Though known for her devastating performances in “Fences” — for which she won an Academy Award — and 2011’s “The Help,” Viola Davis knows that longevity in the acting profession means mixing it up from time to time. That’s why for her most recent outing in “G20,” she decided to kick some ass. As a deadly American President taking on a group of terrorists who’ve laid siege to a summit of world leaders, Davis is embracing her Liam Neeson “Taken”-era, largely, she said in a recent interview with The Times of London, due to her need to have some fun.
“Training, speech, technique, critics — there’s a sense of torture that you almost have to make peace with,” she said of her career in acting. “But internally you’re always trying to get back to the fun.”
Adding later of how “G20” provided that, Davis said, “I needed some levity in my life.”
And while she may be recognized as a Juilliard-trained talent with EGOT status, Davis doesn’t think that should hold her back from doing projects that might be considered more popcorn-fare than awards-worthy.
“I don’t think every movie you do has to be considered for an Academy Award,” Davis told The Times. “I wanted to do something that families could watch together, something popular.”
Davis also isn’t afraid to be a woman who comes across as tough on screen, especially physically. For “G20,” she wanted to look like someone who would “jump through the plate glass first.” It may seem like this would be a harder challenge for her than a more understated, true-life story, but Davis doesn’t exactly see it that way.
“What’s challenging with real-life characters is the preciseness of it — and the scrutiny: ‘She didn’t hold her mouth that way, her eyes didn’t look like that.’ When you use your imagination you get ‘Air Force One’ [the action movie in which Harrison Ford played a swashbuckling president] when they strapped on parachutes and jumped out of the plane as it was blowing up,” said Davis. “Sparking the imagination is the cosmic carrot to waking you up inside.”
The action adventure was directed by Patricia Riggen and co-stars Anthony Anderson, Marsai Martin, Antony Starr, and Clark Gregg. In addition to starring, Davis also served as a producer on “G20” alongside her husband Julius Tennon.
“G20” streams on Prime Video from Amazon MGM Studios Wednesday, April 10.
