Oscar-winning filmmaker Chloe Zhao says Kingo in ‘Eternals’ is a character that “loves pop culture and showmanship”. This is why making him a Bollywood star grooving to a “beautiful, joyous dance sequence”. The big Marvel movie felt “incredible”.
The director said Kingo, played by Pakistani-American star Kumail Nanjiani, was always supposed to be a Bollywood hero.
“When I came into the process, there was a treatment and in the treatment, there are always stories. And parts that take place in Mumbai. Kingo is a Bollywood star in the present day. And I thought that was so interesting because we knew Kingo is going to be a character. That embraced the side of humanity that loves pop culture, that loves storytelling, that showmanship,” Zhao said responding to a question from PTI.
On bringing together different cultural elements to a superhero film. The Chinese-American director said the character arc of Kingo is a breath of fresh air.
“It was interesting to see the writers and the Marvel team did not just make him. A Hollywood star since we’ve seen him many times, but really to make him a Bollywood star. And also have this beautiful, joyous dance sequence. I thought it’s incredible to include in a big Marvel movie,” she added.
‘Eternals’ introduces audiences to 10 never-seen-before superheroes. Played by some of the biggest names in Hollywood such as Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, ”Game of Thrones” stars Richard Madden and Kit Harington, Gemma Chan, Nanjiani, and Don Lee.
Nanjiani recently revealed that he had initially expressed his inability to dance. But Zhao tricked him by promising to change the segment to an action scene only to keep the dance sequence intact.
“I wanted this so bad because I wanted to work with the team at Marvel because I love the movies. Also with this particular story, I felt like I have something to offer. And it’s a story that would address questions that I have for myself as a human being. So, I knew the making of that will allow me to grow,” the 39-year-old filmmaker explained.
Zhao, whose debut film ‘Songs My Brother Taught Me’ which she follow by the critically-acclaim “The Rider”, attract global attention with ‘Nomadland’, a film that focuses on a woman who leaves home and decides to become a nomad after her husband dies and she loses her job.
‘Eternals’ is set for release in Indian theatres on November 5 in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam.