Interview with Randy Couture

26.12.2010EvilDollaR

I like your beard. Did you grow it for the role? Or out of personal preference?

Randy Couture: Personal. I'm tired of shaving. I was preparing for my last fight. I haven’t touched a razor blade for two weeks. Then I decided to let it grow. I wanted to wear a beard for a while.

You're not so scary with a beard. I don’t even know why, but without that beard you look like a cold-blooded killer.

Randy Couture: That's funny. [laughs]

Without it, you have a different, more terrifying appearance. So, I'm not sure if you're aware of what Sylvester Stallone tweeted. He wants Steve Austin's character to return in the sequel. And Steve Austin apparently thinks his character is still alive. But those who watched “The Expendables” know that you killed him. How do you feel about Austin's return? Do you think his character is still alive?

Randy Couture: He thinks so? I think it's quite possible that he survived the fire. Obviously, he will return with terrible injuries. Sylvester Stallone and the rest of the guys, while in New York, once discussed this topic. Then he was looking for ideas for a sequel. We both decided that if something happens in the film, then so be it. In the end, it turned out that Steve died. Austin did a great job. He is an interesting conversationalist and a good partner on the set. I wasn't very happy that he wouldn't be in the sequel since his character was killed off. But you know Sly! You can always come up with something. There's always a way to get Steve back. Let's see what comes of this. I haven't seen the new script, so I have no idea.

I heard they were toying with the idea of ​​Steve having a twin brother. Do you like this idea? Or is it too cartoony?

Randy Couture: An evil twin would solve the problem. I know Sly is very smart. He'll think of something.

Steve was pretty evil in the first film. What do you think about making it good this time? I mean he was kind of playing the “evil” twin... Or is that too dumb?

Randy Couture: I don't know! Now it is difficult to make assumptions about what plot twists will be in the new story and how it will all end. I don't know if this is stupid. I think anything is possible.

One of my and other fans' favorite episodes is the one in which you and Steve face off in mortal combat. A very impressive sight. You both came to cinema with different fighting skills behind you. How did you develop the choreography for this fight, and how did you work around the differences in your own styles?

Randy Couture: Of course, how we ended up finishing the fight in the yard was up to Sly. We suited each other. Both on screen and in real life. There has always been a connection between these two popular worlds. Steve comes from the world of professional wrestling. It is clear that he is very popular. The new addition comes from the world of mixed martial arts. Seeing these two worlds collide in real combat on screen is something unique. Sly is very smart. Who wouldn't want to look at this? See wrestling vs mixed martial arts. And Steve Austin is one of the most popular guys in this entertainment business.

Did you manage to watch the film the week it premiered?

Randy Couture: Yes. A couple of times. We had a premiere, and then, in addition, a special screening for the Marines at Camp Pendleton. Everyone there went crazy when it came to this episode.

The excitement in the cinema grew to the limit when you began to fight Steve. This feeling is difficult to describe in words. One of the greatest scenes in action movie history. The most interesting thing is that Stallone, apparently, decided to give each of you a chance to shine on the screen. Each of the actors had at least one colorful episode...

Randy Couture: There you go! Here! I think he made sure each of us was involved. I think he realized that he was dealing with a whole bunch of people who had their own advantages. Each of us, after previous films, has our own audience. This was the biggest difficulty. The hardest thing is to bring us all together. Make sure we all have equal conditions. I think he did his best.

Sly intends to do five or six things like this. In the first film, we knew almost nothing about the backstory. However, you had a great episode with the dialogue about your ear. Do you think it was reasonable to insert conversations about such personal topics into the discussion?

Randy Couture: I didn't decide anything. Sly wrote this scene especially for me. I thought it would be funny and cool. In terms of explanation. I thought it would be a huge blow to the egos of my college wrestling buddies. It wasn't me who made the decision. This is what Sly wanted. Who am I to refuse? I just agreed. Not sure if this episode made it to Blu-ray or somewhere else. But you need to watch the full version. It was cut in the theatrical version. We only left a third of what we shot that day. But then they returned it back. I really want to see how the whole episode turned out.

So this scene was just deleted? Or will she be brought back in the director's cut of the film?

Randy Couture: I think it will be in the director's cut. But I'm not 100% sure.

I haven't come across this version. I watched the bad takes on DVD, but they were a little different from the usual movie bloopers where both the cast and crew are fooling around. Sly looked very serious. It seemed as if people were afraid to laugh...

Randy Couture: Sometimes they joked. I think these videos are pretty funny. We had a little fun while filming. Sly was not a tyrant. He had a lot to answer for. Sometimes as many as three film crews worked simultaneously. And he was watching everyone. He made all the corrections. Besides, he had to film himself. I don't know how he dealt with all this. Anyone who works like this doesn’t sleep at night, stress is guaranteed. And Sly coped with stress. This is how these videos with unsuccessful takes appeared.

