David Ayer and Jason Statham’s latest collaboration goes beyond the relentless action. The director and actor reunited for A Working Man, a feature film adaptation of Chuck Dixon’s popular novel, Levon’s Trade. The story follows Levon Cade, a former military officer turned construction worker who gets roped back into the game when his boss’s daughter is kidnapped.
A Working Man puts an expected emphasis on the ground and pound, as Statham’s Levon takes out his enemies with reckless abandon, but the kills come with a purpose. Ayer made a point to establish an emotional core to the film in order to give Levon’s mission a sense of stakes and urgency.
ScreenRant spoke with Ayer about why it was important for A Working Man to have “believable characters” infused with “some soul” and what a possible sequel could have in store for David Harbour’s character in particular.
A Working Man Pushes For “Believable Characters” With “Some Soul”
“When you can ground it, it’s just an amazing cocktail…”
While audiences show up to A Working Man for the high-octane action, David Ayer hopes they stay for the “characters’ hearts.”
“That’s everything for me. It’s all about character. It’s all about the characters’ hearts, and Jason is so good at playing this everyman, this kind of guy next door with a troubled past,” Ayer told ScreenRant. “To give him an emotional motivation, to give him this adopted family that’s taken care of him that he can then return the favor and take care of, I mean, that’s the movie for me.
“Look, I’m not going to lie, I love the action and I love the fights and I love all that,” Ayer continued. “But when you can ground it with believable character and some soul, then it’s just an amazing cocktail.”
If the heart and soul are the secret ingredients to the A Working Man cocktail, the main spice comes in the fisticuffs department. As evident by the promotional footage, Statham gets down and dirty as Levon Cade, arguably his most violent role to date.
“I may have,” Ayer said when asked if he set the record for most on-screen Statham kills in A Working Man. “There’s definitely quite a few. He gets busy for sure.”
Does Ayer Have Plans For A Working Man Sequel?
“I’d be curious, he may have some unfinished business…”
Even with that high volume of bodies to his name, Levon’s work might not be done. Dixon’s Levon’s Trade is just the first in a series of Levon Cade stories, which leaves Ayer with an abundance of source material to pull from should the project warrant becoming a franchise.
“I’d be curious to see where Levin goes from here,” Ayer teased. “He may have some unfinished business, so there may be something there.”
Characters that warrant fleshing out go beyond the тιтular “working man” as well. A Working Man features David Harbour as Gunny, Levon’s former military colleague who lives a quiet and secluded life away from the action.
“I love working with David. He is such a strong actor. He gets on set and then you forget it’s him,” Ayer said of Harbour. “I mean, he really transformed himself in this, so I think the opportunity to see Gunny get back into the swing of things might be interesting. Or maybe there’s a prequel. Who knows?”
Check out our other A Working Man interviews with…
- David Harbour
- Arianna Rivas & Noemi Gonzalez
A Working Man hits theaters on March 28.
Source: ScreenRant Plus
