In parts one and two of our exclusive three-part interview with Stephen, we heard about the childhood influences that led him to become a filmmaker and what it was like to helm his first big budget Hollywood movies. Here, in the final installment of our series, he discusses what made him want to write and direct G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, which of the franchise’s characters almost made the cut and what sort of Easter eggs G.I. Joe fans should look for when watching the film.
So aside from the alternate opening to Deep Rising, are there any other big scenes that have been cut from your movies?
I’ve always been very good about not losing big scenes, production value or visual effects shots. In fact, the only really big scene I’ve ever cut is the burial of Anck Su Namun from the first Mummy movie. We had all these extras dressed up Egyptian priests and holding onto cats, with the idea being that this scene would set them up as one of the monster’s only weaknesses. Anyway, these cats scratched the living crap out of all the priests – they were bloody enough that in the end, we realized maybe we don’t need that scene after all. Mainly, though, because it slowed the movie down and was one bit of up-front exposition that we just didn’t need.
Several Mummy alumni have roles in your next film, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra – namely Brendan Fraser, Arnold Vosloo, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje and Kevin J. O’Connor. Is there a reason you prefer to work with the same actors?
I like really good actors who are really nice people so when that happens, I always try and bring them back. Sometimes it’s the luck of the draw but that’s what I aim for.
What made you want to direct G.I. Joe?
I kept turning it down because I didn’t know how far the property had expanded beyond the twelve-inch army man version from when I was a kid. Then some people in my office showed me the characters that Larry Hama and Hasbro created in the 80’s – Storm Shadow, Snake Eyes, Duke, Scarlett, Baroness, Ripcord, the whole gang – and it made me realize how incredibly visual G.I. Joe really is. It really reminded me of the James Bond movies, complete with fantastic gadgets, cool vehicles, incredible locations and larger than life heroes and villains. That’s what for me really excited – I love making big, visual movies and that’s exactly what G.I. Joe is going to be.
You also co-wrote the film, which is based on a property that has – between the action figures, comic books and cartoon – almost a half-century worth of narrative already associated with it. How did you go about deciding which story you wanted to tell?
My job was to make sure that the film would appeal to everyone – newcomers to the world of G.I. Joe and diehard fans of the franchise alike. So right away, I knew it had to be an origin story. And since that meant we would be showing things like the first meeting between Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow, the story of how Destro got his mask and the reason why Cobra Commander is able to raise one of the world’s largest armies, that really helped shaped the script that Stuart Beattie and I were going to write.
And how did you make the story your own?
We set the story ten to twenty years in the future, then looked at where our greatest military and scientific minds might be able to take us in that amount of time. The idea was to present a world that’s readily recognizable as our own but with a futuristic edge. A tomorrow that’s fantastic but not fantastical and improbable but not impossible.
Aside from the main cast, are there any Joes who have cameos in the film or in the script?
There were several. Shipwreck and Wild Bill were in for a while but we never even got around to casting them. As you go along, you start whittling things down. But new ones came in – Dr. Mindbender wasn’t in the script when we started shooting but he’s in the finished film.
Do you have a cameo in any of your films?
(laughs) I have a four-frame cameo in the Baroness’ targeting system. So look very, very carefully.
Are there any other Easter Eggs that G.I. Joe fans should keep an eye out for?
There’s a ton of very fine detail scattered throughout the movie. I know that all of the text from the action figure’s file cards shows up on screens all throughout the movie. Same with the names of the weapons in the G.I. Joe and MARS arsenals – almost all of that was taken from the animated series and the toy line. And since this is a Cobra origin story, we managed to incorporate their logo in some pretty creative ways – rivet patterns on MARS ships to name one. We show in a few different ways just how meaningful the symbol is to Cobra Commander and his army, but for some of them you’ll need to be pretty quick on the pause button of your DVD player.
I’ll be posting an article in the next few days that breaks down all the hidden details you’ll find in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra – stay tuned for that and other exclusives!
