August 2009 | blackfilm.com | G.I JOE: RISE OF THE COBRA | An Exclusive Interview with Marlon Wayans

August 2009

G.I JOE: RISE OF THE COBRA |
An Exclusive Interview with Marlon Wayans

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G.I JOE: RISE OF THE COBRA
An Exclusive Interview with Marlon Wayans
By Wilson Morales

August 4, 2009

After seeing him in so many comedic roles, it took one dramatic performance, 2000's ‘Requiem for a Dream' to convince producers that Marlon Wayans still had the chops to change his game a bit and play a role that many folks would never see him in, playing buffed up demolitions expert Ripcord in the big screen comic book film, ‘G.I Joe: Rise of the Cobra.'

Directed by Stephen Sommers and co-starring Dennis Quaid, Channing Tatum, Sienna Miller, Ray Park, Rachel Nichols, Said Taghmaoui, and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, the film is a modern telling of the ‘G.I. Joe vs. Cobra' storyline and its compelling characters that Hasbro created 25 years ago from the toy franchise and cartoon series.

In speaking exclusive with Blackfilm.com, Wayans breaks it down from getting the role, getting in shape and having fun on the set doing this film.

So let's take this from the beginning: how did this come about for you?

Marlon Wayans: A lot of begging. No. (laughs) When I heard they were doing a "G.I. Joe" movie I wasn't a big fan of the comic book, I couldn't afford to read ‘em, and I wasn't a big fan of the toys, couldn't afford the toys but I saw my friends playing with them and it looked like it was a lot of fun, but I did watch the cartoon. Every day after school I would come home and watch the cartoon. (singing) "G.I. Joe, American hero, G.I. Joe is there!" So me and my brother played Stormshadow/Snake Eyes and he'd kick me in the throat, beat Snake Eyes every time, but it's all good. Finally I heard they was doing a movie and was like "I gotta be a part of it," so I talked to director Stephen (Sommers) and producer Lorenzo (di Bonaventura). At first the part was written as a white guy(laughs) but they also said he was handsome, charming, athletic and I thought I could play some of those, minus the handsome part probably… naw (laughs). So I just went, read with "Scarlett", and we had great chemistry, me and Rachel, and now I'm in "G.I. Joe".

Now do you think fans are going to accept you in the role remembering Ripcord as a white dude?

MW: Absolutely, in this day and age. The role of President was normally an older white guy. Barack changed that. That ripple has been heard around the world. The greatest golfer in the game right now is Tiger Woods. Biggest movie stars in the world are Will Smith and Denzel. In this day and age it's less about color and more about attributes. It would be stupidity if it was about the color at this point.

What did you do to get in shape?

MW: Everything but steroids. I did it the natural way. I almost called A Rod and Barry and asked them to hook me up (laughs), but instead I opted to go the natural route. I worked out with Duffy, Brad Pitt's trainer, and he put me through a regimen. I couldn't even do A pull-up at first, just screaming trying to do one. (makes screaming noise) That high-pitched scream, just hurtin' so much. I couldn't do push-ups, I couldn'tdo anything. By the end of the eight-week training I could do ‘em all. I could do 15 pull-ups, at one point I could do 25 straight. Then I could buff out like 50 push-ups. I got in shape. With characters if you walk in and you do the work physically, spiritually or mentally it all kinda falls in line. All you do then is just have fun. By the time I got to doing the role I just went in there and had some fun and I get to be a hero with humor. I laid off the gas and laid off the punch of trying to be funny and just kinda let the game come to me.

How was working with Stephen Sommers? There were so many rumors about his involvement. Just what did you get from working with him?

MW: Stephen Sommers is just a really nice guy, it's always nice working with really nice people. He keeps the set fun. On a movie like this with a lot of CGI you've gotta trust your director. It's all green-screen, so when he screams out at you you've gotta be able to listen to his voice and just trust him. He's a really great guy to work with. I've worked with a lot of great people and he's one of the great ones.

Do you think today's generation is going to get "G.I. Joe" the way people from the old generation did?

MW: I think this new generation's gonna love it. What Stephen did with the movie was he made it a fantasy, like a "Star Wars" or "Pirates of the Caribbean". It's got a fantasy world all its own. Takes place ten years in the future. Special effects are phenomenal. This is his best movie. On this one I think he applied all the ingredients you need to make a great summer blockbuster. It has humor, romance, action, suspense, great bad guys, great heroes, the adrenaline is sick, and it's a FAST paced movie. You look up and you go, "Damn, it's over?"

How was working with Channing? I don't remember Duke and Ripcord being that tight in the comic books.

