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Tim Robbins: ‘You’re telling me Netflix is the future of cinema? We’re in big trouble’

With Silo, the actor – known for his strong political stances – is still choosing roles he truly believes in that echo real life. But he’s now concerned about the wider future of his own industry, too

We’re in big trouble When we speak, Robbins first appears as a brown smear: he is running late after a long afternoon bike ride, and is trying to conduct the interview on his phone while cycling, but the camera is facing the wrong way, so all I can see is the muddy road in front of him. Almost 30 years on from Dead Man Walking, he remains passionate about criminal justice reform: the Actors’ Gang, where he is artistic director, runs a programme that aims to rehabilitate prisoners in California through theatre. He is proud that on Silo no one works more than 10 hours a day – an unusually sensible workload by entertainment industry standards – and expresses frustration that Hollywood labour unions didn’t push for similar demands during last year’s lengthy strikes.

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