From playing the mutant superhero in the X-Men saga to appearing in the musical drama The Greatest Showman, Hugh Jackman has proven throughout his career that he has more than one string to his bow. But what stood out as one of her best performances, and one of her most brutal, was the one she gave Denis Villeneuve in 2013’s Prisoners.
Apart from the director’s vision, what made the film a huge success was also the improvisation Hugh Jackman During a violent scene that made the film even more powerful, an improvisation that elevated the scene but also caused his co-star to fall to the ground in fear.
Paul Dano, on the spot
While society mostly knows Denis Villeneuve for his sci-fi epic Dune and Hugh Jackman For the role of Wolverine, few know about the duo’s collaboration in the crime thriller, which also stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Viola Davis, Terrence Howard and Paul Dano.
prisoners depicts the kidnapping of two young girls, leading to a search for their abductor. Little by little, the father of one of the victims begins to take matters into his own hands and search for the attacker.
The film was first a critical and commercial success upon its release in 2013, and then again after being added to Netflix. While the feature film as a whole captivated fans, the scene that stood out as particularly impressive was the violent scene. Hugh Jackman who won praise for his incredible performance, finally stunned fans after revealing to SiriusXM in 2022 that the sequence was improvised, much to the surprise of his on-screen partner.
This is the interrogation scene that was shot for 3 hours before Denis Villeneuve finally asked the actor to do an improvised performance.
“There’s a very intense scene with Paul Dano where I ask him and we did it for about three hours and I was completely exhausted.“, he said Hugh Jackman. “We did it, and deep down I thought, “Yeah, we got it, it was good.” And I remember Dennis coming over and saying, “I need to talk to you…you need to go there.” I said, “Wasn’t that there?” He said, “No, I really need you to go.”“
I admit that you don’t know how to improvise a moment to make it perfect. Hugh Jackman Said the cameras started rolling and he gradually found his way. Ultimately, the scene sees her character, Keller Dover, threatening her Paul DanoAlex Jones hit the sink and then the wall next to him with a hammer to scare him. and as the latter did not know about improvisation, he was really frightened, actually falling on his knees.

“So we did another take, and while he was taking it, I was like, “I’ve got nothing left! I have absolutely no idea…” All I will say is that the next scene in the movie was completely improvised and is in the movie. And how did Paul Dano talk to me again after that? I have no idea.“
Despite the terrible experience, Paul Dano He left the stage with nothing but respect Hugh Jackman – and the USA too.
Rediscover an excerpt from the famous scene in the video below:
During the hammer scene in Prisoners (2013), Hugh Jackman was asked by Denis Villeneuve to go completely brutal for the next shoot. This perception was used in the final film. He went off script to improvise a violent scene that caused Paul Dano to fall to the ground.
— Emir Han (@RealEmirHan) July 2, 2024
Prisoners can still be seen on VOD.
Source: Allocine

Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.