I guess one of the things that attracted me to this character was the definition of his heroism. His brand of heroism is very human. He's not a superhero. He doesn't have super powers. He's just a man with an extraordinary skillset, a cool bike and a versatile gun. More importantly, he's the type of guy who is walking into a building when everyone else is running for their lives, in the opposite direction. So the opportunity to play that kind of man was something I was hugely attracted to. It reminded me of those really brave firefighters at 9/11. He's cut of that cloth.
How did you go about formulating Dredd's movements and voice?
It was a process. You know, when you take on a character you have to go through many different doors in order to define him. There was the physical aspect of it, of going to the gym and transforming myself physically. Then there was all the research; I read every single Dredd comic that I could, and a huge basis for the character was what was on the page. Alex Garland wrote a fantastic, action-packed, character-driven piece. It's quite a contained story, but at its heart it is the relationship between Anderson and Judge Dredd. The evolution of that relationship is, to me, one of the most interesting things about this movie.
What were some of your favourite characters and stories from the Dredd comics?
When I was a teenager and I started reading the Quality Comics series that came out in the 90s, it was stories like Kenny Who and Raider. Raider was a really cool vignette about an ex-Judge who took to the streets and became a vigilante. He was kind of like a mentor for Dredd, but Dredd found him in the position of having to ostensibly hunt him down, which was really interesting. For me, the great bonus of getting to play Dredd was going back and not only rediscovering those stories that I really enjoyed back then, but also discovering a whole plethora of new stories that had been written subsequently, and it was really interesting to see the evolution in the way the character was written. The depth and maturity in Wagner's writing, which really translated to the character of Dredd himself. That's evident in stories like Origins and The Dead Man's Walk into Necropolis. America's a fantastic story as well. It's one of the things I really like about the character is he's an anti-hero. In America, Dredd's the villain.
If there is a sequel, who would you like to square off against from the back catalogue of villains?
Obviously, Judge Death and his mates. I'd also like to explore the Mean Machine of it all. There's many.
With such an entrenched fanbase, did you feel any pressure bringing Dredd to screen?
No. No I didn't. I felt, as a long-term fan I felt placed enough pressure on myself, without being concerned what other people thought. My job, and my sole focus, was to bring the most interesting, specific dimensional character that I could. When I'm working, I'm not concerned about what people are thinking, I'm just doing my job. At Comic-Con I was just grateful and elated that it was received so well. Alex [Garland] has done an extraordinary job of delivering this movie and he should be very proud.
It was a very physical role, but would you say the hardest part was keeping the scowl?[Laughs] The most difficult aspect of the film was probably the gruelling nature of it. The fact that we were shooting in Cape Town, in the summer, and physically I was wearing motorbike leathers, body armour and a helmet. Physically it was very challenging. I have such a wonderful working relationship with Olivia [Thirlby]. Every day we would meet up before we started shooting and discuss what it was we were going to do that day, and we were on the same page. Not only with Olivia but also with Alex Garland, who was on set too 24-7. He was a huge asset to this production. Whenever I would have a question about what was on the page, I would ask Alex. For an actor to have the luxury of actually having the guy who wrote it there on set, was massive.
It must have also been a luxury for the writer to be there, as many times a writer doesn't get much say once the screenplay has been handed in.
Sure, but I've also worked on other productions where the writer's there as well. It just seems right. Every movie that I've ever worked on has been in a state of evolution, and that process never stops even after the camera's stopped. The story can still be in a transformative phase through the editing.
The tone is very dark, but there is still some humour. How much impact did you have on the initial script?
The humour was very important for me because it really helped define the character. It defined the characters humanity. That was the challenge. He's not a robot, he's a man. He's a highly trained man who's been trained to keep his emotions in check, but one of the things that does humanise him is his humour. It was one of the elements I always responded to in the comic, and we looked for every opportunity to inject that into the movie. Just that dry, deadpan humour that Alex did an extraordinary job of incorporating.
How did you feel about wearing a helmet all the time?
Are you kidding? I was playing Judge Dredd. That's the character. I had a meeting with Alex, Allon [Reich - producer] and Pete [Travis - director] in Los Angeles before they offered me the role, and they said, "We just want to make sure that you're totally comfortable with the fact that we are never going to see your face in this film". I said I wouldn't be taking the meeting if I read a script and Judge Dredd reveals his identity. He's supposed to be this enigmatic, faceless representative of the law. It's just essential that it remains that way. Apart from the elation of getting to do this character, my focus was just on how to execute it in the best fashion possible.
