Joining Brody in LA to discuss the action thriller was Walton Goggins who plays 'Stans' in Predators. Together the two provided some insight into life on the Predators set and the lasting appeal of the franchise.
Adrien Brody and Walton Goggins Predators Press Conference
How did you get into Royce's head, or was that inseparable from getting into him physically?Adrien Brody: "Thank you for, yes, pointing out there is more to it than physical abilities. You know they do go hand in hand. It is an interesting thing and it’s always surprising to me how much of it is an emotional, psychological transformation that ensues with the physical transformation. I experienced that with The Pianist. Obviously, if you feel strong and look good, your confidence level grows and vice versa. In addition to feeling strong, I had restricted my diet in a way, and my lifestyle, in an effort to harness everything that I had in my power to be ferocious and keep that contained. For the first time since college, I had lifted really heavy weights to put on size. I think that is a very different workout process than I’m used to, and that creates additional testosterone – your body chemistry changes. "
"Again, I felt that that physical transformation was important. I spent a lot of time cultivating the qualities I felt Royce would possess, that put him in a leadership position. I poured over military manuals and field guides and even read... It is interesting. Walton actually gave me a book from Thich Nhat Hanh, a Buddhist book. I was also reading Sun Tzu and another kind of eastern philosophy. Just as much as I could to kind of create someone who has a sense of control, awareness, awareness in the moment, and the ability to not let the fear that would naturally ensue to paralyze him, but to actually propel him into being a warrior. And the way you have that is from technical and tactical prowess."
Walton Goggins: "Stans, on the other hand, he digressed. He just read Playboy - I just read Playboy - just sitting in prison. You know, it’s interesting. The thing about the physicality for actors, you have to think about it and once you get that down, then the rest of it starts to fall into place. For me, Stans is the guy who is incarcerated for the better part of the 20 years, and I didn’t really think about this until I got there. After having thought about his time in jail, there was one piece that I kind of missed. I talked about it with Nimrod the first day and I said, 'You know, Stans hasn’t walked for more than six feet in one direction for 15 years, except for maybe once a week or something like that to be taken to the shower. You know, he is not socialized. He is not around people.' And so, I guess my preparation was almost the antithesis of Adrien’s in that this is a guy who has never been in the woods, much less the jungle. He has Stan Smith, kind of high top Converse, prison-issued tennis shoes on. All of it’s weird. His walk is weird. You are walking for miles. I mean, that’s crazy! I was in a cell yesterday. This doesn’t make sense. So my physical preparation was the lack of physical preparation, which was really interesting for me as an actor. That had never happened before."
By the time you start talking about how much raping you were going to do, the audience is waiting to see what sort of death comes to you from the Predator. Were you sort of building up to making the audience want that? Were you trying to create a character where the audience takes joy in how he gets it?
Walton Goggins: "You know, it’s funny that was your reaction. I think, for me, I’ve made four movies with my partner, so I’m very aware of what it’s like to take an audience through an experience being behind the camera. For me, what was so important about that scene in particular, from a filmmaker’s stand point and then from an actor’s stand point, was it was the first time in the movie where everyone’s kind of quiet and the people that are left are in a foxhole, and you are able for a minute to just let the air out and see these people – like observe these people – and I actually thought if I can make the audience think I’m going to say something sentimental and kind of lull them in a sense of, 'You know, we are all in this together and I just can’t wait to get home and have a hamburger,' and then he goes off, 'I can’t wait to get home and do a bunch of cocaine!' [Laughing] Because in his mind, he thinks, 'You know what? I’m going to get off this planet and I’m going to be an even bigger celebrity when I get back home. There is no way they are going to put me back in jail.' For me, I looked at it as a…"
Adrien Brody: "Delusion."
Walton Goggins: "Yeah! And being a moment of comic relief for the audience to sit back and laugh for a minute, and to bring this team together in a very intimate setting. I’ll just say one other thing real quick. My struggle, or not struggle, but my blessing and curse as an actor has been from The Shield to a lot of things that I’ve done, has been to take someone on paper that the audience should hate immediately - you know this guy and you will not like him - and then kind of turn it around and make you feel for him: make you laugh, let you in, and paint him three-dimensional. Yeah, you look for your place in a movie."
Adrien, we just learned you were up for a different role before you got this role. It also seems that your more recent roles are different. Are you trying to redefine yourself as an actor?
Adrien Brody: "It’s surprising to me sometimes when people are surprised at my choices. It seems that they are more surprised as of late. As an actor, I have made a conscious decision to do my best to not repeat myself so that I keep it interesting, the process, for myself and for the people that have seen my work. I have looked long and hard for an opportunity like this and it’s not something that I just decided upon lately. It’s a challenge, I think, when you establish yourself as a certain type of actor or an actor that has not has an opportunity to be seen in a physical role like this or an action film. And to win the endorsement of a studio, which I understand is making practical business decisions as well, and I am grateful that I had the support of Robert [Rodriguez] initially and then Nimrod."
"There was interest in another role that didn’t appeal to me. I look at this as an opportunity to do something really special within a type of film that I love, and that I feel sometimes historically Hollywood has had an over reliance on physical brawn as a way to portray a strong man, but that strength has to come from within. I felt that it was very important, especially in today’s audiences with young people, we are all, unfortunately, very familiar with what young soldiers look like and they are not dissimilar to my build. I think military leadership comes from a tactical and technical confidence and skill set and an intellectual strength and a self-reliance, and all these qualities that do make him a leader. And, yes, I did feel like I had to make a physical transformation because I think on one level it is exciting for an audience to see that - and I like to see that. I like to see, even if the character is villainous, a heroic character look strong. But I didn’t want to rely on that transformation for me to convey what I feel is necessary in portraying a leading man in a film."
"It’s a big coup for me. It’s a big deal for me. I’m very protective of this material because I’m a big fan of the original. I’m also respectful to fans and I wanted to give them what they wanted, and hopefully elevate the material as well."
