He's such a funny guy. When he's climbing out of his truck at a truckstop on the 5, sometimes someone will go, "wait a minute...weren't you in 'Blade'??" And he'll answer, "yeah, the first one. I got my arm cut off, etc., etc..."
I've known him since he moved to L.A. about 20 years ago, he'd never done a movie and he was just another broke but interesting guy. His dad was in the oil business and they moved around a lot, from Canada to the east coast to eventually El Centro, CA., which is a real schit hole of a place along the Mexican border. Just barren desert and hot sun, and he's a pale pink Irishman like me. To go from ElCentro, where there was nothing to do but hang around with the local stoners at a Circle K, to Harvard is a bit of a story in and of itself.
He majored in intellectual history, (basket-weaving according to some PARFers),
, not exactly the most linear thing for a career path but a popular study with the smart boys and girls. That landed him in Los Angeles with a band that he eventually got kicked out of and abject poverty. Being a "pull yourself up by the bootstraps" kind of guy, he decided to be a successful Hollywood actor. I'm not making up any of this.
L.A. is filled with interesting characters like him. That's why I could never really live anywhere else. Or should I say, the other places like it are too cold and expensive. Donal is best friends with Danny Trejo, another friend for 25+ years who was basically an ex-con and former bank robber who became a major Hollywood actor. This world is so small that Donal was driving too fast in the rain up near Santa Barbara a while back and spun-out on the 101, (in a car, not a tractor-trailer), when the car stopped spinning and he got out, Danny was walking up to see if he was alright. He pulled over when he saw the car spin out. 100 miles from home!! I guess you'd have to hear him tell it, it's a lot funnier.
If you have time to play the video, there is some good humor and just wisdom in it, IMO.