Based on the best-selling novel by Andy McNab, SAS: Red Notice stars Sam Heughan (Bloodshot), Ruby Rose (Batwoman), Andy Serkis (The Batman), Hannah John-Kamen (Ant-Man and the Wasp), Tom Hopper (The Umbrella Academy), Noel Clarke (Star Trek Into Darkness) and two time Academy Award Nominee Tom Wilkinson (Batman Begins).
Set for release from Vertical Entertainment on March 16th, it follows Tom Buckingham, a suspended special forces operator, who is taking Dr. Sophie Hart from London to Paris to propose. When their train is deep inside the Channel Tunnel, heavily armed mercenaries, led by Grace Lewis, seize control of it and hold everyone hostage. Grace threatens to blow up the Channel Tunnel and declare economic war on a government that has its fair share of secrets to keep.
Unarmed and cut off from his counter terror team, Tom is the only hope that Sophie and the other passengers have to make it out alive. To save them he must embrace the unique psychology that makes Grace such a formidable adversary.
We had the privelege of being able to speak to Andy Serkis about his role in the film as the formidable, often very mysterious George Clements, and he talked in detail about the work that went into bringing that character to life on screen. The actor and filmmaker also weighs in on his scene-stealing lines, some of his biggest scenes, and the impact COVID has had on the moviegoing experience.
Needless to say, we want to extent a huge thank you to Andy for taking the time to chat with us.
It’s a real pleasure to speak to you as a fan of the work you’ve done over the years, and it was a pleasant surprise to see you in a film like SAS: Red Notice because it feels like, when it comes to your live-action roles, you’ve been quite selective with the characters you play. Would that be fair to say, do you think?
Yeah, I think that’s absolutely right. It’s true. Actually, because I’ve been directing more and pushing in that area, especially now, I tend to be quite choosy about what I act in. What I really loved about this was getting the chance to work with Andy McNab, but also to play a character that delves into the darkness of private military companies and their relationship to government. I thought that was an interesting world to explore.
Early on in the film, George says, “Politicians come and go, I’m the consistency.” It’s a great line, but do you think he enjoys that power, or is he someone just trying to do the right thing for his country deep down?
I think at one point he very much had a loyalty to the country, but he’s actually beyond that in a way. Because he works for private military companies, he could be working for any government around the world. He prides himself on what he does, and when he says he’s the “consistency,” he’s consistent to himself as well...and only himself, in a way. The way that private military companies operate is a fascinating thing to start to uncover. George Clements is very much Andy McNab. Of his own admission, this is a version of himself that he wanted to write. [It’s been great] having the chance to mine Andy for all his information, and he’s such an ordinary guy. There’s a great sense of normality to him, and yet, he’s very open about his own psychopathy. It’s a very curious mixture of being dead straight normal and saying, ‘This is a job that you’re doing and there’s no fuss, you just get on with it’ and yet [Laughs] going through all the crazy things he’s been through in life.
How familiar were you with the SAS and Andy McNab before signing up for this project, and when you did meet him, did that help with the character you play here?
Absolutely. I think a lot of us probably read Bravo Two Zero back in the day when it first came out. I think I was working on another project actually, and the subject of being behind enemy lines and the process of surviving and breaking yourself down into a position where you can psychologically survive something like that I think was germane to what I was doing. So, I read that book, and then sitting down with Andy and us wanting to feel that he does operate on this different level. He’s very beguiling and is a charming man, and if you were to sit down with him, there is absolutely no way you’d think he’s been through what he’s been through. He’s very warm and open, and yet, when he describes some of the situations he’s been in and what state of mind you have to get into...that totally informed what I was doing. In many ways, you could draw an analogy between the sort of things private military companies do. These soldiers turn up and fight for one company one week, and then they’ll get the call and go for a totally different one the next week. They might even be fighting each other after that! It’s a very, very dark and murky world as a mercenary soldier which he’s connected to, but it’s also a fascinating world, and there is a parallel in terms of going undercover, hiding who you are, and revealing parts of your personality. Those are very much psychologically linked with the notion of acting and getting into character. That’s also what I found interesting.
You get some brilliant lines in this film, including calling Sam’s character a “posh twat,” but as an actor, what’s it like getting those scene-stealing pieces of dialogue to play with?
