Listen, chances are the first thing you want to know about Joel Kinnaman is how shooting is going on James Gunn’s “The Suicide Squad.” Kinnaman is one of just a handful of actors to make the jump from David Ayer’s 2016 “Suicide Squad“ to the long-anticipated sequel that Gunn segued too after it appeared he wouldn’t be directing “Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 3.” So, let’s satisfy that hunger first.
Speaking with The Playlist this weekend Kinnaman revealed that they are only halfway through production of the Warner Bros. flick and while he didn’t want to compare the two experiences, he did note that Gunn has brought a different tone to the set.
“Some of the characters are the same, but it just feels like a different universe, in a way,” Kinnaman says. “I think he has a lot of comedic instincts, and a lot of the actors that he’s chosen are really strong comedic, but he also chooses the comedic actors that have a really strong sense of drama as well. I think James’ instinct is it can never be funny at the expense of feeling real. So, it’s funny, but it has to feel true within the boundaries that his world allows. And those boundaries are pretty loose. There’s a lot that can fit in it. And yeah, I’m really enjoying it. It’s a very warm atmosphere. He’s extremely well-prepared, knows exactly what he wants and he’s a very kind person in spirit. The whole set is a kind-spirited set where there’s a lot of laughter and no bad egos. And yeah, I have a bunch of comedian friends, but I haven’t really been in a real comedy. And even though this isn’t just a comedy, it is some kind of action-comedy.
He adds, “I haven’t been in many films where you’re struggling because you can’t keep a straight face. And I’m telling you, John Cena, that motherfucker is a comedic genius. He’s a legit comedic genius.”
Kinnaman is also somehow balancing his time shooting the second season of “For All Mankind,” the Ronald D. Moore, Matt Wolpert, and Ben Nedivi series that is only a few episodes into its first season as part of Apple TV+’s launch less than 10 days ago. The Swedish native plays Edward Baldwin, a fictional NASA astronaut that was prepping for a trip to the moon on an Apollo mission in 1969. In “Mankind’s” alternate timeline, however, Neil Armstrong wasn’t the first man to land on the moon. Instead, the Russians shocked the world by somehow getting their first. Baldwin’s character becomes part of a group of NASA administrators and astronauts trying to salvage the program under President Richard Nixon’s critical eye. Or, at least that’s what it appears the series is about.
Potential spoilers ahead, but in the course of interview Kinnaman makes teases revelations about what the audience thinks the series is about. He also discusses one of two other films he shot this year, Jérémie Guez’s “The Sound of Philadelphia,” an indie production which also stars Matthias Schoenaerts and Ryan Phillippe. Basically, he’s had quite a busy 2019.
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Joel Kinnaman: Hey Greg, I’m doing great. How are you?
Is this true? Are you actually shooting season two of “For All Mankind” while also filming “The Suicide Squad”?
Yes. Yes. While also doing a promo color for “For All Mankind.”
Do you have any days off or are you shooting every single day of the week?
Yeah, it’s pretty nonstop right now. Yeah, pretty intense. But both of the projects are really good experiences with really good people. So it just makes it a lot easier.
I swear, I will get off this subject of doing two projects at one time or two projects, but are there days where you’re shooting one in the morning and then a few hours later you’re shooting the next one?
No, I mean it was a hell of a project getting the schedules to work out because “Suicide Squad” we’re shooting in Atlanta, and then we’re shooting “For All Mankind” in L.A.
Oh well, enjoy those frequent flyer miles.
Yeah, [Laughs].
Regarding “For All Mankind,” I don’t know how far you are already into season two, but how strange is it to be in production while season one is just coming out now? Is it awkward to go into a new season knowing you don’t know how the audience thinks or has reacted to the show yet?
No, not really. I mean, it definitely could be, but this show, I just feel so good about the show. I mean, I’ve gotten attached to projects that I’ve done before and then it didn’t end up getting received the way that I thought it would, but I’ve gotten a lot better at sort of gauging that. But this was something, in particular, I felt pretty strongly that this is probably the best-written project I’ve been a part of. And the show grew on me in a way where I hadn’t understood while reading and shooting the first three, four episodes, how good this show actually was. So, [when] we got into episodes five, six and seven, and then how it tied everything together, I was pretty blown away by it while we were shooting it. And it was one of those kinds of experiences where the whole crew got involved in a way that I haven’t really experienced. I mean, on “The Killing” it was a little bit like that, where all the crew were super engaged in the characters and they were wondering what’s going to happen next and there’s all these discussions going on. And I think a lot of us that were shooting it felt like we were doing some of our best work on the show. So, I would have been absolutely shocked if we hadn’t gotten picked up. To me, it was like this is great storytelling and it is coming together and it feels original. Now, when it’s coming out, I think that the reception has been really good, but I feel so confident about this. I think I’m pretty sure that it’s going to find a broad audience, but it might take a while. There’s so much content out there and it’s coming out on a new platform. And I wouldn’t be surprised if it takes a little while when enough people have seen the whole series and then start talking to their friends, and all that stuff.
When you were pitched the show, how was Edward’s arc described to you?
