Alberta connection to Wonder Woman

TORONTO (CP) — Eugene Brave Rock knew his role in “Wonder Woman” would elevate awareness of his indigenous culture, but he’s still startled by the sheer magnitude of the attention.

Since the box office smash hit theatres last week, the actor, who grew up in the Blood Tribe of southern Alberta, has been fielding auditions, interviews and meeting students on his reserve. Brave Rock doesn’t want a second of this rare momentum to go to waste.

“You don’t really know until you experience it — and it’s hitting me like a ton of bricks,” the 39-year-old actor says.

“It’s very overwhelming and at times it’s very emotional because my people are so proud. One of their own is in a blockbuster film -- the biggest movie of the summer.” And it’s not just any small role either. Brave Rock plays the Chief, a member of Wonder Woman’s band of merry men who support the superhero’s determined effort to save the world. He’s present throughout much of the film and introduces himself to Gal Gadot’s character by speaking in his native Blackfoot language.

It’s a moment the actor suggested to director Patty Jenkins himself and one that she warmly received — which isn’t necessarily common on a major film project.

But “Wonder Woman” feels different in many ways, Brave Rock says.

His agent couldn’t tell him much about the role, but urged him to reroute a vacation with his wife to Los Angeles. It was going to knock two days off his holiday and Brave Rock wasn’t convinced spending $500 to get to Tinseltown for a secret audition would be worth the investment. He drove there anyway and walked onto the Warner Bros. lot feeling anxious.

Producers on “Wonder Woman” threw him off the scent of the superhero flick by giving him dialogue from a Graham Greene film, in which an estranged father was trying to reconnect with his son.