”
During the interview, he also mentioned that he could be more greedy, but in that case, he wouldn’t be able to realistically play Don Matteo. (Terence Hill plays a priest in the film, 18 years later, his popularity has not decreased in Italy and around the world, including in Hungary.)
“I made professional decisions that others considered unwise. I turned down a lot of money, but I’m happy. That’s why I can authenticate today as Father Matteo.”
Of course, his legendary co-star, Bud Spencer, was also mentioned in the interview: he remembered the legend, who was also a man of deep faith, with considerable respect and affection:
โActors argued all the time and then left each other. It’s different for me and Bud Spencer: we’ve never been jealous of each other, and we’ve never made a movie just for the money. We had a great time and were friends for life.โ
At the end of the interview, Terence Hill – ie Mario Girotti – delivered an important message for all of us:
“We must be like the captain of a sailing ship. We are not the wind. We are only sailors. We can use all our strength to keep the ship on course, but we are not the force of the wind.”