Justin Theroux is ensconced in his Greenwich Village duplex. It’s the middle of February, “the shortest and the cruelest” of months, he says. We’re talking over Zoom. He’s wearing a black T-shirt over his non–dad bod, a black beanie, and, despite the waning daylight, tinted aviators. A russet beard covers his unfrivolous jaw. Behind him, there’s a glass case displaying wax molds of syphilitic mouths. He takes frequent drags from a Juul to supplement a steady supply of Nicorette; he quit vaping when the pandemic began and only recently resumed. “I reserve it for the evening hours,” he says, as if voicing an infomercial. It’s 3:30 P.M., close enough. He holds up a piece of gum. “Whereas the minute I open my eyes, I put this in.”
Listen, it’s been a stressful year.
In the lead-up to Covid-19, he was in Mexico, filming his latest project, Apple TV+’s The Mosquito Coast. When production halted in March 2020, Theroux returned to New York City and began stockpiling for his pod of one. (Two, if you count Kuma, his pit bull terrier.) He bought bone broth by the bucket; he hoarded garlic, ginger, and, for some reason, Parmesan cheese. “Perhaps I was being paranoid,” he says. Like everyone else, he couldn’t find toilet paper, but unlike the rest of us, he didn’t need it. “I have a Toto, thank God,” he says, referring to his heated, bidet-rigged Japanese toilet.
This story is from the April - May 2021 edition of Esquire.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the April - May 2021 edition of Esquire.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
hasan minhaj had a very strange year
The comedian felt the wrath of the Internet AND lost a career-defining job opportunity. NOW he's back with an interview series, A NEW NETFLIX SPECIAL, and a fresh perspective on his COMEDY.
the perfect girl friend
Flirty, sexy, seductive, supportive. Your AI companion can be whatever you want her to be. And now a growing number of men are turning to bots to ease their loneliness or satisfy their kinks. The choices are endless. The emotions are real.
thinker
Andrew Garfield has big ideas about life and death-even a theory about the nature of time. Over an afternoon at one of his favorite New York City haunts, the actor let us into his world.
priceless
At Hermès, Axel de Beaufort will make whatever you imagine. Its value can be measured not in dollars but in the hours spent crafting it and the beauty it adds to the world.
shoes with staying power
The Shannon lace-up from Church's is a study in enduring style
THE MIDLIFE CRISIS? TRY THE THREEQUARTER-LIFE QUANDARY.
Black men's life expectancy is short, thanks to history. At 49, am I on the downslope?
HOW THE DEMOCRATS GOT THEIR GROOVE BACK
They've been flinching ever since Reagan, but the party has finally figured out who they are.
WRITTEN ON THE BODY
As we age, we're fighting a losing battle against memory. Maybe that's why, in my 40s, I've tattooed myself with everything I can't bear to forget.
I Wore This Jacket to Death. Now It's Even Better.
Menswear designer Aaron Levine, who helped revitalize brands like Abercrombie & Fitch and Club Monaco, explains why he reaches for his Carhartt again and again and again
Check Yourself
Todd Snyder and Woolrich have teamed up to create a new breed of wearable luxury fashion. The iconic buffalo plaid remains a staple.