![]() ![]() It's nice to see him really stopping and appreciating life.Since giving up his life as a government assassin, Robert McCall (Denzel Washington) has struggled to reconcile the horrific things he's done in the past and finds a strange solace in serving justice on behalf of the oppressed. “He’ll call me and Todd at 4 in the morning to look at the sunrise,” Fuqua said. Both are a little more quiet and a little more patient. Fuqua also observed that McCall in “Equalizer 3” might even mirror a bit where Washington is in his life too. The 68-year-old star, Black said, is much “mellower” now than years ago and is fun to do publicity with. We’re in really good shape.”īoth just mostly miss having Washington by their side for the press tour. “We’re very, very confident, thanks to Antoine for making a gorgeous film that works and that audiences love so far. “I have other movies coming out that definitely need my actors to promote them, but everyone knows Denzel Washington is the ‘Equalizer,’” Black said. But while some films released without the help of a star’s late-night anecdotes and red carpet appearances have faltered at the box office over the past month, Black feels confident in “Equalizer 3.” Now Black and Fuqua have found themselves in the unusual situation of having to be the primary voices promoting “Equalizer 3” in lieu of their movie stars, who along with Hollywood writers, are deep into a long strike. “We’ve never had an incident at our movies because we are so vigilant,” Black said. Both know that on their films, everything will be safe and controlled, whether that’s handling an unexpected fan situation for their star or making sure that it’s not too dangerous to shoot in Naples at night. It helped also that Black and Fuqua had become friends, with the priceless trust that comes along with it. Both the first and second film made over $190 million each against production budgets that didn’t exceed $65 million and Sony was interested in a third. Instead, they took it one script at a time and “let the audience decide." The audience, it seemed, liked seeing Washington as McCall more than once. “Not 100% of the time, but you shouldn't think that way.” If you’re making a movie to win an award, or even to get nominated, or have a franchise, you’re dead in the water going in probably,” Black said. “You can’t think about franchises, or awards, when you’re making a movie. It was Washington who introduced Black and Fuqua for the first “Equalizer”, which all assumed would just be one film, not a franchise. In addition to the “Equalizer” films Fuqua directed Washington in “Training Day,” which would win him his first lead actor Oscar, as well as in the recent remake of “The Magnificent Seven.”Īnd Black has produced all of the films Washington has directed as well as several others. The film brings together a core team with decades of history, including producers Todd Black and Jason Blumenthal. “It’s beautiful in the Mediterranean, but for the people who live there it’s real life. They wanted to show a real place, not a vacation destination. It wasn't a pleasant journey with all the equipment necessary to shoot a scene, but it was a good reminder of purpose for Fuqua and his cinematographer, three-time Oscar winner Robert Richardson. But the only way to get there is to climb up over 700 steps. One of the jewels of Atrani is a medieval church perched on the mountainside high above the beach that they decided would be perfect for an important scene between McCall and Dakota Fanning’s CIA analyst. The only complaint, which isn’t even really a complaint, was about the steps. You fall in love with the people in a town like that.” Or big giant lemons because it was so hot. “The people were so beautiful, we were sitting around and they would just bring us coffee and espresso. “When we went to that small town, we knew that was the place,” Fuqua said. The difference is McCall is more uniquely suited to take on the Camorra. It’s the kind of place you’d believe someone like McCall (or anyone really) might feel immediately tied to and protective of, which is what happens in “Equalizer 3,” debuting in theaters nationwide Friday. And on the Amalfi coast, they stumbled on the small village of their, and McCall’s, fantasies in the picturesque Atrani. In Naples, they found an authentically 1970s New York grittiness that required little to no production design for a pivotal showdown. And for Fuqua, it was the stuff of filmmaking dreams to get to shoot in Cinecittà Studios in Rome and bump up against cinema history walking where Fellini and so many other greats have before him. ![]()
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