STACK #187 May 2020

FEATURE FILM

It started with wanting to do a film that was an homage to classic '80s action

was an homage to classic ‘80s action – you know, the Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester

known for their action roles. I said that that didn’t make sense, because Nix is like a junkie psychopath and she needs to be fairly skinny.” With Guns Akimbo being a labour of love, it’s no surprise to discover that the film was something of a family affair – a point that Howden was keen to reveal when explaining the look and style of Weaving’s character. “It sort of came from my younger years as an industrial punk metal-head. I’m always drawn to characters that are what people would call ‘alternative looking’. And my wife is a costume designer, so not only did she help me with the script, but also helped design a really cool look for Nix. It was a little controversial at first because we were doing some crazy stuff to her, like bleaching her eyebrows, but Sam totally loved how bold it was. And of course we didn’t want to do another Harley Quinn character, because Nix wouldn’t spend time making her clothes look cool. She steals clothes, and everything is ripped and dirty.” With Guns Akimbo poised to become an instant cult movie, and now

Stallone movies, which I’ve always been a huge fan of. I wanted to make a movie that was as fun and over the top as those, but instead of a typical action hero, I wanted to have a character who was just a normal guy; a sort of nerdy nobody. Which then got me thinking that if he’s such

• Guns Akimbo is out on May 27

SamaraWeaving as Nix

was like, ‘F…. man! I f–ing love your script!’ So I instantly saw how much energy he had, and I needed someone who was willing to take the falls and the hits, and yeah, he was down for it.” As for Weaving’s involvement, “She’s fantastic,” he enthuses. “I had seen Sam in a bunch of things, and she was another one of those people I could tell was willing to go there, in terms of commitment, and she did. And her character of Nix is a sort of murderous, coke-snorting psychopath. I mean she kills like 20 guys in one of the first scenes. There were no questions asked and she was like, ‘Yep, yep, let’s do it! This is awesome!’ “For me, the exciting thing was taking someone who hadn’t done that sort of role before. And there was a lot of talk about

a pacifist, he’s not going to want to engage and he’s just going to keep running, so I thought why don’t we bolt the guns to his hands, which means that he can’t get away from the violence.” With a string of audacious and provocative indie films to his name over the past few years, it’s no surprise that Radcliffe would find himself Guns Akimbo and pitted against a psychopathic femme fatale named Nix, played with absolute relish by Samara Weaving ( Ready or Not ). When asked how these two prolific actors came to be involved with the film, Howden explains, “I had a short list of five actors and Dan was at the top of the list and he was literally the first person we sent the script to. He responded the very next day and he wanted to Skype. I assumed that he’d want to ask me all these questions, so I had pages of notes prepared, but when he came on to Skype he

the producers wanting to get actresses who were

with two highly stylised and entertaining films to his name, Howden muses on what his third feature might be. “I’m writing something at the moment that’s pretty cool that I’m hoping to get out. It’s loosely a horror-

Putting the 'Rad' into Radcliffe

action, and I’m really keen on mixing up the genres. I’d love to also do a sci-fi, and I’ve got a ninja movie bubbling away in my brain as well. But yeah, it would have to be something that’s different and that’s fun, and that I feel as

FURTHER VIEWING

if there’s a part of me in it.”

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