In her forthcoming movie Spy, Melissa McCarthy plays a secret agent. She shares her experience of working with Nargis Fakhri and experimenting with her looks
How was it to work with Nargis FakhriIJ
The first scene on this film was with Nargis. She is amazing, pretty and so confident. She had some really cool fight moves in the film which she carried out like a pro. I was happy that my first shot was with her because for me then I knew I was working with bunch great people.
What about the food fight, in which you are hurling pots, pans and vegetables at an assassin (Fakhri)IJ
It was fun but very complicated. I kept bashing Nargis’ hand with a pan. I felt terrible. That was our first day of shooting on the movie. I thought I was going to break her hand.
How did you get involved with the filmIJ
My husband Ben and I were having dinner with Paul Feig when he first told me about Spy. He said it was about a woman who has the skill set to be a spy, but she doesn’t have the confidence. The more he described the story, the more questions I asked. I just wanted to know everything about Susan Cooper. By the end of the evening I asked Paul, ‘Can I please read the script tonightIJ’ I called Paul the next day and I said, “I don’t know who you’re thinking about for the film, but I beg you to give me a shot.” I don’t know how an actress could not have wanted this part.
What was it like reuniting with Paul, with whom you worked on Bridesmaid and The HeatIJ
It was great, I love working with Paul. I love how he runs a set and how his brain works. He is remarkably smart and funny.
What kind of woman is SusanIJ
Susan Cooper is a technically a well trained, very capable CIA agent who is desk-bound. She works in the basement of the CIA, she’s the eyes and ears for “real spy” Bradley Fine, played by the dashing Jude law. Fine once told her “you’d be better off behind the scenes” and she said, “you’re probably right.” A series of unexpected and devastating events occur in Susan’s life. It forces her to shake off her insecurities and heroically go out into the field. I absolutely loved the idea of an everyday woman who gets to be a superhero.
Tell us something about Susan’s journey.
We start with Susan being capable yet wildly insecure and full of self-doubt. A tragedy happens and she loses someone she loves. But instead of buckling, it gives her a huge surge of strength and a taste for vengeance. She changes throughout the film. I think it’s wonderful in any movie, especially in a comedy, when you get to watch a character grow and evolve. You root for Susan because you see her make mistakes but she keep on trying.
Spy is funny and exciting.
It was important to me that Spy wasn’t a spoof. Paul and I agreed on that from the very start. Paul said, ‘The action should look amazing, slick and fast and then we will make it funny on top of that.’ That real sense of danger is what makes the audience really care about the characters.
Tell us about the male spies played by Jason Statham and Jude law.
Jason and Jude’s characters are fantastic. So glamorous and tough, but let’s be honest, they’re the bimbos of the film, and I just love it.
Did you have any idea that Jason was so funnyIJ
I knew he was funny from lock Stock And Two Smoking Barrels (1998) and he is really very funny in this film. I ‘broke’ a lot with him, I cracked up laughing and I rarely do that. Jude’s character, Bradley Fine is incredible and handsome and charming, but a bit of a cad. In the beginning I’m completely in love with him, his life seems so exciting to Susan. It’s such a great twist to have two men play it a bit more silly and let Susan’s character rise to the top. By the end she realises she doesn’t need or want their approval and attention anymore.
What was it like working with Rose ByrneIJ
Rose is truly one of the funniest people I know and she’s a great girl. We go way back to Bridesmaid and getting to work with her again was amazing. I would be delighted if someone said, ‘You have to do one movie every year with Rose,’ I’d be like, ‘Great, let’s do that.’
There’s a lot of thrilling action in Spy. How much training did you doIJ
I worked with an amazing stunt woman, Diana lee Inosanto, who specialises in sword fighting and martial arts. She was Bruce lee’s godchild. I loved the training, and all of the stunts. However running through the wet, cobblestoned streets of Budapest in high heels had me wondering, ‘Why aren’t I wearing running shoesIJ’
There is a hilarious scene in which Susan is racing around on a scooter. What was that experience likeIJ
That’s a trickier thing to ride than I expected. I remember laughing out loud when I read that Susan falls over, gets back up, shoves somebody else off of another scooter, and charges off again in pursuit. I love it for the bigger picture too, showing that you may fall down but you can always get back up again.
In the course of the film, Susan disguises herself quite a number of times for her aliases. Tell us something about the costumes.
For me the costumes and the wigs and the make-up are always like a playground. Also, I have a hard time even rehearsing if I don’t think I look like the person I am playing. I am the weird person who would wear a wig to a rehearsal. We wanted to make the real Susan (who is not in disguise) very sweet, wearing a lot of neutral and sensible clothes, but still feminine. The aliases were so much fun. We wanted Susan to blend in and look like a tourist, rather than making her wear any glamorous outfits. I also wanted my hair dyed a dirty butterscotch color. I loved the alias with the short, grey, curly wig, the cat shirt and the coral tracksuit.
Female friendship is one of the themes. How interesting was it for youIJ
The film shows that even if you’re an outsider, you can still have really good friends. I think a real strength women have is the ability to communicate and really open up to each other. Men do, too but not as much. I’ve been lucky to work with women that I happen to absolutely love. In Bridesmaid most of us had been good friends for years and I think it showed on the screen. It was the same thing when I worked with Sandra Bullock in The Heat.
Bridesmaid had an impact on comedy. Do you think that films influence attitude in HollywoodIJ
I got to be part of a movie that shook up and broke into a million pieces the idea that women aren’t as funny as men. I don’t buy that any person doesn’t know some funny women.
What is it about Spy that makes it stand outIJ
It is an action-packed spy movie that happens to be incredibly funny. It has got everything for everybody I think audience will be very surprised to see where Susan ends up.