Although we’ve yet to see it, Henry Golding has already suited up to portray Snake Eyes for Paramount’s G.I. Joe spinoff. The upcoming action flick places the hunky Crazy Rich Asians and The Gentleman actor at the forefront of his own franchise. But, Golding is already being honest about it not being an easy shoot.
Back in February, Henry Golding wrapped filming on Snake Eyes, a movie he believes will breath new life into the G.I. franchise that have been dormant since 2013’s G.I. Joe: Retaliation. Here’s how the British actor remembers the shoot:
To be honest, it was painful. It’s definitely much more of a martial arts film than a superhero movie. It’s very, very physical. I fucking hated it in the beginning because I couldn’t even squat down and go to the bathroom. The first week was literal hell. I think I cried on the phone to my manager. I was like: ‘I don’t know what I’m doing!’
That’s some refreshing candidness from Henry Golding during his interview with NME. These days we’re so used to actors learning choreography and new skills for a role that we don’t bat at an eye at their accomplishments. But as Golding talks about here, becoming Snake Eyes came with a lot of blood, sweat and tears.
As he teases, his role was a lot more martial arts-heavy than other films in the genre might be, so he was doing some intense fight training and choreography that was “painful” and hellish, as he puts it. Plus, this is Henry Golding’s most physical role yet, so it’s understandable that the experience was not an easy transition for the actor.
Golding’s first movie was 2018’s Crazy Rich Asians if you can believe it. After that movie blew up, he quickly nabbed a number of other high-profile roles including Paul Feig’s Last Christmas and Guy Ritchie’s The Gentleman. In Snake Eyes, he’s starring with Warrior’s Andrew Koji, who will play Snake Eyes’ nemesis Storm Shadow, Ready or Not’s Samara Weaving who's playing Scarlett and Money Heist’s Úrsula Corberó, who will take on Baroness.
Snake Eyes is said to be setting up a new era for the G.I. Joe movies, with Seberg writers Joe Shrapnel and Anna Waterhouse reportedly working on an additional spinoff within the universe. This follow-up will reportedly be hinted at during Snake Eyes but is not expected to be a straight Snake Eyes sequel.
Although if the movie plays its cards right, chances are Henry Golding could be hitting the gym again for another round in the future. After a recent delay, Snake Eyes is currently expected to hit theaters on October 21, 2021. You can check out what other movies are coming out next year with CinemaBlend’s 2021 release schedule here.
