Sweet Girl is the next high-octane action thriller to watch for, out on Netflix August 20. The story follows devastated widower Ray (Jason Momoa) in his battle against big pharma, all while he struggles to protect his daughter Rachel (Isabela Merced) from possible harm.
Momoa and Merced spoke to Screen Rant about physically preparing for their roles with the 87eleven stunt team and branching out in terms of the stories they get to tell.
Screen Rant: Jason, with the character of Ray Cooper, you show a completely different side to you. What was it about the role and the story that made you want to jump on to Sweet Girl?
Jason Momoa: I think you kind of said it right there. There are a bunch of different things that I have never challenged myself as an actor or had the opportunity to do yet. Even just down to doing a contemporary film and playing an everyday Joe - it's been a long time coming since I've been able to play something like that.
I would say, also just dealing with big pharma and how that would affect me and affect my family. They're all very interesting things to me. And the biggest thing was the opportunity to produce something after Aquaman. Being able to have all the people that I love work on it, and then pick the cast that I want, and really have a lot more control over those things. I can present it to Netflix going, "This is everything that I have. I give you my all."
Isabela, you play Rachel, who is reeling from the loss of her mother and has a very unique coping mechanism. Can you talk a little bit about Rachel and what attracted you to the role?
Isabela Merced: What I love about Rachel is that she's equally as flawed and strong as Ray, her counterpart. And there is nothing that I love more than a flawed hero. I think it creates an amazing story, and it has potential for having a sequel be about the backstory. How did she get to this point where she's so psychologically messed up from the trauma that she's endured that she has to pretend to be [something else]?
I think it's great to be able to portray a character that is so psychologically [dark]. It's a challenging role, and I love that. I want to do more of that dark stuff.
Jason, you're no stranger to stunt work, but Isabela got to kick some major ass in this too. What surprised you the most about the stunt work that she did in this film?
Jason Momoa: I've said it pretty much this whole press day, and it's the biggest compliment I can give her. We already knew she was a phenomenal actress and artist - but she's never done this in any film. I didn't think it was going to be quite this good.
I'm excited for the world to see that because I'm excited to see my girl kick ass and go on to even [more] huge films, be able to handle them, and be the star of those films. I just think that she totally took this movie over, and I'm very proud of her.
I know you did boxing ahead of this, but you were so efficient at the Muay Thai and MMA training. Can you talk about that a little bit?
Isabela Merced: Oh, that was really fun. I was really competitive as a kid, with my brothers. I have two brothers, and my dad seemed to like children being athletic, so I felt like I had to be. I had to be the best at everything. As a middle child, I had to excel at everything. So, we did a bit of jujitsu growing up, and I think that's kind of how I picked it up fast. I'm assuming, I don't know.
But it was a lot of fun because I can apply it to my real life. And I have applied it to my real life in several situations. And it's the guys at 87eleven, they wanted it to look as real as possible - because there's no way a 5'1" - and maybe 5'2" on a good day - young girl is going to be taking down these guys with just a few punches. She's not a one-punch man. So, I really enjoyed that. I really did.
Sweet Girl is available to stream on Netflix August 20.
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Reviewed by Riyad
on
August 18, 2021
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