'Slingshot' Exclusive Interview: Laurence Fishburne

Moviefone speaks with Laurence Fishburne about 'Slingshot'. "When I read it, I was very surprised that I couldn't figure out where it was going."

Opening in theaters on August 30th is the new sci-fi thriller ‘Slinshot’, which was directed by Mikael Håfström (‘Evil’) and stars Oscar-winner Casey Affleck ('Manchester by the Sea’), Laurence Fishburne (‘The Matrix’), Emily Beecham (‘Guy Ritchie's The Covenant’) and Tomer Capone (‘The Boys’).

Related Article: Laurence Fishburne Joining ‘The Witcher’ to Play the Character of Regis

(L to R) Laurence Fishburne and Casey Affleck in Bleecker Street's 'Slingshot'. Credit: Bleecker Street.

Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with legendary actor Laurence Fishburne about his work on ‘Slingshot’, his first reaction to the screenplay, his approach to his character, the incredible sets, and working with Casey Affleck.

You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Fishburne and director Mikael Håfström.

(L to R) Laurence Fishburne, Casey Affleck, and Tomer Capone in Bleecker Street's 'Slingshot'. Credit: Bleecker Street.

Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about your first reaction to the screenplay and why you wanted to be part of this project?

Laurence Fishburne: Well, when I read it, I was very surprised that I couldn't figure out where it was going. I thought, okay, I want to do this because if it surprised me, hopefully we'll surprise the audience. Also, Casey Affleck was attached, and he's a brilliant actor, somebody who I've admired for many years, and I was like, oh yeah, I really want to work with him. Then I discovered that Tomer Capone was going to be playing the other character, and I love his work on ‘The Boys’, and I just thought, yeah, we're going to make a wonderful trio. So those are the reasons that I wanted to do it.

MF: Is that what you looking for when you are reading scripts and choosing projects, something that surprises you with a good cast and director?

LF: I don't necessarily approach it with “what I'm looking for”. I always approach it with an open mind and an open heart. If there's something that I discover whether it's a surprise or it's funny or it makes me cry or whatever it is, I really must connect with the story on some level. That's first and foremost. Then of course, if there are wonderful people attached, like our director, Mikael Håfström on this, a wonderful director whose work I wasn't familiar with, but once I met him, I was like, oh, this guy's fantastic, and we're going to do something really cool together. It doesn't matter whether anybody gets it, you just know like, we've got a good piece of material, we've got a great crew, we've got a great cast, and we've got a leader in our director who has a vision that he's confident about. So, if he's confident about it, then he's the guy I'm willing to follow.

(L to R) Casey Affleck and Laurence Fishburne in Bleecker Street's 'Slingshot'. Credit: Bleecker Street.

MF: Can you talk about your approach to playing Captain Franks?

LF: It's the kind of role that I'm comfortable in, that people absolutely buy me as, kind of an authority figure. I'm the captain of the ship, so I kind of have that kind of military bearing. I've played a captain of a ship in space before, so it's not like a big stretch for anybody to believe me as that. So, it was about the tone because it's such an intimate film, it's such a small kind of space. It's three people on a ship altogether, claustrophobic at times, and then at moments because you're in space, it's very expansive. Then they introduced the idea that the ship might be compromised, and the mission might be compromised, and our lives might be in danger. So, when you have a small group of people floating through space on something that's the size of a golf ball, the stakes suddenly get very high.

MF: Can you talk about how Captain Franks deals with the mutiny on his ship and the different dynamics between his crew members?

LF: It's great because there's this whole triangulation thing that happens between the three characters. So, in moments, my character Captain Franks sits at the top of the pyramid and then it shifts, when the other two are alone and they're conspiring about whether they're going to follow my orders or whether they're going to mutiny. Then it shifts again when I kind of persuade one of them to see things my way. Then it keeps shifting and changing and that just ratchets up the tension and you're like, okay, what's going to happen here? Who's going to captain the ship, as it were?

Casey Affleck in Bleecker Street's 'Slingshot'. Credit: Bleecker Street.

MF: What was it like working with Casey Affleck and having him as a scene partner?

LF: Hey man, he was great. Casey is like the Chet Baker of acting. I mean, he's lyrical. He's whimsical. He's got this incredible sense of melody that's in the emotional range, and he plays it all so subtly and with a kind of beautiful melancholy that is just captivating. So, it was just great working with him.

MF: Finally, do you think that the small spaceship set helped add the feeling of claustrophobia to your performance?

LF: Well, it did at times. It was very deceptive because it's shaped like a circle, right? So those scenes where we're walking in the hall, you keep walking round and round, but you can't, because of the way it's the angles are designed, you can never see the end of it. So, it seems to go on forever in some ways. What Mikael Håfström was able to do with his DP was he was able to sometimes make it feel like it was quite spacious, and then at other times to bring it tight and make it seem very claustrophobic so that your perspective changes. You're not sure is it up, is it down? It was really a beautifully constructed and designed set.