2 weeks Ago By Patrick Beatty
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — Jared Hess, the quirky mind behind "Napoleon Dynamite" and a proud son of Utah’s indie film scene, is trading tots for torches in his latest project, "A Minecraft Movie."ABC4 film critic Patrick Beatty caught up with the director to talk about bringing the Minecraft universe to life, why Jack Black was the only choice to play Steve, and how he brought his "Napoleon Dynamite" flavor to a big-budget film.EXCLUSIVE: Jack Black & Jason Momoa answer questions from Utah kids ahead of ‘A Minecraft Movie’Q: What made you want to jump into the Minecraft world? Jared Hess: "I'm such a huge fan of the game.
When it came out, my kids and I would play it, and it was such a ridiculous good time. It was the perfect place to set an epic, hilarious adventure film so, it was kind of a dream come true for me."Q: How do you infuse that Napoleon Dynamite humor into such a big-budget tent-pole film like this?Jared Hess: "I made a movie with Jack Black almost 20 years ago called 'Nacho Libre.
' Since then, we've tried to work together again, and stuff's come and gone, and finally, the stars aligned to be able to work with him on 'A Minecraft Movie.'" "Jason Momoa too. I've been such a big fan of his, and to come up with a character where instead of him kicking butt, he's getting his butt kicked most of the film — I mean, look, he's the biggest hunk on the planet — and to see him be like a giant, delusional nerd was so much fun.
I think for me, I'm so interested in character-based comedy and when we were coming up with each character in the film, we just wanted to bring that special kind of nuance and character quirks that make it memorable and relatable. I think that's where some of that tone comes from. It's just what I'm interested in.
"Q: I think there were also a few nods to your previous work with Jack Black in the ring, seeing a little bit of 'Nacho Libre.' Was there anything that I missed regarding llamas, though, that comes to mind?Jared Hess: "That's so funny. In Napoleon Dynamite, there's a lot.
It was actually my mom's llama in the film, and in Minecraft, the game, there are llamas everywhere, and they're super funny, super weird, and so we just had to bring them to life on the big screen."Q: How is improv on set with all of these comedic actors? Jared Hess: "It's so much fun. When you're working with Danielle Brooks or Jennifer Coolidge or Jack or Jason or whoever, it's so much fun and Jemaine Clement too, one of my favorite actors of all time, he's just so funny.
" "But Jennifer Coolidge, look, the outtakes that we had with her, we could have made a whole other film, she is so funny. She had the crew in stitches constantly. We could have had a whole other side movie about her and the nitwit at dinner.
"Q: How much pull do you have to make that happen? Jared Hess: "Oh man. I wish it might be rated R, but the PG stuff's in the film."Q: Minecraft is such a creative world, and a whole generation has learned so many things through that.
During your time as a kid, what was your Minecraft? What was your creative outlet?Jared Hess: "For me, it was making films like I had such a passion for movies and then started making videos at home with my friends and my brothers. It was just kind of a passion that turned into a hobby. I had a dream of becoming a filmmaker and telling my own stories.
My creative outlet was making videos and films."Q: Let's talk about Steve for a second, because Jack Black may not seem like the initial choice to play this character that kind of doesn't have any emotions in the game. Jared Hess: "Jack being Steve was the number one choice.
Jack was such a big fan of the game. He's such a big gamer, but he's also, he's just a big kid, you know, he's a child at heart. The energy and the passion that he brings to everything that he does, it only made sense for a guy like him to be like — as a child, he yearned for the mines.
It's such a strange obsession to have. But yeah, with Jack doing it, it makes sense."" .
.. Jack might be one of the greatest athletes of our time.
The dude is the most agile guy you've ever met. He's totally shredded. Don't underestimate him.
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