Aaron Taylor-Johnson Talks About How He and His BULLET TRAIN Co-Star Shifted the Film From Dark and Gritty to a Comedy

The movie Bullet Train is headed our way this summer, and it looks like it’s going to be a blast. The action movie comes from John Wick, Deadpool 2, and Hobbs & Shaw director David Leitch, and is based on the Japanese novel Maria Beetle written by Kotaro Isaka. The story follows five assassins who “find themselves on a fast-moving bullet train from Tokyo to Morioka with only a few stops in between. They discover their missions are not unrelated to each other. The question becomes who will make it off the train alive and what awaits them at the terminal station?”

The movie features a star-studded ensemble cast that includes Brad Pitt, Joey King, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Brian Tyree Henry, Zazie Beetz, Michael Shannon, Logan Lerman, Sandra Bullock, Lady Gaga, Masi Oka, and Andrew Koji. And while it is billed as an action-thriller, it also looks like it’s going to be really playful and fun, but that seems to have been a development that came with filming with this cast.

In a recent interview between star of the film Aaron Taylor-Johnson and actor Andrew Garfield for Hero Magazine, Taylor-Johnson explained how the film’s tone changed during the shoot:

"Originally this thing was quite a dark, R-rated, vicious action piece, but [he and Brian Tyree Henry] hammed it up and made it fun. I don't know what happened, but it became a comedy! [both laugh] I think it's because the atmosphere was just surrounded by a cloud of fear and ultimately Brian and I felt it was our job to bring light and laughter to set, so if we made the crew laugh it was a good day."

He went on to add:

"I think it brought an energy. It was Joey King, Brad and Michael Shannon, there was a great ensemble that came on board and we all just had a laugh. David was really open to playing and exploring, it felt like a big breath of fresh air – we had a fantastic time."

He didn’t mention it, but Brad Pitt is also such a funny guy! I bet he added to the playfulness that Taylor-Johnson and Brian Tyree Henry exhibited onset.

Sony Pictures will release Bullet Train in theaters on July 15th, 2022. Are you looking forward to this one?