The director behind Escape Plan reveals how Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone competed to be the nicest guy on set. Director Mikael Håfström is gearing up for the release of his psychological space thriller Slingshot starring Casey Affleck and Laurence Fishburne at the end of this month. However, his filmography is filled with several projects filled with big name A-list actors. Take for example Escape Plan, the 2013 prison action thriller starring two of the biggest action stars in Hollywood, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone. If you thought the two icons would have big egos on the Escape Plan set, Håfström would like you to know that was not the case.
ComicBook spoke to Slingshot director Mikael Håfström ahead of the film’s theatrical release on August 30th. When the topic of conversation moved to working with legends like Laurence Fishburne, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Sylvester Stallone, Håfström recalled how friendly Schwarzenegger and Stallone were on the set of Escape Plan.
“They were like kids on a summer camp. They were so sweet,” he said. “They came to set wondering, ‘What are we going to do today? Where do you want us to be?’ Both of them tried to be the nicest guy on the set.”
Håfström added, “I’m not saying it to be polite or just saying everything was great. It’s hard work making a movie. But that was a really joyful movie to make with those two guys. They couldn’t be more professional or show more respect for the process.”
What is Slingshot about?
A psychological thriller starring Casey Affleck and Laurence Fishburne, Slingshot follows an elite trio of astronauts aboard a years-long, possibly compromised mission to Saturn’s moon Titan. As the team gears up for a highly dangerous slingshot maneuver that will either catapult them to Titan or into deep space, it becomes increasingly difficult for one astronaut to maintain his grip on reality.
Directed by Mikael Håfström, Slingshot stars Casey Affleck, Laurence Fishburne, Emily Beecham, Tomer Capon, and David Morrissey. The movie opens in theaters on August 30th.