Stars and Filmmaker Talk THE LEGEND OF TARZAN in Los Angeles One of the most iconic heroes swings back to the big screen in Warner Bros. Pictures’ THE LEGEND OF TARZAN (now playing). I recently had the pleasure of being part of the Los Angeles press conference and here are some of the most interesting things that the film’s talented stars and filmmaker had to say. Director David Yates “I opened this script called ‘Tarzan’ and it blew me away. There are great things about this character. His deep connection with the natural world, I think that there is something very contemporary about that. I think that the way that he connects with our ancestors and where we come from it’s very moving. Secondly, the thing that this script had that other blockbusters don’t is, for lack of a better word, a sense of sex about it, in the best possibly way. It is sensual and sexy. It has a big beating heart […] This movie has all the big action, beautiful landscapes, the politics -that I find fascinating- and a relationship that is timeless.” Margot Robbie (Jane) “There is a big love story at the core, and I don’t think that being in love with your husband has to be a weakness, when that actually makes you stronger. They can’t live without each other, but when they are apart and alone they are incredibly capable. It would have been kind of boring to have her waiting around to be rescued […] I hope that women watching think ‘Yeah, girl. Go get it!” Alexander Skarsgård (John Clayton/Tarzan) “I was a huge fan of Tarzan. I got really excited when I heard that Warner Bros. and David were making this movie. But, of course, it has been told 200 times in the past 100 years, so you have to find the motivation to embark on a 2-year adventure. You open the script and it is him drinking tea with the Prime Minister, I thought that it was so brilliant. The fact that it is more about returning to your roots than taming the beast, it’s so smart.” Samuel L. Jackson (George Washington Williams) “It’s a story about family. There is something very attractive about this guy. I’ve watched Tarzan probably more than these guys have, because I am older. The questions that we had about him are answered in a subtle and interesting way in this film. Like his relationship with these gorillas, and who these gorillas are. The way that the female gorilla and her son treated him differently than the rest. […] When she [Jane] sees him and goes ‘Why are you naked?’ he doesn’t realize that he is naked because he is just part of that world.” Djimon Hounsou (Chief Mbonga) “I saw Alexander being so fit and I thought ‘Wow, I need to get in shape!’ This set is the best that I have been in since I started my career: The nutrition was impeccable and the training just great!” THE LEGEND OF TARZAN is now playing in theaters nationwide. Tarzan, having acclimated to life in London, is called back to his former home in the jungle to investigate the activities at a mining encampment.
