CONVERGENT FORCES
It’s all starting to come together for Insurgent star Shailene Woodley
Shailene Woodley went from a promising performer to a happening headliner after the release last year of the young adult sci- fi epic Divergent.
The 23- year- old’s back as Tris with the second movie, called The Divergent Series: Insurgent.
In the latest post- apocalyptic adventure, Tris’s parents are dead but she’s determined to lead a revolt against Erudite despot Jeanine ( Kate Winslet).
With her boyfriend Four ( Theo James) by her side, Tris, an illegal Divergent, is also determined to destroy the faction system based on perceived abilities.
Key to the revolution just might be a box containing a secret message discovered in the rubble of her parents’ home.
As comfortable as Woodley seemed to be in the role of the heroine, she had to cope, at first, with a few Insurgent alterations.
For one thing, Divergent director Neil Burger was replaced by action director Robert Schwentke, who made a name for himself shaping the Bruce Willis spy comedy Red. For another, the actress had matured between Divergent and Insurgent.
The director dilemma was resolved after the first few days of filming Insurgent in Atlanta.
Schwentke “is a genuinely warm human being,” Woodley said. “He doesn’t have an ego and he’s open to collaboration, and he took our opinions into account, which is really a blessing.
“He is also committed to having fun on the job, which a lot of people forget on any job.”
Returning to the head space of Tris took Woodley a period of adjustment.
“I had grown in a year, and I thought going back into the ( Tris) mindset would be simple, but my mindset had changed,” Woodley said. “So I had to go back to where I was a year ago to get into ( the right) mindset.”
Physically, the actress was up for the challenge again. Still, the latest movie came with a few close calls. One involved a simulated dream scene when Tris is balancing herself on a house floating through the air and tilted on a 90- degree angle. Woodley had the appropriate safety harness but the sequence had her complete focus just the same.
“It was a really rad experience when Tris is chasing the house.”
On the odd side of things that day: “We had four or five stunt doubles with short hair and wearing the exact same outfits ( as mine). It was really funny.”
At one critical point in shooting, “I thought, ‘ If I don’t grab this pole, I know I’m not going to get hurt, but I am going to be dangling in the air and get this really crazy wedgie.’ ”
Luckily, for all involved, there were no incidents or injuries.
Certainly, Naomi Watts admired Woodley’s perseverance and her leadership during filming.
“She made me feel immediately welcome and went out of her way to do it,” said the newcomer to the series.
Watts was amazed by all of the young actors in the movie and their one- for- all spirit.
“I was really impressed with how disciplined all these young actors are,” she said. “It was grounded in truth and the obvious respect they had for each other.”
And it all started with Woodley, who is one of the few child actors to make the transition into adulthood with few dysfunctional bumps along the way.
She first caught Hollywood’s attention as the lead in the series The Secret Life of the American Teenager and then rose to prominence acting opposite George Clooney in the Oscar- honoured The Descendants.
In the aftermath of her recent fame and fortune, she tries to stay connected to who she is.
“I’m a very open person, so I feel like what you see is kind of who I am always.”
I had grown in a year, and I thought going back into the ( Tris) mindset would be simple but my mindset had changed.