“If you lie to me, I may not hear it in your inflection…but I will smell it on you.”
San Diego Comic Con 2017 got a little darker and grittier with the addition of Netflix’s Bright on Friday, July 20, 2017. An action-thriller helmed by David Ayer of Suicide Squad, End of Watch and writer in Training Day, Bright is set in an alternate present-day where humans, orcs, elves and fairies have been coexisting since the beginning of time. The film follows two cops from very different backgrounds (Ward, a human played by Will Smith, and Jakoby, an orc played by Joel Edgerton) who embark on a routine patrol night that will ultimately alter the future as their world knows it. Battling both their own personal differences as well as an onslaught of enemies, they must work together to protect a young female elf and a thought-to-be-forgotten relic, which in the wrong hands could destroy everything.
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The Netflix original film stars Will Smith, Joel Edgerton, Noomi Rapace, Lucy Fry, Edgar Ramirez, Ike Barinholtz, Enrique Murciano, Jay Hernandez, Andrea Navedo, Veronica Ngo, Alex Meraz, Margaret Cho, Brad William Henke, Dawn Oliveri, and Kenneth Choi. The film is directed by David Ayer and written by Max Landis. David Ayer, Eric Newman, and Bryan Unkeless serve as producers. The film will be released on Netflix in December 2017.
The cast and director sat down for a press conference to give us a sneak peek of the conceptualization of the film, from set choices, politically relevant themes, and makeup for this unique universe. Look out for the video in the next few hours. In the meantime, here’s some tidbits from entertaining discussion.
The topic of location selection came up, as the majority of the film is based in downtown LA, where the racial conflicts have existed both in the movie and in real life. Director David Ayer shared how he had grown up in the area and was really fascinated with the theme of wanting desperately for everyone to get along. He said,
“You can’t go through life with two hearts, right? You always want to have one heart.”
Will added that it was almost unsettling to be an African American man playing a cop in downtown LA who is racist against orcs. In discussing the creatures that coexist with humans in this parallel world, Joel Edgerton brought up the similarities in scope and themes to another alien-human conflict film, District 9. Meanwhile, when the topic of elves and orcs came up, the cast laughed over the similarities and differences to the well-known Lord of the Rings variety. Noomi Rapace and Edgar Ramirez highlighted the hours long process of becoming their elven characters, including the makeup, ears, suits, and heels. While Edgar had a more devilish approach to his appearance,
“Look out for my ears. They’re very pointy.”
Joel mentioned that to orcs, and Jakoby in particular,
“Elves are extremely attractive, well-dressed individuals. He aspires to be more like them.”
Will Smith jokingly stated,
“Once you go orc, you never go back.”
With a cast this dedicated and a director with this much heart, we’re eagerly awaiting the release of this film. What about you? Does this make you want to know more? Share with us in the comments below!
NETFLIX’S BRIGHT WILL BE RELEASED IN DECEMBER 2017
Stay tuned for the video of the full interview, which will be posted below!
