Ahead of her next release Sabotage, Mireille Enos talks about action stunts performed with Arnold Schwarzenegger
How is David Ayer as a directorIJ
David is a character-driven director who is interested in telling a story about really complicated human beings who just happen to have these skills and work in a world where being tough is essential. But that’s not the point, it’s like a character story and that just elevates the whole experience.
What is Sabotage all aboutIJ
Arnold is a father who makes an unwise decision and steals some money from a drug cartel. The family then starts being hunted, one by one.
What is your take on the different characters in the filmIJ
I think you can’t live in hell and not have it affect you. And the people in the film have different coping mechanisms and are at different levels of brokenness. And they are like a tool box where each have these skills so that they can go into any kind of situation and kind of seamlessly blend in, but they are all kind of damaged, sad.
How did you train for your roleIJ
We trained for two months before we actually started shooting. Since I already knew Taekwondo, I had a foundation. But then the filmmaker put us in training for that as well and we also underwent weapon training and intense tactical training with an actual SWAT leader.
Tell us about the big fight sequence in the movie.
I can’t remember any other film where a fight ensues between so many people at once. All eight members of the task force attacked Breach. Since we didn’t have weeks to work on it, they choreographed it with all the stuntees, and we were made to learn our parts in the fight. And when we shot it they dropped one of us in, with all the rest of the stuntees so we had like safety around us, and then they put the next and the next person in, and then Arnold came in towards the end, so it’s built like an amazing fight.
What would you like to say about your character, lizzyIJ
lizzy is the only girl on the team. She is a sniper which is one of her special skills. She is also like the girl decoy who is sent in to seduce the cartel bosses and distract them and she is married to Sam. On top of that she goes and parties with these drug lords and I guess theoretically the idea is you stop doing the drugs in between, but that’s complicated for her.
Did you have fun on the setsIJ
It’s probably the most fun I have ever had on a shoot. Because there hasn’t been a moment of feeling that there’s this possibility of getting it wrong and there’s always an option and David creates this environment where you just keep trying things and there’s so much trust and plus I have also never gotten to play such a toughie bad a@@ which is fun.