The Creator of ‘Squid Game' Has One Regret About the Show
'I can't watch slasher movies, or anything that's too realistic of violence,' he said. Hwang referred to the bloodshed in his show as 'allegory.' 'Squid Game' is meant to serve as commentary on inequality, and Hwang even drew on aspects of financial distress from his own life. 'It's all symbolic,' he said.
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USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Charlize Theron is turning 50 soon. The 'Old Guard 2' star can't wait.
Charlize Theron is staring down 50 in just about a month. And 50 should be scared. The Oscar-winning actress ("Monster"), who reprises her butt-kicking, comic-book inspired role of Andromache of Scythia, or Andy, in "The Old Guard 2" (streaming July 2 on Netflix), simply has no time for society's judgmental ageist critiques. As long as Charlize thinks Charlize is hot, all is well. "Listen," she says with a smile as she peppers her comments with expletives. "I wore fishnets last night because I felt awesome in them, and that's where I'm heading right now, it's like, I don't give a ..." well, you know what. "I have limited time left, and I'm going to do it up the way I want to do it up, and that's it," she says, contrasting her feelings today with half a lifetime ago when she felt her on-screen sexuality was her stock-in-trade. "I have no more time to pretend to live my life for other people." Join our Watch Party! Sign up to receive USA TODAY's movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox Not that Theron doesn't sizzle in "Old Guard 2," where she and a bevy of other seductive and powerful women − including Uma Thurman as Discord and KiKi Layne as Nile Freeman − battle immortal figures who are bent on humanity's destruction. A highlight and hallmark of the sequel is bringing together talented female actors under the direction of Victoria Mahoney, who made a name for herself as second-unit director on 2018's "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker," a first for a woman on that series. "When I started my career, I never saw a woman in such positions," Theron says of Mahoney, adding that many of the producers and crew on "Old Guard 2" were women. "Early on as an actor, if I heard that Gwyneth (Paltrow) or Cameron (Diaz) or any of my generation got cast, I didn't even bother to look at the script again because I figured the one role was taken," she says. "We still have a long way to go. There are so many talented women, but so few opportunities. But that said, it feels better these days, more inclusive. It feels like you're not alone out there, that's the best way I can put it." Charlize Theron's daughters are not impressed with mom's superhero exploits Theron is a doting mom to daughters Jackson, 12, and August, 9. The girls, however, are not impressed by Theron's on-screen exploits; the actress told Jimmy Kimmel her kids were far more dazzled by Tom Cruise's "Mission: Impossible" stunts than her own in "Old Guard 2." Theron adopted the girls from South Africa, a country in which she continues to invest time and money. Just a few days ago, she hosted another block party to raise money for the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project, which helps community-based organizations that provide health, education and other support for young people in need. "Women in South Africa are facing femicide at a high rate and it's something nobody is talking about," Theron says. "So we do our small part, partnering with organizations in the trenches, coming up with answers and not waiting around for policy changes. And that's not a Black or white thing, we don't look at people's needs in that way. But it just so happens, though, that minorities of color are the others that usually fall between the cracks." Theron has a lot of irons in the fire. Her production companies, Denver and Delilah Productions (named after her dogs) and Secret Menu, are busy pursuing a range of projects with a particular focus on her favorite genre, documentaries. Secret Menu announced it would produce a new film on the Alexander brothers, real estate moguls who have been accused of serial sexual abuse. Next up for Charlize Theron: Battling another bad guy in the wilds of Australia But she's also just wrapped filming another movie for Netflix that will find her buff and taking no guff. In "Apex," Theron plays a rock climber who loses her husband (played by Eric Bana) and goes to Australia to deal with her loss. "She heads into nature to let it beat her up a bit," Theron says. "She meets a man who looks like someone who can help her, but he turns out to be a serial killer (Taron Egerton) and he hunts her through the outback wilderness." Let's just say in Hollywood's not-so-distant past, 50-year-old women were not cast doing battle with serial killers. If Theron has her way, she will be entertaining us with such gritty turns well into her Social Security years. And it seems she's got her mother, Gerda, to thank for that. "My mom is − well, we're not 100% sure how old she is, she's from a small town in South Africa and the records were written in pencil, I think − but she's maybe 74 or 72," she says with a big laugh. "I told my mom that I was looking forward to 50, and she said, 'Oh, honey, it gets so much better when you hit your 70s.' So, yeah, I feel like I got lucky with good genes. I think life's going to be OK for me from here on out."
