He is an actor who has never shirked the physical side of things. For The Pianist Brody shed a huge amount of weight and now in King Kong he is pushing himself through work that is seriously physically demanding.
He admits that that side of the filming has been tougher than he thought it would be. “In order for things to look as dramatic, even though there is a lot that will be created later, you have to really go for it. And you have to do it over and over and over again! You are hanging from something or falling and you have to do that as many times until they get all the angles correctly. And running and falling over obstacles – if you do that over and over and over again it is much more difficult that you imagined.”
Normally that would mean months of preparation in the gym but he says there hasn't been time for that. “So you jump in,” he says, going on to illustrate the sort of thing he's talking about. “Ok here is a dinosaur and that's a boulder….and you have to fall over the dinosaur foot and jump over the boulder…jump over this flying creature and run over these stones that they have created. Do that 25 times and look like you are running for your life!”
He jokes that before setting out for New Zealand he had been assured that it would be a relatively short shoot. “It will be the most part of the year,” he says of the schedule. “This is the longest film that I will ever have worked on. I've done two six month films which were pretty long. But the state of mind of this character is pretty good and I welcome physical challenges.”
Any down time that the shooting schedule permits has meant enjoying some of what the New Zealand experience has to offer. “People here are really lovely,” says Brody. “I have taken a few trips and it's refreshing to be away from home and to see other cultures and other people but not as a tourist. It's been pretty casual but I've not had as much free time as I would have thought. So I'm still exploring. It would be nice to get down to the South Island, that's where it is really gorgeous.”
Brody chats amiably and interestingly about the project until one of my questions appears to have the American staff stumped. He looks completely bewildered when I wonder what is about King Kong that makes it timeless. A few seconds pass and Brody appears even more bemused until it dawns on everyone that he has misheard the question. 'Oh timeless!' he says, laughing. “I thought you had asked why is he tameless!” After more laughter Brody goes on to give his reasoning for the enduring appeal of King Kong.
“It is one of these fables that I think can appeal to everyone. It is a story of beauty and the beast in a sense. But it's a love that can be never be had. It is dealing with far off lands and suspense and drama and all of the wonderful things that cinema can bring to life.
“We have seen what Peter and these guys can do. So I think that what is interesting is that it has been such a long time and now it is time for a movie like this because it can have the heart and the depth and can also appeal to children and adults. Everyone can embrace a number of the elements in a story line like this.
“It's very exciting and for it's a chance to explore all these things that I haven't done and work on a different kind of approach to the work. It will put me in a time in history with dinosaurs and things like that and there is a certain amount of interaction, even with things that don't exist that you can create levels of excitement within yourself that feel that they have some impact.
“But then when it merges with what's there it kind of immortalises me with creatures and a fantasy that I would never have come in contact with, which makes it almost a reality. And that's really exciting and that's what I'd love my grandchildren to see. I'm honoured to have a part in this because there aren't many good journeys through big, epic adventures.”
And right now, as he smilingly admits, Adrien Brody is right in the middle of the adventure of a lifetime.