Sly always has a great sense of humor about himself and his work, whether he's on a talk show or on the red carpet. So he's not all about business...

Randy Couture: He's a very funny person.

Speaking of the upcoming sequel, are you hoping to see more of the backstory of this group of mercenaries? Or stories about each of them separately?

Randy Couture: I hope that happens. But people go to films of this genre for a specific purpose. And, most likely, not for the sake of some dramatic backstory. As far as I know Sly, he will find a way to develop this idea. Tell the backstory and at the same time make it part of the action. I don't know what to expect in the second part. I didn't have a chance to read the script. I think it's still being developed. But I will be glad to know in which direction we are moving.

Stallone's script doesn't follow the standard three-act structure of most action films. His narrative is radically different, somewhat reminiscent of the last “Rimbaud”. What did you think about when you first picked up the script and read it?

Randy Couture: The first thing that struck me was... I picked up the script and read it completely. I really liked the characters and plot. I liked what was happening and how it was invented. But then, a month later, there was a real incident with Navy SEALs and Somali pirates. When this appeared in the news, I was very surprised. I was shocked to hear on the news about a situation similar to the opening scene from the movie. It was absolutely incredible. That was the first thing that struck me about the script. Using elements from the real world. Not just fiction. He worked on it.

You know, this sequel theme might strengthen Sly's position. The last “Rocky”, the last “Rambaud”, now “The Expendables 2”. He definitely has his finger on the pulse of the globe...

Randy Couture: Given the current state of the world economy, these kidnappings for ransom have become a serious problem. As a travel lover, I have read a fair number of articles and seen some things. Abductions like this happen frequently. Someone was killed in Brazil; this is one of those places that are considered problematic in this kind of thing. I know that in Mexico City there is a difficult situation with the cartel and everything that happens there. It made the news a couple of times. Some people are kept locked up for years. It's just crazy. I don't know what Sly wants to come up with.

It is known that Stallone wants to bring back the entire Expendables team, who at the end of the film were hanging out at Mickey Rourke's tattoo parlor. But on top of that, he wants to involve new people. Which old or new action stars would you like to see in “The Expendables 2”? Which actors would be ideal for a sequel?

Randy Couture: I don't know who I would add. I loved the atmosphere on set so much. There was no drama, no problems. I wouldn’t really like to see new people, I’m afraid that in this case everything will go awry. In the first film, Sly did everything he could. It's interesting to know who he met, who he talked to, and what he came up with for the sequel. What will the cast be like in the end, and how will things go?

Interesting. I have never heard anyone else worry that the arrival of newcomers could spoil the atmosphere. And the concern is quite reasonable. Some things may go bad. None of the Expendables crew died in the first film...

Randy Couture: No. Nobody died. In the first part, everyone survived.

And Dolph? Was he originally supposed to die? And then, due to the huge number of complaints after trial sessions, they finally brought him back to life?

Randy Couture: You want my opinion? Sly came up with this from the beginning. You think Dolph died, and then it turns out he's alive. Sly didn't kill him. Again, I am not the one making these decisions or participating in them. This is how I understand it all.

What do you do besides “The Expendables”? What films are you working on?

Randy Couture: I've read a lot of scripts. Over the summer I turned down several projects. Most of them are straight-to-DVD movies that wouldn't help me in my career. I only accepted a role in a film with Bruce Willis that starts filming next month in Michigan. It's called The Set Up. I'm looking forward to this project. I play the role of a very angry, interesting gangster named Pete. I also talked about several other scripts that are still in development. Some have leading roles for me. And, of course, sometime in the spring I will be filming “The Expendables 2.”

Were there any projects with superheroes that would interest you?

Randy Couture: I've looked at a couple and haven't decided on any of the characters yet. In my sport, I was nicknamed “Captain America.” Everyone asks me if I'm going to star in this film. I don't know much about him. No idea. I think there could be real problems with being seen as a real actor. They still look at me as a fighter, not as an actor. Of course, “The Expendables” helped prove the opposite.

You started out with a role in David Mamet's film Red Belt. I think it turned out to be a worthy “calling card”...

Randy Couture: I'm sure that after any work with David Mamet you become more trusted. There were no insults. David was very supportive of me and what I was trying to do. This helped a lot. I would like to play more dramatic roles. I don't like to play the roles of bandits and idiots simply because I'm big and muscular. I want more dramatic characters. I want to play other characters. I guess it will take longer. But the direction has been chosen correctly. And I try to make the right decisions when choosing roles. I enjoy doing action films. I've always liked this genre. Let's see how events develop and how it all ends.

Source: MovieWeb
Translation: EvilDollaR

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