Opening in theaters, On Demand and digital April 21st is the new action movie ‘The Best Man,’ from writer and director Shane Dax Taylor (‘Bloodworth’).
What is the plot of ‘The Best Man?’
In ‘The Best Man,’ a team of ruthless mercenaries violently seize control of a remote resort hotel looking for revenge. Former Special Ops soldiers Bradley (Brendan Fehr) and Anders (Dolph Lundgren), who are attending their best friend Cal’s (Luke Wilson) wedding to Brook (Nicky Whelan), along with the bride’s sister Hailey (Scout Taylor-Compton), must rely only on their wits and training to combat the terrorists and save the hostages held for ransom.
ztfOM5Vcy0z8ljnsWFdfG4Who is in the cast of ‘The Best Man?’
‘The Best Man’ stars Brendan Fehr (‘X-Men: First Class,’ ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’), Nicky Whelan (‘Hall Pass’), Scout Taylor-Compton (‘The Runaways’), Scott Martin (‘Big Kill’), Dolph Lundgren (‘Rocky IV,’ ‘The Expendables’), and Luke Wilson (‘The Royal Tenenbaums,’ ‘Old School’).
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Brendan Fehr about his work on ‘The Best Man,’ the ‘Die Hard‘ type plot, his character, the stunts and weapons training, and working with Luke Wilson and Dolph Lundgren.
You can read our full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interview with Brendan Fehr about ‘The Best Man.’
Moviefone: To begin with, the movie is sort of “’Die Hard’ at a wedding.” What was your first reaction to the screenplay?
Brendan Fehr: Action movies are always fun. You never exactly know how it is going to turn out. For me, obviously it has to do with the story and ‘The Best Man,’ and I’m the Best Man. So, I was like, “Oh, that’s cool. Let’s go.” Every kid dreams of being a hero of some sort and saving the day. As an adult, I think we still have those delusions of grandeur, I suppose, of being put in that situation. Fortunately in my career, I get to sometimes, not actually do that, but play out those fantasies. So, that’s always fun. Then you’re looking at the people that are involved as well and getting to work alongside Luke, and I knew Scout from earlier. It’s always just an opportunity to do something fun and learn, and with all the ingredients put in there, see what comes out on the other side.
Related Article: ‘The Best Man’ Exclusive Clip
MF: What was it like working with Hollywood legends like Luke Wilson and Dolph Lundgren?
BF: I mean, they definitely have their different process. Actually, it was funny, I was thinking about this today. I don’t think I say anything to Dolph in the entire movie. I don’t think I actually talk to him. We do all hug in a group setting. I have scenes with him, but I actually don’t think I ever chat with him the entire movie, which is interesting. So, I didn’t get to spend a lot of time with either of them. It was a very quick shoot. It was kind of in and out. The movie’s a little bit of a run and gun, and so was the actual filming of it. But it’s one of those things where you realize everybody has just a different process. Having done this for 30 years, you’re always just kind of observing what’s their process. Do they like to talk a lot before the scene? Do they like to do this? Okay, that person goes off into the corner and they do this, and they got their scene. So for me, if the opportunity obviously presents itself, then you ask questions and you kind of get into it, but you don’t want to really talk about acting necessarily when you’re acting. You don’t know if that’s going to throw the other person off. So, it’s just more about observing and you kind of pick and choose what you think works for you or, “Oh, that’s interesting how they go from that to that.” Some people transform, some people want to stay in character. So, you never stop learning in this business.
MF: A lot of your scenes are with Scout Taylor-Compton, and you mentioned that you knew her previously, did that make it easier to perform the action sequences with her?
BF: Yeah. I had kind of a cameo in a movie that’s not out yet that she stars in. I actually play the father of her boyfriend or love interest, which is hilarious. Now we’re playing a couple of sorts. So, we had briefly met on that movie, and I really got along with her in the short time I was there. So, when I knew she was on this and then the role she was playing, I thought that would be a lot of fun. But with this one I saw the way she worked and she took it seriously and just very collaborative. So, ultimately we spent this entire movie together. All our days, the long days, it was a lot of me and her. She’s always looking to, how do we make this scene better? How do we elevate it? What can we do that’s fun? I’m very much the same way. When you have a partner throughout a movie that you spend a lot of time with, you hope that you do get along naturally. Sometimes you don’t, and that’s just the way it works. But this one, we were really open with each other. So, it’s that kind of creative spirit that I think I’m looking for in any project I do. We worked really well together in that respect.
MF: You play a Special Ops soldier, but he’s not invincible, he gets hurt a lot in this movie and does not win every fight. Do you think that added the realism of the film?
BF: Yeah. Obviously it opens up the movie establishing that, in this case, these are men that have seen a lot and been through a lot. That can go a couple different ways. That can bond people, or it could be, even though you’re bonded, there’s trauma there but you don’t necessarily have the capacity to deal with. My character, Bradley, goes off on the ranch, kind of lives alone, doing his own thing. Dolph’s character travels the beaches all around the world, kind of living it up with what appears to be a little bit of an alcohol problem. Then Luke falls in love with the person that we rescue. So, everyone’s kind of got their different coping mechanism with it, which you hoped those establish the characters a little bit early on, giving them their own journey and then obviously being thrown back into it with the ambush at the wedding. So, yeah, it was just a great way, I thought, to, in an action way, give them their own sense of where that led them. Then they’re all thrown back together again in what’s going to happen from there.
MF: Finally, can you talk about the weapons training you had for the film, and the attention to safety on set?
BF: Safety’s always a priority. I’ve worked with a bunch of experts in guns and armor throughout my career, and I go through my own checklists. So, everyone’s extra careful. It’s not like I’m a massive gun guy, but you’re always looking to make it as realistic as possible. So, you ask the armorer and other people around who have that experience, but I’ve been doing this long enough that I kind of know most everything I do. Then as far as the fights, again, I’ve done a couple fighting movies. So, I enjoy doing those kinds of things. It’s fun and you learn it on the day. It’s a real run and gun thing, like I said. So it’s just like, “Okay, this is what we’re doing.” The fight scene in the hotel that I have, there’s a couple of pieces to it. I always say that I learn it three moves at a time. So, you practice the first three moves and you go through that. It’s like a phone number, you get that sequence down. Okay, now the next three moves are this. Okay, now you put that together. So, now you got the first six down and once you got that, you move on to the next three. That’s a really good way to quickly learn something so that everyone’s in sync, no one gets hurt, and you look like someone who knows what they’re doing.
Other Movies Similar to ‘The Best Man:’
- ‘Die Hard‘ (1988)
- ‘Die Hard 2‘ (1990)
- ‘Passenger 57‘ (1992)
- ‘Under Siege’ (1992)
- ‘Under Siege 2: Dark Territory‘ (1995)
- ‘Sudden Death‘ (1995)
- ‘Die Hard: With a Vengeance‘ (1995)
- ‘The Rock‘ (1996)
- ‘Live Free or Die Hard‘ (2007)
- ‘A Good Day to Die Hard‘ (2013)
- ‘White House Down‘ (2013)
- ‘Olympus Has Fallen‘ (2013)
- ‘London Has Fallen‘ (2016)
- ‘Angel Has Fallen‘ (2019)
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‘The Best Man’ is produced by Saban Films. It is set to release in theaters, On Demand and digital on April 21st.
