An action-adventure comedy is only as good as its villain, and Paramount PicturesāĀ The Lost CityĀ has an unforgettable one in eccentric, author-nabbing billionaire Abigail Fairfax, played by Daniel Radcliffe (āHarry Potterā film series).
When Daniel Radcliffe was first mentioned for the role, co-star Sandra Bullock thought the suggestion was, as she calls it, āgenius,ā adding, āDaniel has these piercing blue eyes that are soft and inviting, until Fairfax starts going nuts. Then, Daniel transforms into that maniacal guy. Heās brilliant and I am excited for audiences to experience a Daniel Radcliffe they will not expect.ā
Radcliffe embraced the villainous but always fun role. āFairfax is a bad guy, but thereās a lot of humor to him because heās both bratty and petulant,ā he points out. āAll of Fairfaxās villainy comes from a need to please his media mogul father, which undercuts any real evil about him. Fairfax is just this terrible, entitled colonialist.
āHe has a real interest in archeology and history, but for all the wrong reasons,ā Radcliffe continues. āFairfax wants to possess treasures so that the rest of the world cannot. Itās a very childish motivation.ā
When Fairfax pitches reclusive author Loretta (Bullock) the idea that her expertise can help him find the Lost City of D and its hidden treasure ā a rare red diamond headdress ā he thinks she will jump at the chance. When Loretta resists, he decides his next best option is to kidnap her.
āFairfax chloroforms Loretta and puts her on his jet, expecting that sheāll change her mind, and when she doesnāt, it is clear to Fairfax that heās not going to get his own way,ā Radcliffe points out. āWhen she steals Fairfaxās one clue to finding that treasure, he decides sheās not an innocent anymore. Loretta is now fair game, and Fairfax is going to hunt her down.ā
Fairfaxās temperament isnāt helped by his given name: Abigail. āI do love that name,ā Radcliffe says with a laugh. āIt was a source of constant amusement for me because Fairfax is so defensive about it. Heās spent his entire life insisting that itās a gender-neutral name.ā
Radcliffe always remained cool under the locationsā unforgiving sun and triple-digit temperatures. āNormally, extreme heat or cold are great because they sort of make you forget about acting; youāre just in it,ā he says. āBut Fairfax was not somebody who was supposed to be particularly sweaty, so I had five people around me with fans just trying to stop me sweating through my T-shirt.ā
In Philippine cinemas on April 20,Ā The Lost CityĀ is distributed by Paramount Pictures through Columbia Pictures.Ā Follow us on Ā Twitter atĀ www.twitter.com/paramountpicsph/; Instagram atĀ www.instagram.com/paramountpicsph/Ā Ā and YouTube at Ā https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsZ7igjHZB-5k8DDM7ilVJw.Ā Connect withĀ #TheLostCityĀ and tag @paramountpicsph