Did you get to keep the helmet?
I did. They gave it to me. I tried to steal it three times before they gave it to me.
Are you worried about being typecast as a sci-fi/genre actor?
I think it's very easy to try and categorise, but the reality is I've done films such as The Bourne Supremacy, Out of the Blue, and RED, which are quite different genres. I just respond to the character. This was an instance of where I was a fan of Dredd, growing up. It would have taken a bigger man than me to turn it down.
You've done Eomer in Lord of the Rings and Bones in Star Trek, amongst others. Any other geeky heroes you'd like to play?
I feel it would be greedy to want anything more than what I've got. I could retire quite happily my comic book inspired characters at this point in time, if I never played another character based on science fiction, fantasy or comic books I'd be good. I've done some goodies.
So you are excited to be returning as Bones in the Star Trek sequel?
Definitely. They're a great group. We have a lot of fun making those films, and it was wonderful to get back together again and continue the journey.
How do you prepare for playing such a complex character?
Every character you prepare for is unique and individual and different. For Dredd, the process was one of getting hold of every Dredd comic I could; two, the physical transformation, which was quite gruelling and challenging, working out twice a day for about 13 weeks to get to where I thought the character, physically, needed to be. Then there was the military training, which was conducted in Cape Town and that was really interesting. It included some exercises where we had BB guns that were mocked up like Lawgivers, we went through the set where we had stunt guys secretly deposited, so we got into real firefights - as close to real as anyone would want to get. Then there was committing time and energy into learning how to ride that bike. Then hours of discussions with Alex, just trying to hone down and define the character as best we could. For me it was really important to focus and identify the humanity of the man. As I said before, he's not a superhero. It was important for me to make him accessible. The humour was part of that. Also, getting specific as to how he felt about things and how to communicate that to an audience. That was the challenge. There are points in the film where you can see certain gear shifts in the character: after all the innocent people have been murdered. In the massacre you see a real shift in Dredd, and that's his response. You can tell by that that he does give a damn and has got compassion. In the same sense, when he decides not to kill the kids with the weapons that are trying to kill him, he again displays a care and compassion for humanity.
Was the Lawmaster simply a customised bike? How was it compared to a normal bike?
I'm comfortable on a regular bike, but it took some time to get used to the Lawmaster. It was great going in straight lines, but corners were challenging.
Do you see the film as a social commentary on contemporary society?
The parallels can definitely be drawn. It's best not to forget the fact that the character was created in the 70s, during Thatcherism and the era of punk and anarchy, and those threads are relevant. You only have to look back a year in history and you see London in riot. That's the world Dredd is set in. In a society that is on the verge of chaos and collapse. It's not that big a leap to that. We take our freedoms pretty much for granted. It's really interesting to take a look at a society that is a totalitarian one where all those freedoms have been taken away because that's the only way that society can function. It's horrific, but it is interesting to explore those things, and it certainly makes me appreciate that I live in a democratic country that has a good gun control and I have a good quality of life. At the end of the day, this is escapist entertainment, but if you want to dig a bit deeper, there are messages there. I also like the subtle little morality tales that are in the movie. Dredd's doing his job, he's a representative of the law and he's bound by a code of ethics, an oath that he's taken, but what's interesting to me is the choices the citizens of Peachtrees have to make: whether to align themselves with the Judges, whether to help them or not. Based on those morality choices, what happens to those people through the film. In reading the original Dredd comics, Dredd was a supporting character and those citizens of Mega-City One and their stories.
How was it shooting in Cape Town?
It was fantastic, it really was. It was one of the most collaborative experiences I've ever had. The good thing about Pete is he knew he had a good team working with him and he let everybody do their jobs. Alex had an extraordinary input on this, to the extent that you could say that he directed a fair amount of this film. That's not uncommon. On Lord of the Rings we had five different units with five different directors. Peter Jackson was undoubtedly the driving, creative force behind the films, but by virtue of what we were trying to accomplish on that, it meant that there were other directors helping in the execution. Dredd was always pretty ambitious as well. So Alex's input is huge.