MW: It was great working with Channing. What's funny is when they were talking about him doing it they had a list of other guys and I said, "I like that guy. He's cool, Channing got a cool on him, and he's a soulful dude. When we met the first time we just hit itoff, and now he's one of my best friends. I was at his wedding. We have a great chemistry, and it resonates on screen. I only wish we had more scenes together. Our off-screen friendship definitely applies onscreen and it was great working with him.

What about with Scarlett? When you heard you were going to be working close together how did that work out?

MW: It's simple, she's a pretty girl. It's hard not to like her! She dyed her hair scarlet red, crimson, kinda looked like the old Kool-Aid perms we used to do. (laughs) She liked to laugh and Ripcord in the movie has some charm and some wit and that's the way to a woman's heart. Had a good time working with her and it's a relationship the audience responds to. At first it's like, "It's a black guy and a white girl," but like I said with the maturity of the world and having so many other things to worry about that's the last issue we want to deal with. It was good to see it on film, ‘cause for years it was taboo, but to see it in a blockbuster it works. I applaud the filmmakers to helping to advance blurring those lines as much as possible.

How was wearing the uniform?

MW: Hell. Which one? They were all hell! One suit I couldn't move my arms, I was walking around like a black robot. I couldn't move my legs in the liquid armor suit. Then we had the accelerator suit and that one was like the basement of hell, the sub cellar. Yeah, it was there. The wine cellar of hell, in the basement where all the water is and the rats of hell. It was hard ‘cause your hands swell up, it's a really tight suit. They tie you in like it's a corset, man, and your back kinda crunches up and you're hunched over and you fight in this rubber trying to stand upstraight but it keeps snapping you back and then your hands and feet start swelling up after an hour. After two hours you start gettin' dizzy and wantin' to pass out. Then they want to put a helmet on your head and some guy had this brilliant idea to go, "You know, see the plexi glass? Let's take the hole out for them to breathe because it don't look as cool." So we're in the suits and we can't breathe at all and the windows are fogging up, I wish it had a defogger on it but it didn't. So to say the least it was hell, BUT it looks real cool. I'd probably do it again… for a lot more money. (laughs)

What was the coolest thing you did on set?

MW: There's a lot of cool stuff is in the movie. I just look at the movie and I'm just wowed by how much cool shit… stuff is in the movie. There's great gadgets, great explosions, great action. The coolest thing I probably did was slid across the floor, grabbed a gun and shot a bad guy. The other thing was to parachute 20 stories in the air. That was scary. Wet my pants. The accelerator suit, man, being a part of CGI, jumpin' and divin' through trains and walls, that were interesting. There's just so much I can say and that's just my stuff. When you see Snake Eyes, this guy is like Bruce Lee in a ninja costume; he's sick.

Are you signed on for a sequel?

MW: Oh yeah, I'm signed on for so long that my kids will be signed on for "G.I. Joe 25", starring Shawn Wayans and Maya Wayans.

Do you have an action doll for "G.I. Joe"?

MW: I sure do. It looks like Eddie Murphy, but I always wanted an Eddie Murphy doll since I saw "Delirious".

What do you think fans will take away from this?

MW: "Wow, that was a good movie!" It's a great way to end the summer. It's kinda like an exclamation pint at the end of this fun summer. You had some really good movies but I think this one appeals to family and also young teens and also grown men. This is weird movie because it actually speaks to FIVE quadrants, not even four, and I'm excited to be in it and I'm definitely gonna take the entire family to see it, and I've got everybody from 8 to 80.

I read in the notes that your performance in "Requiem for a Dream", which you did years ago, was a catalyst for you getting this part. Are you looking to do more dramatic films because people are looking for you to do more than just the comedic stuff?

MW: I'll definitely do more dramas. There's not many dramas out there that I've read and go, "I've gotta do it!" that already don't have a star attached. I definitely want to do more drama. I want to be able to transcend all genres. Be believable in each one and have the audience follow me, have a flexible career and just do good work, work with good directors, but I'll always love comedy. This is a perfect part because I get to have some comedy, have some drama, I get to be a hunk, save the day, and get the girl. This is kind of an all-in-one.

What's next for you?

MW: Couple of things. We're writing a sequel to "White Chicks" and we're also working on a buddy action comedy, and then I gotta couple other things in the pipeline I can't talk about but when it comes about I'll let you know.

What's in store for the sequel to "White Chicks"?

MW: I'll tell you in about six months. We're gonna be getting together and having a good time.

G.I JOE: RISE OF THE COBRA opens on August 7, 2009

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