[Laughs] That’s very much Andy. The combination of having the real deal there with you and reading that on the page and going, ‘Oh yeah, I think I can handle that’ was really good fun to do.
George feels all-powerful at times, but when he comes face-to-face with Ruby Rose’s Grace, it feels a little like he’s met his match. Was that a fun side of the character for you to explore in those scenes?
Yeah, it was actually! As an actor, there are two sides of it. Your contract is with that other actor to play that scene, but when you’re in the world of that character, you think, ‘How would you, as an actor, handle it, and would the character handle it differently?’ You’ve got to make the scene work. Ruby was pretty well-trained up, and she was very good and very strong at all that physical stuff. It was interesting pitting those two characters against each other, for sure.
George is so matter-of-fact with how he handles that confrontation with Tom Wilkinson’s character, and someone who was an ally very quickly becomes expendable; how challenging is it for you when you’re playing a character whose morals aren’t necessarily black or white?
That goes back to what this film does well which is looking at various degrees of psychopathy and how that works. It’s not overt a lot of the time. Being able to flip the switch is what interested me about the character. To go from you and I sitting down together having a pint in the pub to taking you out, it’s that trigger. What allows you to do that? How do you live with yourself? You don’t question yourself morally; it doesn’t even enter into that, and it’s not a question of that. That particular area I found fascinating and is why I wanted to play the role.
You’ve got to play in some huge franchises, so when it comes to something like SAS: Red Notice, is it a nice change of pace to be in a smaller scale film where it doesn’t have that big budget and studio system surrounding it or does that not bother you?
It doesn’t actually. The script landed on my desk, and I’ve been doing more directing as of late, so I just though, ‘Ah, this will be really fun to do.’ It really piqued my interest, so I took it for that reason. The thing is, if it’s a good script and a fun character or an interesting character, then it’s worth doing. It doesn’t really matter about the scale, but I love doing independent movies. I’m actually wanting to direct one of those. It really doesn’t matter about the scale to me as long as there’s something interesting there with the character and story which is engaging and I feel compelled to do.
SAS: Red Notice is heading to Sky in the UK and PVOD and some theaters in the U.S., but what’s your take on the move to streaming during COVID? Do you think it’s a good thing for the industry, or should we be holding off for that big screen experience?
Thank goodness really for everybody this year that they were able to watch the TV and streaming that they could. It’s been a lifeline for a lot of people, so I’m all for it for films going out. Having said that, Venom: Let There Be Carnage is going on the big screen, and everyone is waiting for that to happen at the right time. SAS: Red Notice can certainly exist both as a big screen movie, but also totally as a streamer. I don’t think it will affect this one too much, but there are some films that do beg for a massive screen. I do think that the streaming services have, as I say, been a lifeline this year, and all decent content that goes to that, fair play, really!
Without getting into spoilers, do you feel the door is open to George’s story continuing in a possible sequel? It feels like this is a property with franchise potential...
If George was to turn up, I’d be delighted! It’s been really good fun doing him, and it was a really interesting character to investigate and be part of, so for sure. If there was another one, why not?
Talking of franchises, it feels like you’ve done everything now, whether it’s Marvel, DC, Star Wars, The Lord of the Rings, or Planet of the Apes. As an actor, are there any big series or roles you’re looking to tick off a bucket list or do you feel like you’ve done everything?
[Laughs] I have been very lucky, I have to say. Let me think. Aww, I don’t know. I find it really hard to answer that question when people ask me that because there are just so many. It’s like this. It came out of nowhere. I like being surprised, and if something really excites me when I read it, then I’ll know when it comes along. It’s different with the directing because, with that, I’ve got very, very strong ideas about what I want to do and projects I want to get involved in. With acting, it’s more what I want to investigate and if something good comes through the door, great.
It must be exciting for you as a filmmaker working on a big upcoming Marvel project to then think about how many doors that could open so you’re able to star in or even direct a smaller scale film like SAS: Red Notice?
Yeah, hopefully, if [Venom: Let There Be Carnage] is well-received, that will be great. Let’s see what happens!
Thanks again for your time, Andy. I’m a massive fan of your work, and it’s a crime you didn’t win an Oscar for your motion-capture work, but with so many exciting projects ahead, I’m sure it’ll come.
Aww, that’s very kind of you, thanks very much.