Since his style breakout with The Transporter in 2002, Jason Statham has greater than confirmed his bona fides as an motion star – a man you possibly can depend on to do cool issues and appear like a badass when cameras are rolling. Within the making of his newest film, Meg 2: The Trench, this well-established popularity rapidly earned him the belief of director Ben Wheatley, and it led to one of many film’s coolest scenes being filmed in an superior and sensible manner.
As previewed within the trailers for Meg 2: The Trench, there’s a sequence within the movie’s third act the place Jason Statham’s Jonas Taylor races round on a Jet Ski searching Megalodons with explosive harpoons, and it seems that it was shot in a vogue that solely enhances Statham’s motion legend standing. As an alternative of the Jet Ski being rigged as much as a bigger boat and towed or utilizing blue display, the go-to methodology throughout manufacturing was to strap a digicam to Statham’s watercraft and let the actor exit and have some enjoyable on the water. In keeping with Ben Wheatley,
Yeah, he simply went off. I’ve obtained footage of me on one of many observe boats, simply going like this [waves his arms]. And he is simply within the distance leaping over the [waves]. So yeah, that, and that is why that stuff appears actual, you realize? It might have been on a gimbal like Roger Moore in The Spy Who Cherished Me. However no, it was it was all finished for actual, all that stuff – aside from the bit the place he jumps on that huge wave .
When a Jet Ski or a ship or perhaps a automobile isn’t filmed with actors working the automobile, there are nearly all the time indicators or indications, and they are often distracting and/or take you out of the cinematic expertise. As Tom Cruise is continually proving with new Mission: Inconceivable sequels, actual is all the time higher, and it does add an additional high quality to the motion in Meg 2: The Trench – regardless that the entire “harpooning large prehistoric sharks” factor is clearly ridiculous.
I interviewed Ben Wheatley nearly earlier this week, and through our dialog we spoke particularly about his expertise working with Jason Statham. The actor left an impression on the filmmaker, as Wheatley not solely admired what may very well be referred to as Statham’s skilled consciousness, however merely had enjoyable utilizing him like a baby performs with an motion determine:
With Jason, he is aware of motion inside out, and he is obtained many years of expertise doing it, and he understands what his personal picture is and the way he appears. But additionally the thought of how an motion model works inside a film or how a hero works with an viewers and all that sort of stuff. So he is a really current sort of collaborator inside all that stuff. However then on the opposite facet of it, you might be being given entry to love a sort of a display icon in a manner, and also you get to make use of him in all this stuff. It is nice enjoyable. I imply, he is as thrilling to make use of because the Meg in some ways.
Official motion figures don’t presently exist for The Meg franchise, however followers can get as shut as potential to the expertise of enjoying with some by testing Meg 2: The Trench, which arrives in theaters as we speak.
