March 03, 2000

by Veronica Mixon

Best known for his roles in the Emmy Award winning television series, "Law and Order" and as Julia Roberts' boyfriend, Bratt is poised for big screen stardom. And, if luck is on his side, he'll be the latest Hispanic leading man and the first heart throb of the new millennium.

Bratt plays Ben, the man who comes between husband-hunting Madonna and her best friend, Rupert Everett who also happens to be the gay father to her ten-year-old son. Once romance blossoms, unfortunately, a nasty custody battle erupts when the two want to marry and move away. This sparkling romantic comedy quickly changes its tone to a darker, more serious issue-oriented film that tugs at your heartstrings. It's reminiscent of "Kramer vs. Kramer" and the bloody battle two parents wage over a child.

Madonna, whose last screen outing was "Evita" and Rupert Everett, whose popularity has soared since his appearance in "My Best Friend's Wedding," have been friends off screen for nearly fifteen years. Their closeness is very evident but Bratt says that they were both gracious and welcoming toward him.

"I worked very few days in the schedule. So the times that I did show up on set, we had a lot of fun, actually," he flashes a wicked grin. "There's something about the way they would sit together and chat that reminded me of the mischief makers in high school. You know, the two smart alecks who would sit in the back of the class."

Bratt, himself, is a graceful man with impeccable manners and a soft-spoken voice. Incredibly handsome, he's nevertheless aware that acting opposite powerful women, as well as dating one, has put him in a unique position. Everyone is dying to ask about Julia and Bratt, admits when he's pressed, that his friends envy his working situation and his personal life. When they worked together on "Law and Order," he says that they were extremely nervous around each other.

"Listen it was a risk on some level working together but it was probably the safest venue to try it and we both quite enjoyed it. Julia had this amazing level of success and I was in my own dojo as it were. We both felt the pressure to be good for each other. And, since we were nominated for Emmys, I guess we succeed."

So, it was easy to accept the role in THE NEXT BEST THING because it was an opportunity to play a romantic lead and also be in light comedy. "For the past four years of my professional life on 'Law and Order,' I didn't have much of an opportunity to even smile," remarks Bratt. "I miss the people I worked with but I don't miss the Monday through Friday, nose to the grindstone twelve to fourteen hour days."

One of five children raised by a single mother, the 36-year old actor started out in the theater and he's appeared at the Shakespeare Festival/Los Angeles, the Taper Too and Theater Geo. He works closely with his writer/director brother, Peter and they've produced one film together, "Follow Me Home." His previous films include "The River Wild" opposite Meryl Streep, "Clear and Present Danger" opposite Harrison Ford, "Bound by Honor," "Demolition Man" and "One Good Cop."

Bratt says its no accident that he's involved with a strong woman like Julia Roberts. "I've always had powerful women in my life. It takes some kind of fortitude to be able to single-handedly raise five kids, keep them all out of jail, off of drugs and get them all through college," he explains. "It's part of my mother's cultural DNA. She's from Lima, Peru where familial values are the most important thing in life.

"As a result, I feel quite comfortable in the presence of powerful, smart, brilliant women. In fact, I'm drawn to them."

The only time Benjamin Bratt hesitates during our interview occurs when I ask him about his father. "I think the presence of a father is important to any child even though there's emotional difficulty regarding the subject in this film," he begins. But, he quickly grows uncomfortable as he pauses, searching for the right words to describe his own situation. You can see the difficulty cross his face. How much should he reveal to a press that closely monitors his personal relationships? Finally, he says, softly, "I had a father."

He's a gentleman to the end. And, no doubt, he'll be popular in his new film.