The highly anticipated movie adaptation of the game Borderlands hits theaters today with a very low Rotten Tomatoes debut score. Directed by Eli Roth, whose other works include Thanksgiving and Hostel, the film is going to bring dark humor and intense action to the silver screen. Florian Munteanu, who plays Craig in the film, sat down for an exclusive interview with ComicBook and shared his thoughts on working with Roth. Munteanu also appeared in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and talked about the physical demands of the role as well as the friendships he formed with his co-stars.
The interviewer asked Munteanu if, since Roth comes from a background in the horror genre, this aspect had any influence on the direction of the film. To this Munteanu replied that it certainly did.
For a project like Borderlands, Munteanu feels Roth’s energy and style were perfect. “The insanity, it felt like Roth’s approach was unique, perfect for this movie,” Munteanu laughed, indicating that Roth’s own quirkiness made him the perfect person to direct this adaptation. He further added that anyone who has played the game will agree that the atmosphere in the game is unmatched, and thus Roth’s direction was unmatched.
The actor also stressed the importance of staying true to Roth’s style – especially in terms of the dark humor and violence depicted in the film. According to Munteanu, such a mix of brutality and dark tones – key elements of the Borderlands franchise – found an ideal director in Roth. “It was seen that Roth’s experience in horror and his history of blood-soaked scenes made him perfect for the job,” Munteanu said.
Recently, Florian Munteanu discussed the intense process of playing the character for Borderlands in another interview with Screen Rant. He explained that physically, he needed to be extremely prepared for the role and had to deal with problems in costume design. This would require him to wear heavy boots and a costume mask, which would hinder his breathing to some extent. For Munteanu, this was possible due to a lot of training and hard work, which really brought out the physical aspects of the character.
He explained that his idea was to get a body that resembled Krieg, which required serious work. As Munteanu said, “It required a lot of training and almost no food. So those were tough times to get that crazy definition, to get that crazy shape like Krieg.” The physical transformation was tough, but it was only part of the challenge.
There was another challenge: the costume – particularly the boots and mask – also proved to be a hindrance. Munteanu said it was the first time he had worn such heavy boots, which made it difficult for him to move and fight, while his mask limited his vision.
He also particularly stressed the need for an early preparation process. This is because, during the early stages, the stunt choreography was practiced without the mask, after which they realized they needed to do it with the mask. Such foresight saved them when they actually started filming, where Munteanu was already accustomed to the constraints caused by the costume.
He reflected on the fact that it wasn’t easy, but he still felt the growth that came from overcoming these hardships. He explained this by saying, “But once you’re faced with a challenge, you should accept it, because that’s the moment when you’re allowed to move forward.”
Also read: Borderlands trailer: Cate Blanchett, Jamie Lee Curtis and Kevin Hart become unlikely heroes in upcoming science-fiction film
