G.I. JOE: RETALIATION – UK PRESS CONFERENCE
There was enough testosterone present in the ballroom of London’s Corinthia Hotel on Monday afternoon to rival a nuclear fallout. Which was appropriate considering that that is the premise around which Paramount Pictures new action film G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013) revolves. Director Jon M. Chu and cast members Dwayne Johnson, Adrianne Palicki, Byung-hun Lee, D.J. Cotrona, Ray Stevenson and Jonathan Pryce gathered at the hotel to disclose to the assembled press the details behind the new sci-fi adventure.
Chu expressed his delight at being a part of what is an iconic franchise with the original Hasbro toys and now what looks to be becoming a popular film series as well. “I’d been playing with the toys since I was a kid”, he explained. “Our cast is so funny and their interpretation so amazing, that I literally just had to sit back and let them play. Working with them and the way in which they brought the story alive was exciting”.
Attention then turned to the legendary British actor Jonathan Pryce who was candid concerning his reasons for accepting his role in GI Joe: Retaliation. “Its always been my ambition to play with someone of my calibre (he plays two versions of the same person in the film), and I enjoyed the technology involved as well as learning how to play Angry Birds”, (which his character does at one point in the film).
The obvious thing the press wanted to know from newcomer Johnson, (who was not, unlike several other members of the cast, involved with the first GI Joe film G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009)), was what attracted him to the project and what he felt he had to add? “In terms of franchises I always look for some way in which my involvement can elevate them. Paramount also handle franchises well and realised there was an opportunity to do it better this time round”. Like Chu, Johnson had been a fan of the Hasbro action figures since he was a child. “I feel a real connection with the mythology. When I was a kid I was GI Joe, as well as Snake Eyes and Star Wars’ Han Solo and Boba Fett (a point he developed on later). There was also the fun of driving tanks and shooting arms, as well as combining soldiers with ninjas which is a great mix”.
On the subject of the rumored upcoming Star Wars films it was inevitable that Johnson would be quizzed on any possible involvement with that series. “I’d love to be involved with Star Wars”, he said. “However everything depends on me balancing my schedule between movies and wrestling (he will be taking part in WrestleMania 2013 in April at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey), which I love – and being asked of course! I’ve called myself the hardest working man in Hollywood, so it’s a case of fitting everything in”.
The obvious closing question put to the cast and crew was whether there are going to be any further adventures for the GI Joe’s? “It’d be an honor to do another film and take it to a further level”, said Chu, whilst Palicki, who described “hanging out with the cast and director” as being like “part of a family”, said that she hoped her “character would be in a third movie”. The direction any further installments could take was hinted at by Johnson. “If there’s another film then the powerful force of Cobra could be investigated, though there will always be room for new heroes and leaders to come in”.
With the enthusiasm of the cast and director for G.I. Joe: Retaliation, and the way the high octane adventure explodes visually on the screen, there’s every chance the elite group will be reforming to save the world again in the not-too-distant future.
Cleaver Patterson
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