Don Cheadle’s career has an unpredictability and idiosyncrasy that befits his foundation in jazz music. In his 40 years as a performer, he’s done everything from award-winning biopics, to socially conscious documentaries, to playing Marvel superheroes. Throughout it all he grounds his performances in an old-school gravitas and uses his platform to speak about his values, be it stopping African genocides or protecting trans children. In Noah Baumbach’s White Noise, he plays Professor Murray Siskind, who faces an “Airborne Toxic Event” while hoping to become the world’s foremost authority on Elvis. We spoke to him about imposter syndrome, the business of Hollywood and vital doomsday prep.
Cheadle: No. In high school I spent extracurricular time doing theatre, and I was pretty heavily into the jazz band – I played and I sang in
