Oscar Isaac Signed On to X-MEN: APOCALYPSE to Hang With Cast But Never Got To Due to Overheating in Costume
Emmy nominee Oscar Isaac (Ex Machina, Moon Knight, Frankenstein) appeared on the latest episode of the hot wing talk show Hot Ones, and was asked about his appearance in the 2016 comic book tentpole film X-Men: Apocalypse, in which he played the title villain under a 40-pound costume and various makeup prosthetics.
Isaac previously called the role “excruciating.” It turns out the actor signed on to star in the X-Men movie because he wanted to act with the A-list ensemble, which included Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy, but his costume prevented him from doing so.
Isaac explained: “One of the big reasons I did the job, I was like Fassbender? Jennifer Lawrence? McAvoy? All these amazing actors. Yeah! And then I never saw any of them because I was so overheated. And like I couldn’t turn.
‘So, I just got put in this cooling tent. Sometimes someone would come by and be like [patting him on the back] hey Oscar. I’d be like huh? And by the time I turned around they were gone already. So, it was very challenging. But I am thankful for the cooling tent.”
Isaac called the production “excruciating” in a 2018 interview with GQ magazine, explaining:
“I didn’t know when I said yes that that was what was going to be happening. That I was going to be encased in glue, latex, and a 40-pound suit — that I had to wear a cooling mechanism at all times.
“I couldn’t move my head, ever. I had to sit on a specially designed saddle, because that’s the only thing I could really sit on, and I would be rolled into a cooling tent in-between takes.
“And so I just wouldn’t ever talk to anybody, and I was just gonna be sitting and I couldn’t really move, and like, sweating inside the mask and the helmet. And then getting it off was the worst part, because they just had to kind of scrape it off for hours and hours.”
Despite the intense experience, Isaac has positive things to say about the film itself and the opportunity to play the role. Check out the full Hot Ones/Oscar Isaac interview below: