The qualitative research interview is arguably the most widespread method of inquiry across the human and social sciences today. In spite of its popularity, there is a significant lack of theoretical reflection concerning this qualitative method of inquiry. On the background of other scholars’ recent experiences with interviewing in different cultural settings, this article begins to develop a theoretical account of qualitative interviewing. First, intercultural interviews are considered as methodological breaching experiments that enable us to better understand the intricacies of a practice that is otherwise taken for granted. Next, I argue that this should lead to a denaturalization of the interview. Qualitative interviewing must be considered not simply as a neutral instrument, capable of representing a "natural" human relationship, but rather as a social practice with a history that provides a specific context for human interaction and knowledge production. Some significant elements of this context are finally spelled out.