Credit: Eric Alt (writer), Kevin Ou @ The Loyalty Creative (photographer)
In Hustle & Flow you had to play drunk, which is hard to do well.
Just to give you an inside tip, all you got to do is spin yourself around a couple of times right before they call action. It’ll give you the same effect.
What was the set of RocknRolla like?
It seems like Guy Ritchie keeps things light. It was a light set, and he’ll tell you himself that writing a script is fairly hard, then from that point it gets easier. So he already has in his mind exactly how he wants things to play out. So as a director he is extremely on point and focused and very opinionated, and I think that makes it easier sometimes. When he knows exactly what he wants. And it just flows a lot quicker.
Just to give you an inside tip, all you got to do is spin yourself around a couple of times right before they call action. It’ll give you the same effect.
What was the set of RocknRolla like?
It seems like Guy Ritchie keeps things light. It was a light set, and he’ll tell you himself that writing a script is fairly hard, then from that point it gets easier. So he already has in his mind exactly how he wants things to play out. So as a director he is extremely on point and focused and very opinionated, and I think that makes it easier sometimes. When he knows exactly what he wants. And it just flows a lot quicker.
So how did you get involved in a British gangster film?
Guy Ritchie specifically wanted me for the part. He called and I was like, Hell yeah, because I’m a Guy Ritchie fan—from Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch.
You seemed to have an easy rapport with Jeremy Piven. Did you guys know each other before or did that just happen on the set?
No, we had just met, man. But whenever I start shooting a movie and I know I’m going to have scenes with somebody, I try to hang out with them and get to know them so that the chemistry is already there once we do scenes together. But Jeremy is a real down-to-earth person, and I still talk to him today. I remember telling his ass to stop eating so much damn fish all the time. [Laughs.] When that thing happened with the mercury [poisoning], he hit me and said, “You were the one to tell me to stop eating all that damn fish.” And I was like, “I told you, man!” [Laughs.] He’d be eating fish for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Guy Ritchie specifically wanted me for the part. He called and I was like, Hell yeah, because I’m a Guy Ritchie fan—from Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch.
You seemed to have an easy rapport with Jeremy Piven. Did you guys know each other before or did that just happen on the set?
No, we had just met, man. But whenever I start shooting a movie and I know I’m going to have scenes with somebody, I try to hang out with them and get to know them so that the chemistry is already there once we do scenes together. But Jeremy is a real down-to-earth person, and I still talk to him today. I remember telling his ass to stop eating so much damn fish all the time. [Laughs.] When that thing happened with the mercury [poisoning], he hit me and said, “You were the one to tell me to stop eating all that damn fish.” And I was like, “I told you, man!” [Laughs.] He’d be eating fish for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
So that was true?
A lot of people thought he was making up the mercury poisoning thing. I’m telling you, as his friend trying to look out for him, when he was around me, he definitely OD’d on fish.
You also did the video game-based movie Max Payne. And now there’s Gamer. How much of a gamer are you?
I don’t really have time to be a gamer, but I used to be a hell of a gamer back in the day. But it was about getting a lot of versatility on my résumé. Did the action flicks, did comedy, did drama—so I’m just trying to make sure that, before I get that starring role, that I feel like I got my feet wet.
A lot of people thought he was making up the mercury poisoning thing. I’m telling you, as his friend trying to look out for him, when he was around me, he definitely OD’d on fish.
You also did the video game-based movie Max Payne. And now there’s Gamer. How much of a gamer are you?
I don’t really have time to be a gamer, but I used to be a hell of a gamer back in the day. But it was about getting a lot of versatility on my résumé. Did the action flicks, did comedy, did drama—so I’m just trying to make sure that, before I get that starring role, that I feel like I got my feet wet.
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