STACK #179 Sept 2019

FILM

FEATURE

MEOW OR

WOOF?

While John Wick is very much of the pup persuasion, Asia is more pet agnostic. “I love animals and I currently have a 13-year-old cat named Eugene and I have a puppy named Herbert, who just turned one. So I love all animals, and I’m currently both a cat and dog person.”

movie franchise, yet Asia had no problems, in part due to the vibe on the set. “Honestly, it wasn’t daunting,” Asia says. “I think it could certainly have been if Chad and/or Keanu and/or the producers had any type of ego, or any type of, ‘Listen, you get to be in this movie, but you’ve really got to live up to our expectations’ or whatever they could have said to me to be intimidating. But everyone was like, ‘Thank you so much for being in this movie, we’re so excited to have

actor. So getting to act with him, and also watch him do some of the action sequences live when I was on set, was just so inspiring and humbling.” While we may often see the criminal underworld portrayed onscreen as quite anarchic, in the universe of John Wick and the High Table there are distinct rules, and every action has a consequence. Asia revelled in being the one to enforce these rules. “Oh gosh, it’s cool! I mean it’s super cool to play a character whose job is to come in and intimidate everyone, but in a very sort of no-nonsense way. Everyone knows the rules, and they know that if they break them there are going to be consequences.” It sounds like Asia’s entire time on John Wick 3 was a highlight, but one part of the experience really stood out. “The theatre that we shot in with Angelica Huston and the American Ballet Company, that’s in Washington Heights, and the inside is very similar to the Kings Theater in Brooklyn. That’s to say that it’s stunningly beautiful inside, and being there and watching the American Ballet Company do their takes over and over again – getting to watch them dance – was just stunning. I felt really privileged to be there and witness them doing that.”

Everyone knows the rules, and they know that if they break them there are going to be consequences

you.' So it really just felt like Chad and Keanu and Lionsgate really helped level the playing field so that what could have been a really intimidating experience to me was so fun.” So, it’s true - Keanu really is a cool guy? “He’s truly the best,” Asia confirms. “He’s so kind and gracious and humble and grounded and funny and intelligent – I mean he’s one of the smartest people I’ve ever met. He’s

also a consummate professional and an incredibly talented

• John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum is out on Sept 18

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