In the football movie Invincible, based on the inspirational true story of Philadelphia Eagles player Vince Papale, Banks shows off her feisty side as a strong woman who falls for one of Philadelphia's homegrown heroes.
Elizabeth Banks on the Real ‘Janet’: “She is quite a character. …The first time I met the real Janet, you know she wasn’t quite sure about me. She’s seen Seabiscuit and she really loved the movie, but she’s a blond and she was very nervous I was not going to be blond when I showed up on the set. So when I showed up and had my long blond hair and the whole thing…and she’s appraising me and she’s like, ‘All right, okay. This is going to work. I mean, you don’t really do it in the boob department…’ That’s the first thing she said to me. I thought, ‘All right, I like this lady.’ She is so feisty, you know? She’s a spark plug. She really is. She’s a spark plug. She’s great and that’s what I try to do in the movie, is just have that sense of sass and be a little feisty.
She really keeps Vince on his toes. They have a great relationship. They are so supportive of each other. Exactly what you’d want in a marriage. I hope I got that sense of her essence up there. And yeah, she’s a feisty little spark plug.”
“She knows the sports world and she was a competitive gymnast most of her life and then she taught gymnastics at the University of Pennsylvania for 17 years,” explained Banks. “You know, she’s a mom. They’ve got a great family, so no, she’s not the shy wall flower at all.”
Preparing for the Part: “There was no rehearsal. I mean there was on set in the morning, run around, figure out how we’re going to block it, where we’re going to be. Are we happy with these lines? This is what we’re going to do. But there was no preproduction period of ours. They had to rehearse the football. I think they hoped that once they shot the football and everybody knew each other and, that after there was this real sense of brotherhood, that everything would flow. I think that absolutely did happen. It worked out really well.”
Taking a Few Liberties with the Story: In the movie, Vince Papale and Janet Cantwell meet while she’s working in a bar. That part of the film’s storyline doesn’t parallel real life. Banks explains why a little of the true story was changed around: “I think the bartender thing came just partially just out of the story need but also part of the problem, when you’re putting together a man’s life into a two hour movie, is he and Janet didn’t actually meet when he was getting into the NFL. So my character sort of is an amalgamation of a couple different women. But obviously Janet is the love of his life and the mother of his children [and] we wanted to honor that aspect of his life as well. So that’s why it’s her name and it’s her personality up there. We really wanted to put her essence up there. It’s all their friends and family that are going to see this movie, and it is his life story. ‘This is the woman he ended up with so let’s put his great love in the movie.’”
Working with Mark Wahlberg: Wahlberg plays Vince Papale and Banks’ onscreen love in Invincible. “You know, I’ve met him before,” said Banks. “I had to meet him before we started the movie. I’d already met him. I could tell a really funny story. You know, why not? So I went to meet Mark in New York after meeting Ericson [Core, the director] and everybody else here in LA. He was wearing his Red Sox cap. I don’t like to pretend to know anything about any celebrities when I meet them. I try really hard not to have any preconceived notions or judgments. I don’t believe anything I read about anybody, but I grew up in Massachusetts so Mark when I was growing up was like the guy. So of course I know where he’s from, and I know everything about him. My friends use to stake out his house in Boston. I never did it, thank God. He’s a great hometown kid. He’s done a really good job of being true to his roots, too, so Massachusetts people are very proud of him. So I went to meet him and he was wearing his Red Sox cap and I said trying to make small talk, ‘So where are you from in Boston?’ You know he tells me and I said, ‘Oh really? My mom’s from Winthrop.’ And he says, ‘I went to jail in Winthrop.’ [That] was the first thing he ever said to me. And I thought, ‘I love this guy.’”
Page 2: Elizabeth Banks on the Male Dominated Set and Working on a Disney Movie
