ComingSoon Editor-in-Chief Tyler Treese spoke with Arthur the King stars Simu Liu, Nathalie Emmanuel, and Ali Suliman about the inspirational drama. The trio discusses the intense stunts, working with Mark Wahlberg, and acting alongside a dog. It is now playing in theaters nationwide.
“Over the course of ten days and 435 miles, an unbreakable bond is forged between pro adventure racer Michael Light (Mark Wahlberg) and a scrappy street dog companion dubbed Arthur,” says the synopsis. “Based on an incredible true story, Arthur the King follows Light, desperate for one last chance to win, as he convinces a sponsor to back him and a team of athletes(Simu Liu, Nathalie Emmanuel, and Ali Suliman) for the Adventure Racing World Championship in the Dominican Republic. As the team is pushed to their outer limits of endurance in the race, Arthur redefines what victory, loyalty, and friendship truly mean.”
Tyler Treese: Simu, one of the real joys of this film is getting to see you go back and forth with Mark Wahlberg. What really stood out about him as a scene partner? Because you play off each other really well. There’s a tension there, but also a mutual respect.
Simu Liu: Yeah. Thanks, man. I mean, I think one of the things that was really apparent in reading that script for the first time is the Michael and Leo characters are actually very, very similar to each other. And whenever that happens in a team environment, there’s gonna be a butting of heads, especially when you have someone who’s as strong-willed and stubborn as I think the Michael character can be. And I think I just really appreciated all the scenes where Leo is calling him out. Because I think that’s a really integral part to Michael’s journey. I think it’s really integral to Leo’s journey, of course, as well. But in those moments where he doesn’t feel like he doesn’t trust his leader, you know, Leo’s the kind of guy that doesn’t let it slide.
He’s like, “Hey, man, you’re making some really bad decisions here. You’re hurting the team and I need to let you know.” And I think when, in the context of something like adventure racing where one wrong turn can be catastrophic for a team. And, you know, in the beginning of the movie you see Michael make these judgment decisions, these poor judgment decisions that wind up costing the team, like a previous team, the entire race. You see how these are two people who have really learned through history not to trust each other. And so, the whole journey of this movie is this team that Michael kind of cobbles together at the 11th hour to compete. Like, what is the process through which they are finally able to let go of that? But, you know, in the process, I think with any good team, you have to be willing to have the tough conversations to hash it out. And Mark was a great scene partner in playing off of.
Nathalie, you have one of my favorite scenes in the film where you get stuck zip-lining. It is so terrifying to me. It’s fantastic drama and so tense. How was filming that?
Nathalie Emmanuel: Yeah, it was pretty crazy. It was really fun though, because that zip line was real. Like, we shot it in [situation], like over this very beautiful, but very high canyon [laughs]. So very high. It was amazing to sort of be there, but we shot the kind of, going across, but then there was also this moment where I get stuck in the middle. So we actually had to shoot that where I was stuck, and Mark came out to meet me and that was kind of more in a wide situation, letting us know where we are.
But then we kind of shot the sort of action and the detail of the interaction of her panicking and him coming to get her and that whole, her attaching herself to Mark’s, or to Michael’s bike in order to get across safely. Like we had to shoot that kind of more isolated, much closer to the ground and in a less death-defying, situation.
Liu: It’s still super impressive.
Emmanuel: It was amazing. Super impressive. It was really amazing. Yeah.
Ali, Ukai, who’s the canine thespian of the film, is phenomenal in this. How was the experience of spending so much time acting alongside a dog that is also very trained and just as hardworking as everybody else?
Ali Suliman: Well, I think I…I have to admit that this dog is really an amazing actor. And I was really amazed by his reactions. He was a really great partner, I have to say, for most of the moments that we shared together. He was there and he was acting. I was, like, amazed to see how good he is. And he was doing everything the best he can. And I wish I could do as best as he can.
Liu: Bit of a diva though. Bit of a diva, you know what I’m saying? [laughs] Treats every take, massages, what’s the deal with that?
