Summary
Gunnerfollows Colonel Lee Gunner, a special forces veteran who takes his two sons camping along with their uncle Joe. Hoping to connect with them after returning home, the trip takes a dangerous turn when Jon sets off a tripwire that alerts a violent gang that they have stumbled on their massive drug operation. With his family on the line, Gunner will do whatever it takes, even break the law, to get his family home safe.
Dimitri Logothetis helmed this action thriller with Luke Hemsworth andMorgan Freeman leading an impressive cast. Gunner captures the excitement of the classic action movie with an intriguing dynamic between Hemsworth and Freeman at the core with a cat-and-mouse style relationship. However, the heart of Gunner is the titular character’s determination and loyalty to his family, adding a layer to the action that makes it more frenetic in motivation.
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Screen Rantinterviewed Luke Hemsworthabout his new movieGunner. Hemsworth shared his excitement about being able to work with Freeman and revealed how he had to get over an injury to perform his own stunts. He also reflects on his experience with Muay Thai and teases hisspinoff toThe Terminal List.
Luke Hemsworth Explains What Drew Him To The Role Of Gunner
“You Add Competence And All Of These Things To The Level Of Depth Of His Character”
Screen Rant: What drew you to the role of Colonel Lee Gunner?
Luke Hemsworth: The fact that he’s this incredibly capable. In the script he was cobbling together and some of that stuff didn’t make it to the front, gadgets hidden everywhere. I was like, this guy’s wonderful. And then you add competence and all of these things to the level of depth of his character in terms of this guy who’s been to war, he’s been a military man for a long time.
There are levels of PTSD there. There are issues dealing with his family. He’s lost his son, but there was an emotional depth to this guy that I think also is kind of rare for a lot of those scripts. So that, and then you add of course the incredible Morgan Freeman into the mix and it was a no brainer.
Working With Morgan Freeman Is “The Number One Reason I Did The Film”
The scenes I love the most are the scenes with you and Morgan. I just love the fact that he’s trying to manipulate your character, trying to find this common ground with him and your character’s like, I’m not dealing with this bullsh-t. I love that side of it. Can you talk about working with Morgan on this film?
Luke Hemsworth: I loved it. I loved it. Dream come true. I think definitely, it’s the number one reason I did the film. I was like, Oh, a chance to sit next to Morgan Freeman. He’s going to be locked in a car with me for a couple of days. He’s so good. He’s so hard to watch and not be absorbed by all yourself.
I’m a major fan and so he’s locked in the car with me and every time we call cut, I’m like, Alright, so tell me about Fincher and tell me about Jim Carey and let’s talk about Seven. He may or not have gotten a little sick of that by the end of it, I think. Morgan Freeman, it doesn’t get much better than that. I’ve been so lucky in my career, Hopkins and Ben Harrison and Jeffrey Wright, these wonderful, wonderful actors. And to get to do something with Morgan Freeman was super cool.
Something that surprised me is that there’s a lot of emotion in your character that I just didn’t quite expect. How did you approach the emotional aspect of Gunner’s character, especially the drive to protect his family?
Luke Hemsworth: Well, I’m a father, which really, really helps. I have three girls. I think that’s probably the second highest reason for me saying yes to this film was asking myself the question, what do you do if someone does this to your family? How far do you take it? I’m not sure I would take it as far as he does, mainly because I don’t have the skills in real life with weapons.
But I’d like to think the drive is there. The drive to protect your family is definitely there. I do and I would go to the ends of the earth to make sure that my kids are safe and grow up safe. I don’t want to hide them from the hurts of the world. They need to experience that as well. But yeah, if someone crosses you and does something, then it’s a different story I think. Yeah, that’s a big, big part of the film.
Gunner Called Upon Luke Hemsworth’s Physical Resources In Unexpected Ways
The Actor Shares That “My Background Has Been Boxing And Muay Thai”
I think there’s something interesting that you brought up there for a second though, because how do you think that Lee Gunner’s military background kind of influences his methods and decisions throughout the film?
Luke Hemsworth: I think everything that he does is automatic. A lot of military training, and this is what I picked up from all of the guys that I spoke to and all of all the podcasts you listen to and everything you read is that they drill and they drill and drill to make these things automatic so they don’t have to think about them.
So his mind is free to plan while his body is doing the dirty work so to speak. As a guy who’s so capable at killing, why wouldn’t he use that as a tool? It’s the number one tool to get his family back.
I was talking to Dimitri and he talked about how the usage of Muay Thai was really the basis of the action style and he said that you were so capable doing all the action stuff, you picked it up quite quickly. Can you talk about the preparation and the stunt work that went into that?
Luke Hemsworth: My background has been boxing and Muay Thai as well. I did a bunch of that growing up. I did a lot of it in LA when I was there. My preparation was interesting though becasue I broke my ankle six weeks out and I had to have surgery. I had to pin the tibia back together. So that was something different and very, very challenging. I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to do it. I didn’t know whether I was going to be able to run.
I had a great surgeon who was a surgeon for bunch of rugby players here, footballers, and she said, we’ve got guys that are 250-300 pounds who we get running within six weeks. And I was like, Okay. And that became the focus. Here’s your date, get your body in a position where you’re able to at least run through these scenes.
I tip my hat off to the physio and it’s good to have that focus, to have that end date. Everything in the movie is me. There’s not a stunt guy in there. But then I think also having that background in boxing [allowed me to] just jump over a few hurdles in terms of our learning techniques.
Also working with a team who is, they’re all incredible martial artists and who’ve been doing it. The stunt team, were from Thailand, so it’s in their blood, they grew up doing it. They walk it and they talk it, and I feel like I’m better by proxy. I just have to stand there and they can do cool stuff and it makes everyone look cool.
Luke Hemsworth Teases Dark Wolf: “This Is Taking Place Before The Events Of Terminal List”
I’m really excited about what you have coming up next,The Terminal List: Dark Wolf. I am really hyped for this show. What can you tease for fans about thisTerminal Listand the character that you play?
Luke Hemsworth: I don’t think I can tease much at this moment. Other than that, it’s a prequel. This is taking place before the events of Terminal List and I play a guy. I dunno, I didn’t much I’m allowed to say Let’s just leave it there.
I’m looking forward to you playing that guy in that show. I think it’s going to be a lot of fun.
Luke Hemsworth: Yeah, it’s really cool. It’s really good.
About Gunner (2024)
War veteran Colonel Lee Gunner (Luke Hemsworth) spends time with his two sons and their uncle Jon to reconnect with them after being at the battlefront. The trip turns awry when Jon stumbles over a tripwire and sets off an explosion, alerting a gang of violent bikers in the midst of a massive drug operation.
Gunnerwill hit select theaters and digitally on August 16.
Gunner
Cast
Gunner, released in 2024, follows war veteran Colonel Lee Gunner as he strives to rescue his sons from a gang of bikers after they are kidnapped while uncovering a drug operation during a camping trip.
