Catching up with the buff and beautiful actress at the World Premiere of "The Chronicles of Riddick," I got the scoop on what life on the set was like and got a little preview of Cox's next project, the boxing movie "Million Dollar Baby."
CHRISTINA COX ('Logan'):
How would you describe Logan?
Eve Logan is a mercenary and she’s hired to bring Riddick in, along with a crew of mercenaries. And of course, as you can imagine, it doesn’t go as well as she hoped.
What kind of training did you go through to play Logan?
I did a lot of cardio. I did a lot of running, a lot of cardio, a lot of weights. Military style stuff because they wanted to go for that kind of physique.
Did they put you through any military training as a group?
We had consultants and a lot of us, because of the nature of the kind of actors that we were, we’d done those kind of things in a lot of other films. I think that in the casting, David [Twohy] sort of relied on having people who knew what they were doing as far as that kind of material goes, that kind of training in that role goes.
Do you see yourself as an action hero-type person? Is that the genre you like best?
I like everything from A-Z. I like action because I’m an athletic person but period pieces are my [training]. I started out doing theater and Shakespeare, so I want to explore that part of it. I can’t say that there’s any one genre of film that I want to isolate myself to because it all helps you grow as an actor, in any area.
What was life like on the set of “Riddick?” Was it non-stop action?
It was just like hanging out with your best friends ever, and then occasionally shooting a lot of guns, which I don’t do with my best friends – well, some of them (laughing). But it was mostly hanging out with my best friends and shooting a lot of guns.
And this was a fairly long shooting schedule, wasn’t it?
It was a long shoot. I was actually there… I got so lucky, I was there on the first day of filming and I was there on the last day of filming. I guess the whole thing was about 6 or 7 months, and I had about three months in the middle.
What’s up next for you?
I’m doing “Million Dollar Baby” with Clint Eastwood, Hilary Swank and Morgan Freeman. I’m playing a pro boxer that Hilary Swank has to fight.
Have you started training yet?
I just started hence the big guns [showing off her sturdy biceps]. I’m so excited, I’m training with Lucia Rijker. She’s the bomb.
What’s your first reaction when you pick up a script and it says you’ll be playing a pro boxer?
I go, “Yeah!” It’s like when they say, “You need to learn to play the guitar for this.” Or, “You need to do this.” I’m like, “Really? Great! Someone is going to pay me to learn something.” I just can’t think of a more fabulous job. I just can’t think of one. Well, curing cancer is a more fabulous job, but this is fun. What I do, it’s like an amazing thing to be offered so many opportunities to learn new skills and to branch out. It all adds up to layers of possibilities.
Do consider what you might get to learn as one of the reasons to choose a role?
Well, in a really emotional film you get to learn what about you connects to that material. So you are always learning and it does translate into your personal life – and goes back and forth. The more you learn in your personal life, the more you can put on screen.
MORE INTERVIEWS FROM THE WORLD PREMIERE OF "THE CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK"
Vin Diesel, Thandie Newton and Director David Twohy / Alexa Davalos / Colm Feore / Producer Scott Kroopf / Yorick van Wageningen & Linus Roache
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
"The Chronicles of Riddick" Movie Premiere Photos
"The Chronicles of Riddick" Production Photos, Credits, and Trailer
