Dustin Hoffman taught acting long before he became one of Hollywood’s most celebrated stars.
“I still think about it if acting doesn’t work out,” Hoffman, 88 laughs in a joint interview with his Tuner costar Leo Woodall. The pair play a duo of piano tuners in the new film; Woodall’s character Niki goes to drastic lengths to make money for his mentor after Hoffman’s character Harry lands in the hospital.
Hoffman made his big‑screen debut in 1967 with The Tiger Makes Out and the classic The Graduate, after years of bit parts on television. “I thought I would teach acting, which I actually did after studying for eight, nine years without getting anything, which a lot of actors do,” he tells PEOPLE. “By that time you know enough about acting that you can teach it. It was a very good profession when you could get $5 from each person.”
