USA TODAY International Edition
No ‘ Wonder’ Pine is fit for double- duty action movies
Chris Pine is back in action. Nearly two years after his dearly departed Steve Trevor was magically revived for “Wonder Woman 1984,” Pine returns this spring with his first new set of movie roles: pulling double duty in the action thriller “The Contractor” ( in theaters and on demand Friday) and espionage romance “All the Old Knives” ( in theaters and streaming on Amazon Prime Video April 8).
In “Contractor,” Pine is a dishonorably discharged U. S. soldier with a target on his back after he joins an underground military force to support his family. And in “Old Knives,” he and Thandiwe Newton play ex- lovers and spies who reunite to hash out a failed mission that cost the lives of dozens of innocent civilians.
“I love this genre of the spy and action thriller,” says Pine, who also starred in 2014’ s “Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit.” “‘ All the Old Knives’ is one of the best scripts I’ve ever read. It reminded me of John le Carré: this mature, international thriller. And ‘ Contractor’ is, on one hand, an action thriller, but on the other, a deep character study. At its heart, it’s a family drama.”
Pine, 41, spoke about both films with USA TODAY:
Question: How did you prepare to play an ex- soldier on the run in “Contractor?”
Chris Pine: I spent about 31⁄ 2 months, five to six days a week, training in close- quarters combat and sniper shooting. I read a bunch, swam, worked with weights – all that stuff.
Q: What’s more difficult: Getting shot at by bad guys on motorcycles or running around the woods in combat gear and night vision goggles?
Pine: It’s all hard. Motorcycle work can be scary because you’re riding and you have to act ( at the same time). And working in the woods was particularly difficult because it was dead winter in Romania, so it was absolutely blisteringly cold. Your hands don’t really work and you have to carry this 15pound gun. That’s a highly choreographed ballet.
Q: Thandiwe Newton recently said that she was nervous about your “intense” love scene in the film. How do you prepare for those more intimate moments?
Pine: It’s what you sign up for, so you get into it. And it is uncomfortable and it’s not sexy. You work with an intimacy coordinator who helps choreograph the scene to make sure everyone’s comfortable.
Q: You executive- produced both these movies, along with your 2019 miniseries “I Am the Night” ( which Pine co- produced with “Wonder Woman” director Patty Jenkins). Was there anything you learned from Patty about how best to work behind the scenes?
Pine: Not particularly. What I learned from Patty is that she just has such confidence in letting her opinions be known and a collaborative spirit, in terms of getting what she wants done.
Q: Have you spoken to her or Gal Gadot about how you might be able to bring back Steve Trevor again for “Wonder Woman 3?”
Pine: I think poor Steve is dead, but I wish them all the best on the third one.