It was sort of with the outer contours of an all-American hero in a way, but [someone] that is struggling with a lot of things. H has problems connecting with his son, he has anger issues and then how he goes through an immense tragedy and how he deals with that. And I think the tragedy that he goes through in the last third of the season, that was what really drew me to him. To just play someone that is heroic, that goes off and saves the world because that’s what they do, that doesn’t really appeal to me. I enjoy playing the people that have cracks in the facade and there might be a side that they show the world, but that there’s something else going on. And they had a very clear idea of the inner life of Ed and the things that he was struggling with, was something very different the face that he showed the world. It’s not fun to play someone that is just strong and doesn’t have any weaknesses. It’s the weaknesses that make us human and that makes people connect and feel seen when they see characters. I really liked that idea of playing this all-American, classic man that comes from the late sixties and that keeps his emotions bottled up, and then you see the results of that. That is not a healthy way to deal with your emotions, and with Ed, they really show what the result of that does.
I’ve only seen the first four episodes but is this first season self-contained? How would you say the first season sort of resolves?
Well, you will notice that the show moves pretty rapidly in time. I think in the fifth episode, I think that your perspective of what the show is will shift. And then it will continue to shift a couple of more times. And then when you start watching the second season or the end of the [first] season, it’s going to shift again. And it has a very unusual, almost revolutionary, storytelling style. It’s a show that doesn’t really shift in character, but it will reveal to the audience what it is in stages. And I think that the perception of what the show is is going to change quite a bit until you really understand like, “Oh, this is the show. And I think by the third season, that’s going to shift even more. And yeah, it’s frustrating because I just really want to spoil it and let you know what’s going to happen, but I don’t think you want that either.
No, no spoilers. But can you at least say whether there’s a significant time jump between season one and season two?
I don’t think I can speak to that.
That’s fair. You also shot two other movies this year. Do you enjoy being this busy or is it just an abundance of riches?
I’m busy, but I mean, I had almost three months or two-and-a-half months in between the last film that I shot and starting to shoot Suicide Squad. So I’m busy, but it’s not like I have a real job.
So, all those actors who complain about how they don’t want to do more than two movies a year…?
Well I mean, I understand that, but one of the films I did, “The Sound of Philadelphia,” I did the right after the first season of “For All Mankind.” I had like five days prep on that found to play a really extrovert, sociopathic gangster from Philadelphia with a Philly accent. And I almost turned it down because I was scared that I wouldn’t be able to nail the accent and it was so much with this character, but it might be the best work I’ve done. I mean, I’ve only seen clips of it yet, but my experience, it might be the best work I’ve done. And then I’ve spent three months [prepping] on other things that I ended up feeling like, “Eh, that was all right,” but maybe I was overthinking it and a little too technical. And it’s funny. Sometimes when I’m just thrown into something and I don’t have time to think, and I just got to throw myself out there, then I get really good results. So, when I see Daniel Day-Lewis, you can see why he needs all that time to repair. His work is so detailed and I don’t think I know how to prepare like that. I don’t think I have the patience to prepare for a role in the way that I sort of perceive that he does.
I’m very curious about “Sound of Philadelphia” because Christine Vachon and Killer Films don’t just produce anything. There must’ve been a great script there.
Jérémie Guez, who is the writer/director of that, he did a small film [“A Bluebird in My Heart”], and it was sort of a story that you’ve kind of seen it before. There were no famous actors or anything in it, but it was like a fucking tight, compelling story and every scene was interesting, and you just believed everything. And there were a lot of reasons why you shouldn’t really believe it. It was an English-speaking film that took place in somewhere in Europe and you didn’t know what country it was, but it was just really fucking good. And after working with him, I understood why it was that good. He just has a really great pace, really good instincts and he’s super well prepared. It was really fun to go back and do a film in Europe with top South European filmmakers. And also, I loved playing with Matthias Schoenaerts. That guy, he’s my brother, and I think he’s one of the best actors of my generation and we really hit it off.
I have to ask you about “The Suicide Squad.” Are you finished or you are technically still shooting that as well?
Yeah, we’re not even halfway.
Comparing it to the first film what’s the biggest difference having James Gunn on board as the writer/director?
It’s very different. I don’t want to compare it, it just feels completely different. So some of the characters are the same, but it just feels like a different universe, in a way. And I think he has a lot of comedic instincts, and a lot of the actors that he’s chosen are really strong comedic, but he also chooses the comedic actors that have a really strong sense of drama as well. I think James’ instinct is it can never be funny at the expense of feeling real. So, it’s funny, but it has to feel true within the boundaries that his world allows. And those boundaries are pretty loose. There’s a lot that can fit in it. And yeah, I’m really enjoying it. It’s a very warm atmosphere. He’s extremely well-prepared, knows exactly what he wants and he’s a very kind person in spirit. The whole set is a kind-spirited set where there’s a lot of laughter and no bad egos. And yeah, I have a bunch of comedian friends, but I haven’t really been in a real comedy. And even though this isn’t just a comedy, it is some kind of action-comedy. I haven’t been in many films where you’re struggling because you can’t keep a straight face. And I’m telling you, John Cena, that motherfucker is a comedic genius. He’s a legit comedic genius.
Hey, he knows how to play in front of 20,000 people. He knows how to get people going.
He’s so funny. Oh my God, that guy is incredible. I’m so impressed with him.
Do you feel like the version of Rick Flag you’re playing in this movie is a different or is it pretty similar to what you were doing, but everything around you has changed?
There’s some similarities, but it’s definitely tonally different, for sure. Yeah, tonally, it’s very different. There are similarities to the first version, but he’s definitely changed.
“For All Mankind” is now available on Apple TV+.
