An enthusiastic and emergetic exclusive interview with director JJ PERRY discussing the many facets of his new high-octane action-comedy THE KILLER’S GAME.
SYNOPSIS: In the new action-comedy THE KILLER’S GAME, when top hitman Joe Flood (Dave Bautista) is diagnosed with a terminal illness, he decides to take matters into his own hands – by taking a hit out on himself. But when the very hitmen he hired also target his ex-girlfriend (Sofia Boutella) , he must fend off an army of assassin colleagues and win back the love of his life before it’s too late.
Directed by JJ PERRY with script by Rand Ravich and James Coyne based on the book of the same name by Jay R. Bonansinga, THE KILLER’S GAME stars, among others, Dave Bautista, Sofia Boutella, Terry Crews, Scott Adkins, with Pom Klementieff, and Ben Kingsley.
With some 200 credits to his name over the past 35+ years as stuntman, stunt coordinator, fight choreographer, second unit director, and director, JJ PERRY is a force to be reckoned with in the film and television industry. Calling on his decades of martial arts training in which he holds a 5th-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do and a 2nd-degree on Hapkido, plus extensive weapons work, and more traditional “stunt” training with cars, motorcycles, hand-to-hand combat, and more, JJ has worked on some of the most action-heavy high-profile films and tv shows around, from his early days of stunts and stunt coordination in television series like “Angel”, “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”, and “24” and films like “Three Kings”, “Planet of the Apes”, “Iron Man”, “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” to more recent stunt coordination projects like “Olympus Has Fallen”, “Expendables 3”, “John Wick 1 and 2”, “The Fate of the Furious”, “Gemini Man”, and “F9: The Fast Saga”. Dipping his toe into the directing waters with his debut action-comedy feature “Day Shift”, JJ made a splash; so much so that he’s back for more and now helms the non-stop action-fueled comedy, THE KILLER’S GAME.
In our exclusive interview, JJ PERRY dove in deep discussing his approach to directing THE KILLER’S GAME, most notably to make the “facets of the stunt diamond” shine with action and comedy, and that starts with casting and “calling on your friends” to jump in. And jump in they did. Who doesn’t want to see Dave Bautista and Pom Klementieff reunite onscreen after what we saw from them in the GOTG franchise? And how about Terry Crews who brings the muscle and comedic magic that we came to know and love in “The Expendables” franchise. Of course, you can’t do an action film that’s heavy on martial arts disciplines without Scott Adkins, but who knew how funny he could be! JJ Perry did. With casting perfection for THE KILLER’S GAME, JJ turned his attention to the 42-day shoot abroad, focusing on the integration of dance/fight choreography/action, hand-picked “familiar” needledrops that work with the action in specific scenes, creative use of some spectacular locations, and the importance of doing pre-vis for the film, something that he has long implemented with stunt coordination.
Listen to JJ PERRY’s enthusiasm and energy (which are evident in the film onscreen) as we discuss, among others:
- difficulty of pulling off a blend of action and comedy to create and entertaining and engaging film for the audience
- allowing the comedic elements to “push the envelope further and add to the overall enjoyment of the film” by maintaining “fun and entertaining tone while still being violent and intense”
- casting and collaborations; versatility of actors such as Scott Adkins; chemistry between actors
- casting during the SAG strike which had challenges but also yielded terrific surprises and opportunities
- pre-visualization
- fight and dance choreography and editing the two for a seamless interface
- variety of action disciplines
- balancing action scenes with character development
- location, location, location; finding locations and venues to accommodate the fight choreography and vehicular stunts
- utilization of space within a location, e.g., “Schatzberger Castle”, a church, etc.
- Matt Gant’s production design
- working with cinematographer Flavio Labiano; camera movement and fluidity and dynamic lighting
- editing by Simon Smith
- music; score and needledrops; the importance of using familiar music in creating connection with the audience (and a great Snoop Dogg anecdote)
- blood and violence; a way to engage the audience and create a sense of tension; creative use of blood effects
- JJ’s philosophy of “having the upper hand” on the audience and surprising them with unexpected violence; importance of foreshadowing and creating suspense to make violence more impactful
- maintaining a fun and entertaining tone while still being violent and intense
- and more. . .
TAKE A LISTEN. . .
by debbie elias, exclusive interview 09/05/2024
THE KILLER’S GAME is in theatres September 13, 2024.
