Whiteout - Kate Beckinsale and Greg Rucka Interviews
Kate Beckinsale's used to handling action scenes, but 'Whiteout' combined action and freezing cold filming conditions. Greg Rucka, writer of the 'Whiteout' graphic novel, joined Beckinsale at the premiere to talk about the movie's cold setting.
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Transcript: Whiteout - Kate Beckinsale and Greg Rucka Interviews
Rebecca Murray from About.com Hollywood Movies at the Los Angeles premiere of Warner Bros Pictures' Whiteout.
Kate Beckinsale – 'Carrie Stetko' in Whiteout
How difficult was it working in this environment?
Kate Beckinsale: "Luckily, we were only in the really freezing minus 50 for about three weeks. But it was enough, and we definitely complained about it because we're all actors known to cry. So it was quite tough just learning how to breathe without it catching you in the throat, your eyelashes get stuck together with ice, and stuff that you don't normally run into on a movie set. That was kind of tough going. But then we had the reverse going on when we got to the stages in Montreal because we were in these very heavy clothes and they were quite hot. And then they would throw salt at us and bits of potatoes, and things like that. It was interesting. I hadn't come across that before."
Knowing what you were going to go through in this, why did you sign on?
Kate Beckinsale: "Well, I didn't really know. Joel [Silver] was very much like, 'It's going to look so good. No one has seen this before and it's going to be so exciting. It's going to be amazing.' And then I got there and went like, 'Wow, it's freezing.' I just sort of heard 'Canada' and I'd been to Canada. I'd been to Prague and Budapest, and how much colder could it really be? And it really was considerably colder. It was a surprise."
What was life like on the set?
Kate Beckinsale: "I had some really nice people to work with. I was very lucky."
And keeping the mood fun?
Kate Beckinsale: "I think once you've seen your fellow actors getting in and out of their ski trousers 900 times a day and picking bits of fake snow out of their bum crack and their ears, you know, you bond quite quickly."
Did you have fun playing in the snow?
Kate Beckinsale: "We didn't really do a lot of playing in the snow. It wasn't that kind of snow. It was that kind of, 'You're going to die if you play in the snow,' very cold snow. So we didn't really play in the snow. My daughter went tobogganing a bunch. In fact, my mother spent her 60th birthday doing some extreme tobogganing while we were up there."
How difficult was the costume to work in?
Kate Beckinsale: "Oh my gosh, I found it really difficult. Like we were supposed to look tough and run around and fight. And trying to run in moonboots is a lot harder than you think, to be honest with you. Just navigating those big clothes was tough going. It's fun. We had some warming round the hot tent tales."
Greg Rucka – Writer of the Graphic Novel Whiteout
Researching the Antarctica, how difficult was that? Did you actually go visit?
Greg Rucka: "No, I wish I did. It's funny. I was talking to somebody else this morning who was saying the National Science Foundation has an artist grant and you can go. And I wish I had known. But when I wrote this, which was 10 years ago, I probably never would have gotten the grant. Now I could go, but I've already written it. So maybe I'll write something else and go again. But, no, that said, I did a ridiculous amount of research. I spent a lot of time reading up. I went through old issues of National Geo, anywhere I could get photographic reference, any documentary I could find – even feature films. I watched The Thing. I watched Carpenter's The Thing a lot, just going, 'Hmm, did they get...?' And, actually, it got bad because I love the movie but I got to a point where I was like, 'Well, that's wrong. And that's wrong. That's wrong. That's totally unrealistic. That's not right.' What do they say? A little knowledge is a dangerous thing?"
How long would you last up there?
Greg Rucka: "I think I could make it. Yeah, I think the real trick isn't actually environmental as much as psychological because you're an idiot if you're going to just stand around outside. You're going to die. It doesn't matter what you're wearing. But, you know, if they're going to lock you in at the Pole for six months during winter over, that's a mind game. I play all sorts of games with my mind. I think I would survive."
What do you think about Kate Beckinsale as your lead person?
Greg Rucka: "I will tell you what I think that I said back then which was that I never envisioned in my life that Carrie would be so beautiful. So simply by dent of Kate playing the part, it changes the nature of the part. I think she does a fabulous job. I think the cast is wonderful, honestly. Tom Skerritt, people haven't really been talking about his performance in this and I think Skerritt did an outstanding job. I think he's magical in it. Columbus Short I love. Alex [O'Loughlin] is great. Gabe [Macht] is great."
You're just really happy with it.
Greg Rucka: "Like I said, they made a movie out of something I wrote. How can I not be?"