Chris Pratt is back, and in a big way. In addition to hitting the box office again with “Jurassic World: Dominion” and about to release “Thor: Love and Thunder”, where he appears alongside the Guardians of the Galaxy, the popular “Parks and Recreation” actor is back on TV (well, streaming) with a new series, ‘The Final List’, an 8-episode thriller that he himself produces and that is now available on Prime Video.
The series, also produced by Antoine Fuqua (“Training Day”), who He also directs the pilot episode.is based on the best-selling novel by Jack Carr and follows James Reece (Pratt), a soldier who, after being ambushed in a high-risk operation with devastating consequences, he returns home with mixed memories and a growing sense of paranoia that leads him to question his own innocence. As he uncovers new evidence, Reece discovers that behind it all are dark forces against him, pushing him on a dangerous and bloody mission to defend his honor and his family.
Joining Pratt in the cast are Constance Wu, Taylor Kitsch, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Riley Keough, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Jai Courtney and Sean Gunn, among others. Kitsch (“Friday Night Lights”, “John Carter”), who plays the protagonist’s best friend, and Fuqua were commissioned to present the series in the recent 61st edition of the Monte Carlo Television Festival, where eCartelera had the opportunity to speak with them. Although Pratt was absent, the truth is that she was very present in our chat, where both Kitsch and Fuqua talked about what it was like to work with him, in front of and behind the cameras. That was all they told us.
“Being a Navy SEAL is something very profound”
eCartelera: To put it in context a bit, where does ‘The Final List’ come from and why did you find the project interesting?
kitsch tailor: I was interested in it because it goes beyond what was established. Above all, it is a psychological thriller. even for this guy [señala a Fuqua] and for Pratt, who are good people. Obviously, because of the character, the man I had the opportunity to play. And for all the people around us. We talked about it before, how in many action scenes we were surrounded by real SEALs. [unidad de fuerzas especiales de la Armada estadounidense]. This is important and says a lot about the overall quality of the series and was key to getting me involved.
EC: Antoine, you participate in the series as a producer and also direct the pilot. Taking into account that you usually direct feature films, with closed stories, how did you approach directing a first chapter, knowing that it had to set the tone and that other directors would continue the story later?
Antonio Fuqa: I didn’t care what other directors were doing! [Se ríe] It’s a joke. It is very difficult for me to think of anything like a television series. For me, everything is cinema. I’ve grown up on Movie of the Week since I was a kid, watching the work of Sidney Lumet and other great directors out of television, and nowadays it’s hard to tell the two media apart, because everyone has a big TV screen at home. So I never thought of “The Final List” as a TV series, for me it was a great movie. This is what Chris and I have always said. For us it was a film and I approached it as such, as if it were a feature film, obviously understanding that there would be other time limits, but for me it is a huge film. And then I created a visual guide and a psychological breakdown that I shared with the rest of the directors for them to follow.
EC: The series begins with a great action scene in the first episode, where the mission from which the story begins takes place. It is clear that you wanted to start with a bang. What was it like directing that sequence?
AF: As Taylor said, we had real SEALs and we were starting with a very well written script by David DiGilio. The hardest thing about doing that scene was shooting in the dark. On top of that, we have spent a lot of time with the SEALs, who have been involved as consultants and have been very helpful. They have guided us through their process, how they perform missions, how they move and everything in between. We try to make it as authentic as possible within the confines of cinema. The cinematographer did a great job too, because he had to switch on without a light, which was almost impossible. You have movie stars in the scene and you can’t see them!
TK: And they all wear dark uniforms and gear, all in black, beards …
AF: It was hard, but it was fun and we had a lot of fun doing it. We built the tunnels for those scenes, it was a huge challenge, but it was very exciting to work on.
eC: Speaking of Navy SEALs, Taylor, you’ve already played several before “The Final List” and other military figures. What attracts you to these types of characters and these stories?
TK: Yes, I think this is the third Navy SEAL I have made. You have to put in the background. Soldiers, and particularly those in the SEAL community, can vary greatly in height and can be very different from each other, so it’s hard to limit them to one thing. Being a Navy SEAL is something much deeper, and that’s the beauty of those teams and those people. You need different personalities for each mission. That’s why I love that community. I had no idea of the depth and impact “Lone Survivor” was going to have on my life. I’ll be seeing Dan Murphy, Mike’s father soon [veterano de Vietnam y padre del personaje que interpreta en la película] for the anniversary of Operation Red Wings. I am very lucky to be very close to that family. We will go to Mike’s grave for the anniversary. That experience has given me so much. And actually, one of the guys who trained me for Lone Survivor was one of The Final List’s military supervisors. And he’s like a brother to me. I am very lucky to be a part of that community. Those guys are brothers to me.
EC: The series gets darker as it goes on, and even more violent and bloody. And it’s not that there’s a lot of humor to counter, but what there is, we find it in the friendship between Ben and James. What was it like for you, Taylor, to develop that friendship and that brotherhood with Pratt, on and off the show?
TK: Totally. The truth is, it was very organic. We share a very similar, very dry sense of humor. Honestly, we had a lot of fun between filming. And when it came time to record, we got back to the characters with no problems. He’s delicate with Ben, because of who he is and how much you give to the character, so we’ve been very careful about that relationship. But in the end, Ben and Reece are brothers, they love each other very much, they have many bonds, like anyone with their best friend. It was a very important aspect of the series.
eC: Antoine, you previously worked with Chris Pratt on ‘The Magnificent Seven’, but in ‘The Final List’, in addition to acting, you participate as a producer. Was the experience different working with him this time?
AF: It was no different. It was great to work together. In fact, we wanted to do something together again from “The Magnificent Seven”. As Taylor says, when we weren’t recording, we laughed and tried to have fun. We take work seriously. They don’t change, Chris and Taylor don’t suddenly become other people. When you say “Cut!”, You don’t know what will come out of their mouth to make people laugh. And when it’s time to record, they automatically change the chip. As a producer, Pratt is very serious and focused, but we also had a great team around us. I enjoyed working with Chris and all of them. Sometimes you find people you form a fellowship with and want to keep it. The hardest part is when it ends.
EC: The lines between cinema and series are becoming increasingly blurred, with streaming series becoming more and more ambitious and spectacular. How does “The Final List” fit into this new paradigm?
AF: I repeat that for me ‘The Final List’ is a great film. Most people no longer have small TVs at home, they all have large screens, and they aren’t as expensive as they used to be. As a director, you have to think about the scope of each project.
EC: It also affects the fact that the series is released all at once with all the episodes, right?
TK: Yes sure. I love the long format. Make eight episodes in which the story unfolds little by little. I am more inclined to this now than before. As an actor, it allows you to add more nuances and presents a great opportunity.
Source: E Cartelera
