“WE’RE READY TO BE WOWED”

Does all the secrecy around this movie influence your performance? I guess it influences it positively. It’s sort of in line with my character’s line of work – he works in secrecy. It’s kind of nice to be able to say, “I’m doing this job, this little indie film, overseas…” It helps eliminate all the distractions that come with having to talk about it maybe more than you want to.

You’re playing a very capable, physically impressive character. Where do you find the vulnerabilities?

Due to the nature of what he does, the fact that these Navy SEALS, these men and women in armed forces sacrifice their lives… not just for their objective or their country necessarily. What I connected to was more about the people they’re fighting with, their brothers and sisters in arms, the man or woman to the left or right. That kind of vulnerability. Even with the way you communicate, every decision is life or death. So what are you willing to sacrifice? What are you willing to do for your mission? What are you willing to do for your comrades? That imprinted hugely on how I approached it, and were some takeaways for my personal life: thinking about the core, the people, not just yourself.

How do you think Tenet will be received?

We’re in unprecedented times. I think we as a community are more than ever wanting to see some great entertainment. We’re ready to be wowed, ready to be mesmerised, ready to be taken out of our realities. So why not Tenet?