The upcoming Street Fighter reboot doesn't look like it's going to take itself too seriously, but that didn't stop star David Dastmalchian from doing some serious research for his role as the villainous M. Bison.
While speaking to Empire, The Suicide Squad actor revealed that he became fascinated by how people like the Shadaloo criminal mastermind can command such blind devotion from their followers.
“I’m curious about films where there are these villainous leaders that have endless armies of foot soldiers willing to throw themselves into certain death to defend them. I was like, ‘How do you achieve that authentically? How do you become the person that all of these people are going to follow into the fire?’ We started studying cult leadership and historical figures that were able to use terror and intimidation, but also cunning, charm and seduction, to make these major movements happen. People like Idi Amin, Jim Jones and Mussolini. We dove in with a very serious approach. People might think, ‘Oh, it’s just a video-game bad guy. It’s just a big boss,’ and I was like, ‘No, it’s something much deeper than that.’”
“Putting on the costume for the first time was right up there with the greatest moments in my career,” he added. “I had my boots the summer before we started filming, so, much to the chagrin of my children, I had been wearing them around and learning how to live in them and feel the power in them. I’m not someone who can find a character without first figuring out how he walks. So that was so crucial.”
The previous live-action Street Fighter movie won't be hard to beat, but Dastmalchian is following in the footsteps of the late Raul Julia, whose performance as Bison is widely viewed as the only real high point of the 1994 video game adaptation.
We're expecting a new trailer for Street Fighter early next week. For now, you can check out a new image of Dastmalchian as Bison below.
Sakura (The Eric Andre Show, Twisted Metal) signed on to direct Street Fighter after Talk to Me filmmakers Danny and Michael Philippou parted ways with the project.
“Set in 1993, estranged Street Fighters Ryu (Andrew Koji) and Ken Masters (Noah Centineo) are thrown back into combat when the mysterious Chun-Li (Callina Liang) recruits them for the next World Warrior Tournament: a brutal clash of fists, fate, and fury. But behind this battle royale lies a deadly conspiracy that forces them to face off against each other and the demons of their past. And if they don’t, it’s GAME OVER!”
The movie stars Noah Centineo as Ken Masters, Andrew Koji as Ryu, Callina Liang as Chun-Li, Cody Rhodes as Guile, Orville Peck as Vega, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson as Balrog, Jason Momoa as Blanka, Vidyut Jammwal as Dhalsim, Olivier Richters as Zangief, Hirooki Goto as E. Honda, David Dastmalchian as M. Bison, Joe “Roman Reigns” Anoa’i as Akuma, Andrew Schulz as Dan Hibiki, Eric André as Don Sauvage, Mel Jarnson as Cammy, Rayna Vallandingham as Juli, and Alexander Volkanovski as Joe.