Digital Trends
an hour ago
- Digital Trends
The Old Guard 2 cast chooses iconic movie moments to witness for the first time
Internet culture in the Digital Age moves at the snap of a finger. Thanks to the social media algorithm, what's popular today might not be talked about tomorrow. Five years feels like a lifetime. That's how long it's been since The Old Guard premiered on Netflix. It's fitting that a follow-up to a movie about a team of immortals would take its time before hitting the service. Mortals, rejoice. The wait is over. The Old Guard 2 is now available to stream on Netflix. Charlize Theron returns for the action-packed sequel as Andy, the leader of a team of immortal mercenaries who serve as protectors of the world. The team consists of immortals Nile (KiKi Layne), Joe (Marwan Kenzari), and Nicky (Luca Marinelli), along with a mortal, James Copley (Chiwetel Ejiofor). Speaking of finite creatures, Andy now copes with her mortality, which affects every decision, knowing she can finally die. Andy and her team will be tested with the arrival of Discord (Uma Thurman), the very first immortal with a sinister plan that threatens the universe. To defeat Discord, Andy seeks the help of an old friend, Tuah (Henry Golding), who may hold the secrets of immortality. Recommended Videos Ahead, the trio of Golding, Kenzari, and Ejiofor discuss character development and if some struggled to slip back into their parts. The group debates immortality and the movie scenes they would have loved to witness if they could go anywhere in time. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Digital Trends: This movie is about immortality and living through moments in history. They've [the immortals] been around for so long. And I start to think if I were immortal, I could live through movie moments in history. Imagine if I were on the set of Goodfellas watching [Martin] Scorsese do the one-shot, or if I were with Michael Mann watching the diner scene in Heat. For all of you, what is a movie moment you would have loved to see filmed live? Henry Golding: That is a great question. Marwan Kenzari: Let's start with The Goonies. [Pauses] Can't go wrong there. Chiwetel Ejiofor: [Laughs] That was it? No explanation? No furthering. No elaborating. Just The Goonies, right in there. The whole movie. Ejiofor: I think I'd love to be around at the end of Do the Right Thing. Spike Lee's character throws the trash can through the window. It set off, at the time, all of this conversation. All of the dynamics of that film are fascinating. I'd love to have been there and just watch that being filmed and watch Spike in his element in that way. I think that would have been amazing. Golding: Maybe a short time on Armageddon, with all the history. Oh, no. Sorry, not Armageddon. Apocalypse Now. [Laughs] Great movie. Golding: [Laughs] Armageddon's great. Yeah, up in space with Bruce [Willis]. No, Apocalypse Now. Sorry. It's in Vietnam, very different movies. Kenzari: You said Armageddon. Golding: All right! Ejiofor: At this point, I think you should just go with Armageddon. Golding: I just want to be a driller who gets sent to space. [Laughs] The idea of Apocalypse Now being so gonzo in how they filmed it with the craziness that was on set, being lost in that creativeness and world, almost becomes Stockholm Syndrome. You're living out this reality. That would have been fun. Ejiofor: Nobody believes you. Golding: [Laughs] I just want to be on that oil rig. Ejiofor: Everyone knows that you want to be in Armageddon. Kenzari: Nothing wrong with that. Armageddon was a great movie, and the fact that a meteorite can hit the Earth… Golding: Luckily, we got those blue-collar guys ready to go to space. Teaching oil drillers to be astronauts instead of astronauts to be oil drillers. Golding: [Laughs] Exactly. Chiwetel and Marwan, you were both stars in the first movie. I'm curious about returning to characters for a second time. Is it easy to get back into character? Was there anything specific you left out the first time [acting in The Old Guard] that you wanted to implement this time? Ejiofor: I mean, I do enjoy revisiting characters. Characters, for me, never go away entirely. If I'm reading something and it reminds me of a character that I've played, I find myself feeling, chemically, a little bit like that character for a moment, sitting in that space for a second. I feel like all of those characters are kind of in me somewhere. It's actually kind of nice to be able to re-explore something because you always think, 'Oh, I wonder if I'm going to be able to feel how I felt before.' Then inevitably, you begin the process, and it suddenly happens. You start to feel that chemical shift. I think that's an enjoyable part of it. I think it does give you the opportunity to add a certain layering to a character, to go a little bit deeper, because you have to consider what's happened in the interim period to this person. That definitionally informs or changes some of the past of the character as well. I think it's just a really interesting, creative process. Kenzari: I'm a big fan of Ricky Gervais. I always hear him say, 'Never in character. That's a guy with a whiteboard standing there