-
Though he's been acting on television and movies for nearly two decades, Clifton Collins Jr. has really come into his own in recent years with bit parts in Star Trek, Crank: High Voltage, and Sunshine Cleaning. Most recently his skills were noticed by Troy Duffy and Mike Judge, who both tapped him for a starring role in their 2009 features Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day and Extract, respectively.
Collins took some time out from filming The Experiment to talk with us about his upcoming movies. The role he plays in Boondock Saints II should particularly vibe with fans because, well, he plays one of them:
My character is kind of the viewpoint of the fans, if the fans had the chance to be in the world with the saints. I play a guy who's a street hustler and has his issues like everyone else and loves the saints. He wants to be one of them, he follows them; they're his hero in a way. The saints, they see him and go "Wow, that guy's got a lot of heart." He wants to prove himself to them and he's gotta do everything to gain their trust, which gives the movie a lot of action and a lot of its comedy.
The part seems a natural for Collins, which is no surprise given how he ended up in the role:
Troy actually wrote the role for me. I was around for the first film, all the hoopla and the sensationalism — I mean who didn't want to be in Boondock Saints. My lawyer, who's one of my best friends, introduced me to Troy on his birthday on June eighth as that was happening. Of course, I still had to audition and screen test
Collins also spoke about his side career as a music video director, since there's been speculation about whether he'd try and make the transition into features.
I've always had different directors ask me when I was going to direct and I've never really thought about it too much. I've had actor friends call me to coach them out of the blue, and it's something I enjoy, it's something that's a lot of fun for me ... but not my goal. One of the things I love about videos, especially ones that I choose, is the storytelling aspect. I'm working on a spec video right now for Jimmy Johnson just because I love his song. I'm actually working on a shot list right now.
Collins was also optimistic that unlike Troy and Judge's last movies, Boondock Saints II and Extract would get the support from the studios they deserve.
I think right now the studios are pretty hungry to make some money. When you get some great films like Boondock Saints II and Extract, they know that the old Troy and Mike are ready to come back, and they're ready to do what it takes to get audiences to see them.
And Collins isn't just speaking hot air, he's seen a full cut of Boondock Saints II.
The film has been made the way it should've been made. It didn't have the biggest budget but for what we had, they did a great job. After leaving Comic-Con you should've seen the fanfair; it was pretty phenomenal. I saw a fat version and it was great, and I know there's an even tigether version that Troy's been working on that should really wow.
Posted 08.14.09 by reelz -
Variety reports that Clifton Collins Jr. has joined the cast of the upcoming thriller The Experiment, a group that already includes Adrien Brody, Forest Whitaker, Elijah Wood, and Twilight actor Cam Gigandet.
You may remember Collins as the elusive hitman in Steven Soderbergh's Traffic. In Capote, he played vicious killer Perry Smith, the subject of Truman Capote's In Cold Blood. Collins also appears in the upcoming Mike Judge movie Extract.
The Experiment, which begins shooting in Iowa next week, is based on the 2001 German thriller Das Experiment, directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel and starring Moritz Bleibtreu (Run Lola Run). Like the original, this remake will tell the story of a group of individuals selected to participatein a psychological study. They are put into a mock prison in which halfof the participants are prisoners, the other half guards. As theexperiment progresses, the participants fall deeper into their roles,resulting in abusive treatment.
Prison Break writer Paul Scheuring is directing the movie from his own script, which was based on the novel by Mario Giordano(who also wrote the screenplay of the 2001 movie). InfernoEntertainment and Magnet Media Group are financing the movie, whichdoes not yet have a specific release date.
The story idea is based in part on the1971 Stanford Prison Project, which involved undergraduates at Stanfordparticipating in a similar study in the basement of the university'spsychology building. The study was planned for two weeks but had to beabandoned after six days. You can read more about it on the study's official site.
Posted 07.07.09 by reelz -
Last month, Star Trek and Crank: High Voltage actor Clifton Collins Jr. was using his Twitter account to announce his Thor audition. Apparently, he didn't get the part.
"I have nothing to do with that piece," said Collins. "I was just preparing stuff. It's a fantastic director, a great piece, but I have absolutely nothing to do with it."
Collins Jr. would not elaborate on what part he was studying for, but he's not the only one who's has been doing his research. Brian Michael Bendis, one of Marvel's Avengers comic book writers that was brought in to consult on Thor and other related Marvel movies, attended a Thor meeting where Kenneth Branagh acted out the movie for several hours. "It was Shakespearean, with flourishes," Bendis told Newsarama.
Marvel's Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada had this to say about Branagh's thorough performance:
He's definitely about character, which is the quintessential trait you have to have to understand the Marvel characters. It's not just big hammers and capes and things like that. It's about what makes the character tick. There's definitely a reason for Thor, a reason for him being and a very deep family relationship and story in the movie that I think is going to be very cool.
Posted 07.06.09 by Ryan