We always hear about actors going through training to learn whatever skill they need for a movie. Usually it just sounds like a vanity story about “Oh, we were in the trenches… for a week.” Anthony Mackie gives us some specifics. When he learned how to play ball for Crossover, he got specific instructions from the basketball coach.
Anthony Mackie Talks Crossover
“He really taught me elbow to wrist, which before was more just like flinging a ball to the goal,” Mackie said. “The motion of shoulder, elbow, wrist, shoot put I would say at least three more feet of arc on my ball. He taught me how to aim at the rim. That was very important.”
Once he had the moves down, he still had to dunk those baskets while portraying his character. “I consider myself to be a technician so it wasn’t hard at all. The great thing about the way they were shooting the movie is it was kind of a free for all. They had enough cameras going which was very smart, he had enough cameras going to where he could follow you anywhere. We just played so much basketball. We played so much basketball.”
Anthony Mackie
Wayne Brady in Crossover
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Mackie’s costars on the cinematic court included some real street ball professionals. “They had that moment of cracking jokes and this and that, but I told them on the first day, I was like, ‘I might not be the best ball player but you’re definitely not the best actor, so you make fun but you’re going to have to say those lines.’ They would just laugh at me. We were in basketball camp and they would crack jokes and this and that. The thing about it is they had seen my other movies and I had seen them on the mix tapes and everything so there was a huge mutual respect. And they just would crack jokes about me not being able to dribble or me not being as good as them. So I made sure when they had to talk, I’d be like, ‘What? What? What’d you say? What?’ So I would make them nervous and they would mess up.”
When he takes his new skills to the home court, Mackie is the star. “I’m the king of the court across the street from my house.”
Crossover opens to theatres on
September 1st.
For the trailer, poster, clips and more movie info, go to the Crossover Movie Page.
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