and holding a microphone. How can you be in character?' But no, it was not complicated at all. It's as if we left each other a day before, not three or four years before. That's how easily we would just slip right back into the way we joke around. Nobody really takes him or herself that seriously. Obviously, that adds to the tone and the energy on set. Nobody has an ego or anything that's complicated. It was quite easy to start back up. Henry, you're joining the team this time. What are you trying to bring with your character, Tuah, to this franchise? Golding: I think Tuah adds another level of lore with who the Old Guards are. I think he reveals a lot of history and the implications that each character has with each other, but also with the civilizations of the world. He's been scurrying away in his tomb writing, observing, and following the adventures of this lot. For him to come out and finally be part of it, I think, has great meaning to him. He's locked himself away for too long, so he's been yearning for a chance to come back to reality in a weird way. I think if you imagine a life of eternity on your own, it can be very depressing in a weird way. I think he needs to talk to somebody. He has this amazing group that really welcomes him into something, and they're working towards a greater good, which he wants to be a part of. I was going to ask you if you had a 'Welcome to the Old Guard' moment, like a rookie going to a veteran team. Golding: [Laughs] I was discussing this earlier. I was waiting for the initiation process, like five shots and a slap on the bum with a paddle, but it never came. I was hoping for it, but these guys are far too… Ejiofor: We decided against it in the end. [Laughs] Kenzari: You did get two takes, though. Two takes, and that was it. Golding: It was like, 'Do the work, Henry.' No, they were so welcoming. Like Marwan was saying, not a single person wasn't welcoming. It made it so easy to integrate into a group of actors who are just as giving as each other. We're just able to have fun and play with these layered characters. How's your back doing? I believe you threw it out. Golding: Yeah, I had a little tweak. It happens pretty much in everything. It happened on Snake Eyes. It happened in another film that I did, and in this film. It's always during the choreography process of revising the movements without the tension of your body being in that moment. It's never anything like a misstep or a hinge of the hips that is completely wrong. Then, you're out for two weeks. It's challenging wearing a brace and trying to do all of this choreography, but we managed it. The Old Guard 2 is now streaming on Netflix.
Geek Tyrant
an hour ago
- Geek Tyrant
SQUID GAME Creator Still Torn on Season 3 Finale, but the Cast Says It's a Wild Ride — GeekTyrant
With Squid Game Season 3 marking the end of Netflix's biggest series, fans were met with a conclusion that will no doubt spark conversations. But, the show's creator, Hwang Dong-hyuk, admits he's still wrestling with how he feels about the final moments. He said: 'Even when I was writing season 3, I had to make a big decision at the end of the season. Because it's a finale of the whole series, the whole show. 'That decision was so difficult to make. I'm still thinking whether it's good or not, but the audience, the viewers will see. I cannot spoil that.' That's not exactly a confidence boost, but not all the voices involved are as uncertain. Series lead Lee Jung-jae, who plays Seong Gi-hun, believes Hwang landed exactly where he needed to. 'I thought that director Hwang's decision that he had made, he was very determined, and he knew what he was doing, but I'm sure that he went through a lot of internal debate and struggles.' Lee pointed out the unique challenge of ending a cultural phenomenon like Squid Game , especially with a character as layered as Gi-hun. 'Because, as we all know, it's just a hugely successful series. So when it's a story that big, how do you bring that to closure as director, writer, and creator? And especially for a character like Gi-hun, where do you leave his journey?' He also revealed that Hwang didn't make that call in a vacuum. 'He listened to a lot of other people's ideas as well. We would have discussions among ourselves, among the cast. He would also discuss it with me and the crew as well. 'But I believe that director Hwang came up with the most adequate, the most unpredictable, the most meaningful, and the most intriguing and entertaining ending possible. 'So personally, I am very happy with the finale, and you all are going to be able to see where it all ends soon, but I can guarantee you it's not going to be what you think.' And then there's Lee Byung-hun, who plays the mysterious Front Man, adding: 'Director Hwang keeps saying it's a finale, but when I first read it, I felt it could be a finale, [but] at the same time, it could be a new start. I'm not sure about that, it's my personal opinion, but if the audience's love and support increases, we never know what happens.' Whether it's truly the end or just the beginning of something else, Squid Game Season 3 is now streaming on Netflix. If you watched it, what did you think about the end?
