It’s hard to remember as striking a debut genre film, as Dev Patel’s Monkey Man. In fact, you may have to go back to Jordan Peele’s Get Out for that one. So needless to say it was a privilege to sit down with the two filmmakers, with Peele on producing duties, to discuss this remarkable new action thriller.
We ask Patel about the undertaking, and how overwhelming it was to star in and direct a film of this nature, while the duo speak about establishing a cinematic language from behind the lens. Patel also talks about his nameless character, and how a certain moment on set helped him form an identity.
Watch the full interview with Dev Patel & Jordan Peele:
Synopsis
A young man ekes out a meager living in an underground fight club where, night after night, wearing a gorilla mask, he’s beaten bloody by more popular fighters for cash. After years of suppressed rage, he discovers a way to infiltrate the enclave of the city’s sinister elite. As his childhood trauma boils over, his mysteriously scarred hands unleash an explosive campaign of retribution to settle the score with the men who took everything from him.
Monkey Man is released on April 5th
