We all know that Rihanna is one of our favorite hit singers, but she decided to broaden her horizons this year and hit up the big screen.
The risk turned into a reward as her new movie Battleship is quickly becoming a force to be reckoned with around the world.
REVIEW: WORTH 12 Bucks? “Battleship” Gets Two Bombs Up!
GlobalGrind caught up with Rihanna to talk about the film and she told us how hard it was to prepare for her role, what her first acting experience was like, if she’s scared of aliens and much more.
Check it out!
GlobalGrind: Did all of your video acting help this process, or was it learning totally new marks and timing?
I thought it would help, but little did I know that it was a completely different beast. It was very new and a whole different experience. It was a much bigger set. I had to use dialogue, which I had never really used in my videos. It’s usually just me acting to a track. Having an accent was very different too.
You shot on an actual Navy vessel. In between those scenes, were you able to have any fun?
I don’t know how much fun we were able to have. We went to the beach a couple of times. Most of the fun was on set doing the shooting and using the weapons, which were my favorite parts. Most of the fun was actually the work.
You could have chosen any role to be your first movie. What attracted you to this role?
I liked that it was something a little removed from my real life. I liked that it wasn’t glamorous. Most importantly, it was a small enough role that I could pull off for my first movie. I felt pretty safe with this director. His enthusiasm made me trust him. I believed that he could really pull it out of me.
Do you believe that there is intelligent life out in outer space? Would you imagine them to be more hostile or more peaceful?
I’m still very open on that matter. I’m not really sure because I haven’t done enough research to really say how I feel. But who knows? I would like to know. I’m going to do some homework and maybe I can give a better answer!
From singing to acting, what would you say was your biggest obstacle?
I guess for me singing is kind of like a diary. It’s my real life, and you play yourself everyday and you don’t have to think about it. Acting, you have to embody an entire character right to the core. You have to get in their mindset, and figure out how they think and how they’ll react to certain things. I’m not used to that, so that was definitely challenging.
What are you going to miss most about playing your character?
The guns! The weapons were my favorite part of shooting. I had a great time. I felt like the ultimate badass. I would’ve never had those experiences had I not been shooting this film. It was definitely fun to play that.
What did you learn about yourself in the process of making this film?
I actually learned a lot about myself. I had to delve myself into a lot of different emotions and things I had been avoiding, I guess. I had put up this face where I didn’t want people to see me as weak or vulnerable. I had done that for so long that I had to break that down. It really taught me a lot about myself. It was a great experience.
How did you prepare yourself for the physical aspect of this role?
I actually worked with a soldier. He really was psychotic! He really broke me down and had no remorse. It was as if I really was a soldier right out there in war. He wanted me to have that emotional connection to the characters. At one point I got so scared of him that every time he would come over to train, I would hide all my high heel shoes and my pink iPod or anything that was girly. I had to just get it away and that really helped. We worked with sandbags and weights. On set I did a lot of training with a female soldier who’s a real weapons officer. She taught me a lot about weapons, drills, body language and my whole etiquette.
You’re known as a badass in the film and in real life. After Good Girl Gone Bad, what was the turning point in your life that helped you go that badass route for the film?
I think that every experience in your life builds the person that you are. I’m ever evolving. It’s still changing and it’s still going to keep changing and growing. I’m still growing up, so I’m going to continue to experience grown up life experiences. Sometimes it really makes you see things for what they are. You realize what’s important in life. That was like a weapon for me. That makes me feel strong.
Did you get a chance to do any improv in the film?
A lot of the dialogue and the in between things such as the singing really were spur of the moment. (Director) Pete let us do so much nonsense. The Kentucky Fried chicken part, he made me make chicken sounds, which were awful. He made us do the craziest things and you never know what he’s going to keep, so you have to keep your fingers crossed. A lot of it is improv. He makes you go there and feeds you in energy. He’ll get you angry and then makes you say a line. It was really helpful to play like that. It was a good learning experience.
If Rihanna was personally on that boat, as opposed to your character, how would you have handled the situation?
The exact same! What do you think? No, I mean, who knows? I might have jumped ship. That’s some intense stuff. If I saw an alien, I don’t know what would be my first instinct.
Have you thought about putting music on hold for a little bit just to pursue movies?
I don’t think that music could ever be on hold for me. Even if there’s not a deadline or a specific project, I will always feel empty not making music. I will always get that bug and even right now, I’m still going a little crazy. I can’t wait to get in the studio and play around with sounds. I can do that and it doesn’t become work for me. I am going to do that and do some more films. I really liked my first experience with Battleship, so I’m looking forward to doing more. But I can’t say a break in music is what’s happening.
