The 'Wild Horse Nine' cast hits the London Film Festival. Courtesy of Getty John Malkovich and Sam Rockwell were a perfect double act at the BFI London Film Festival premiere of Wild Horse Nine Friday night.
The pair livened up a British audience with a well-received screening of the film at the city’s Royal Festival Hall on the Southbank, though both actors declined to talk to too many reporters on the carpet.
Rockwell said on stage about what drew him to the film: “Martin’s annoyingly handsome but very talented,” as laughter erupted across the room. “What drew me to the film is reading the script,” added a polite but enigmatic Malkovich — sporting a beanie, no less.
Related Stories
Movies Danny Boyle Shares Why He Used AI for Maggie Thatcher in 'Ink' - Without Asking Her Estate and His Love for 'Obsession' and 'Backrooms'
TV The Most Powerful Women in International TV
Malkovich, riding the wave of immense Oscar buzz, has already claimed Venice’s prestigious Volpi Cup for best actor for his performance. British-born Irish filmmaker McDonagh, who has taken Wild Horse Nine on the festival circuit but is finally on home turf at the London Film Festival, told The Hollywood Reporter on the red carpet that he thinks Brits will enjoy the movie’s dark humor. He was spotted sharing a kiss with long-time partner Phoebe Waller-Bridge shortly before the lights went down.
Wild Horse Nine stars Malkovich and Rockwell as Chris and Lee, longtime CIA partners stationed in Santiago, Chile who are dispatched to Easter Island by their bureau chief (Steve Buscemi). Against the surreal backdrop of the island’s monumental Moai statues, the pair begin reckoning with their murky shared past. At the same time, Chris forms an unexpected bond with two rebellious Chilean students, played by Mariana di Girolamo and Ailín Salas — an encounter that threatens to unravel the agents’ friendship and the conspiracy in which they have become entangled.
Buscemi said to THR about preparing for the role of his CIA boss MJ: “I don’t know any CIA agents, but Martin recommended a book, which was helpful to a certain extent. But really, I get everything I need from the script. It’s so well-written from Martin and working off the other actors [helps], because when it comes right down to it, [MJ] is a boss and he has bosses and he’s under a lot of pressure.”
He added about the London crowd: “I think they’ll get a kick out of it. I think they’ll enjoy it. I think audiences all over will get a lot out of it because it’s so well-made. It’s Martin McDonagh, and it’s got a great cast, and it’s a great story.”
When asked about which movie he’d like to have starred in this year, Buscemi threw us a curveball. “I haven’t seen Wicker, but that’s something that looks like it’s a lot of fun to be in. So I’m looking forward to seeing that one.” (Wicker, also screening at LFF, stars Olivia Colman as an ostracized, single fisherwoman in a conservative medieval seaside town who commissions the local basket-maker to weave her a husband, played by Alexander Skarsgard.)
The BFI London Film Festival kicked off with an emotional and fervent screening of Andrew Scott and Olivia Colman’s Elsinore on Wednesday night. The Irishman — looking like Malkovich’s main rival in the Oscar race so far — had attendees on their feet as he welcomed the real-life people who inspired particular Elsinore characters, including Colman’s Professor Margaret Johnson, a pioneer of HIV/AIDS treatment in the late ’80s.
The 70th edition of the BFI London Film Fest runs Oct. 7-18 and is set to continue with a run of star-spangled galas including screenings of Artificial, Bunker, Behemoth!, Ink, Club Kid, A Long Winter, Ray Gunn and Paper Tiger.
THR Newsletters
Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day
Subscribe Sign Up
