Halle Berry was one of the highest paid actresses in Hollywood during the 2000s
and has been involved in the production of several of the films in which she
performed. Her breakthrough film role was in the romantic comedy Boomerang,
alongside Eddie Murphy, which led to roles in films such as the comedy
The Flintstones, the political comedy-drama Bulworth and the television film
Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999), for which she won the Emmy Award and
Golden Globe Award for Best Actress, among many other awards.
In addition to her Academy Award win, Berry garnered high-profile
roles in the 2000s such as Storm in the X-Men film series, the action crime
thriller Swordfish, and the spy film Die Another Day, where she played Bond
Girl Jinx. She then appeared in the X-Men sequels, X2 and X-Men: The Last
Stand. In the 2010s, she appeared in movies such as the science fiction film X-Men:
Days of Future Past, the crime thriller The Call.
In her upcoming film ‘Kidnap’, Halle Berry plays a single mother named
Karla Dyson lives a perfect life with her young son Frankie. One day, upon
entering a local park, Karla sees her son suddenly being abducted out of the
blue by a kidnapper.
Veteran producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura, who is best known for his
live action movies, received the script for ‘Kidnap’ eight years prior to the start of principal photography.
As Di Bonaventura
developed and polished the film’s concept, he began thinking about whom to cast
as the story’s everyday woman turned super hero protagonist. Says Di
Bonaventura, “We needed someone that
audiences wanted to root for, and that you can see the vulnerability of their
character, which leads to the gradual dawning of a certain amount of
empowerment, ultimately becoming fully empowered and being really physically
willing to take on the villains of the film.”
One name immediately came to mind – Academy Award winner Halle
Berry. “She’s perfect not only because she’s an Academy Award winning
actress, but also because she is a mother and she can bring some of that
experience and those emotions to the role - what would you do if your kid got
taken from you,” remarks producer Greg
Chou.
“I needed an actress that would be able to go
from that moment of brightness to a very dangerous place, that is finding
yourself without your son, and knowing how far that place will be, and Halle
was obviously the perfect choice for this protective role,” explains director Luis
Prieto.
The industry veteran, Elaine
Goldsmith-Thomas, who has collaborated with Berry for over twelve years and
acting partner in 606 Films, calls the actor, “Extraordinary, because she always finds the reality and people relate
to her and understand her because she can find the truth in her character.”
“She’s awesome, she’s so strong, and she’s a
great actor. These scenes are so intense and she brings it in every scene;
she’s always dialled in and I think the result is going to be a nonstop
thrilling action ride,” explains executive producer
D.J. Gugenheim.
“It’s nice to be wearing
both hats you know, I don’t have to be the dancing bear, I get to have real
input into the story and how the movie is shot and who’s involved form start to
finish,” explains Berry on the topic of being both
and actress and a producer on the film.
Adds Berry, “That’s a really
good feeling to have that kind of input and then also be the person that gets
to carry out that vision.”
“Halle plays this single mom hoping to get
back with her husband only to find out that her husband is going to marry
someone else, and she has to figure out how to be a good mom in the middle of
that,” explains producer Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas.
Berry is able to intertwine her characters from the superhero
fantasies and action thrillers by embracing the everyday mom and also having to
make the transformation into a real-life superhero.
The Academy Award veteran explains the distinctiveness of her character
for this film, saying “The biggest thing
that makes Karla unique is she is everywoman. She is just very ordinary but
when faced with a threat of something happening to her child she becomes
extraordinary and I think that’s what every mother every father every parent
would become if they were faced with this situation.”
“They really don’t know
exactly what they’re doing and neither does Karla, so they are equal opponents
at the end of the day,” continues Berry.
‘KIDNAP’ is released and distributed by CAPTIVE
CINEMA.
SHOWING ON AUGUST 2, 2017. NATIONWIDE! (PR)
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