Before I got the role of Seiya, I have to go through auditions. When it was decided that I would be leading a Hollywood production, I was shocked but very happy. But that time I would never imagine it to be such a massive production and a wonderful work. If I had known how it would turn out, I would've been even more excited (laughs). I don't know the feedback I would get from auditions, but when I go through one, I go in while thinking and convincing people "This role is for me!" This is the first time that I heard from the director, "I want Mackenyu Arata to play this role." I was really happy to be part of this project, and I think everyone else [working on this production] also felt the same way.
To tell you the truth, I didn't know much about the original manga. I asked the production team, "Should I read them before filming?" they told me not to. With this live-action film, they wanted to create a new story that respects the original without being too attached [to the original]. So I read the script with the thought of touching something new. But the scale is just so massive. There was a car chase, there were battles, and it was hard to imagine what kind of movie it'll turn out to be. Those scenes felt like a Fast & Furious or an Avengers movie, and that's exactly what it turns out to be (laughs). So I guess this is Hollywood. I was really excited just reading the script, I was really looking forward to filming.
Seiya is a boy with his own goal, but he has to overcome a certain test. He won't grow unless he overcomes it. Under such circumstances, he had to grow while having conflicts within. Hopefully, I can portray the part of Seiya who is very straightforward with an unwavering heart, at the mercy of all kinds of situations well. The scenes that portrayed Seiya's conflicts, and the scenes where he had to overcome a certain trauma were especially inspiring. If what Seiya has to go through happened to me in real life, I think my heart would break. No, I think my bones will break first (laughs). But it would be terrible if I actually broke any bones during filming, so I started working on my body early on. There is also a scene in the latter half where I had to strip (laughs). I made sure to prepare an unbreakable body with all my might.
All of the action scenes are quite difficult, so I started practicing a month before filming. It was great to have that kind of time. The filming went smoothly, we were able to run through without anyone getting injured. However, the practice period was really hard. I practiced five days a week from morning to evening. At the same time, I went to the gym every day to build my body. But thanks to that, I was able to do various action stunts. It may be the first time I was caught on video spinning round & round. I even went skydiving! I'm bad with high places, so I don't do bungee jumping or skydiving, but I had to jump from 10,000 meters above ground without a parachute… Kidding. That scene was made with the latest filming technology (laughs). Instead of the stunts, I think the heat was the hardest! The location for Seiya's training scenes was really hot. The altitude was high and the weather was always sunny, so I got sunburns. There was no shade, so I couldn't escape it. I think there's a natural connection I felt with Seiya's situation, who trains hard with the thought "I can't give up!"
All of my co-stars were wonderful people, and that was very encouraging for me. Sean Bean and Famke Janssen have been active in the Hollywood scene for many years, so it was an honor to be able to act with them in the same space. Sean Bean is actually an ordinary uncle (laughs). He seems super dandy and cool on screen, but off-screen he's cute, easy to talk to, and I love him. When I offered him, "Do you want to drink boba tea?" he responded curiously, "What is this?" His wife also came to set, and he was sort of spoiled by her (laughs). She was like, "You can't drink that!" and scolded him. The others also had their family members on set, I guess that's what's unique about Hollywood production. Also, Sean Bean played a lot of roles that die in the middle of the story right? I wonder how it will be for Alman Kido. It was hilarious that the person himself also said to me, "I die a lot in movies, don't I?"
The filming set is really like a boy's gathering, and I was so happy to meet new friends and have that much fun creating this work together. There are a lot of scenes that look dangerous on video, but I never felt tense during filming at all. I think it's because there's a lot of room in my heart. When there's not enough time and money, I tend to get nervous more and more, but here we had plenty of time and money (laughs). The people working on this are doing their best together for this movie, all working towards the same goal while enjoying their time. That's how it felt. At the forefront is Tomek Baginski, our director who is usually very quiet and soft-spoken, but when he gets a good shot, he starts dancing. It seems that he refrained from drinking alcohol during filming, but I wonder if he dances around when he does (laughs). When I saw him dance, I thought, "Ah, we shot a good scene," that made me very happy.
From the first day, I was amazed by the filming scale. The shooting was mainly in Hungary, but the area used for filming is huge. We shot in places often used for filming Hollywood movies, but they even let us use areas that seemed like a street or residential areas. The country cooperates in movie making. This allows wider shots, the world can be created on a wider scale, so you can see everything without restrictions. I was able to act in that environment which is ideal for an actor. We can enter the movie world easier. The four months of filming were also the perfect schedule to shoot a movie. Since I'm the main character, I didn't have much time off, but the staff and I were able to sleep properly (laughs). I was able to concentrate on the work without the pain of leaving the house all the time. However, in Hungary, the white fish is catfish... That's what surprised me the most. The taste was... catfish (laughs). If you ever go there, please try it out.
The set is always full of enthusiasm from the first day to the last, but I think the staff's enthusiasm peaked when Seiya put on the Saint Cloth. I felt great and so did the staff. They said, "It's the sacred cloth~! It suits you~!" I took a bunch of pictures of myself too (laughs). It weighed about 80 kg, but... I'm joking. But for Seiya, the cloth represents a lot of weight. Because he overcame the harsh training and finally got it. I could feel the weight of that, and I felt like I could endure any kind of challenge just by wearing the cloth. I thought it would be difficult to perform actions while wearing the suit, but they prepared a high-quality suit that took all things into consideration including ease of movement. Sturdy and easy to move in. It's in a size that only I can wear. My body has gotten a little bigger than during filming, so I might not fit in it now (laughs). If there is a sequel, then I have to slim down again... Well, what do you think? I might portray a more grown-up Seiya, so his arms and chest will get thicker. If I can come back as a strong-looking Seiya, I'll be very happy.
From his words, Arata seems to have a very fulfilling filming experience. "I want to see more of people's reactions, I want to travel to different countries with the movies I make!" Including global promotional tour? Please charm the world with that smile!
The theme of the interview was The Beginning. Chihayafuru was the Beginning for Mackenyu Arata
The work that became my starting point was Chihayafuru. It wasn't long after I just started acting, so I stepped into an unfamiliar filming scene with tremendous pressure.
I learned a lot on set and it was a very fulfilling experience. You can say it's the beginning for Mackenyu Arata. It was at this time that I realized the joy I felt with acting. However, instead of having fun, I was mostly terrified. I didn't understand anything then. I think I kept going because I just hate losing.
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