Netflix - The Old Guard : Be ready for a great action movie

By Mulder, 02 july 2020

Based on the acclaimed graphic novel by Greg Rucka and directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood (Love & Basketball , Beyond the Lights ), The Old Guard is a gritty, grounded, action-packed story that shows living forever is harder than it looks. Charlize Theron, KiKi Layne, Matthias Schoenaerts, Marwan Kenzari, Luca Marinelli, and Chiwetel Ejiofor are one the cast of this great new Netflix movie. The Old Guard is scheduled to be released on July 10, 2020

Set in the modern day, but spanning centuries, The Old Guard centers on a group of mercenaries who possess a mysterious inability to die. Academy Award winner Charlize Theron produces and stars as Andy — or Andromache the Scythian — a warrior born in an age that predates almost all historical records whose experience in combat rivals no other. Together with Booker (Matthias Schoenaerts), Joe (Marwan Kenzari), Nicky (Luca Marinelli), and the newest immortal, Nile (KiKi Layne), Andy uses her gift to protect mankind — leading the team on a covert, darkly altruistic path through the ages, balancing harm with good, and taking a life when necessary in order to save thousands of others. But their secret is exposed when an operation brought to them by an ex-CIA operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor) backfires, threatening their existence.

Twenty years after Sundance darling L ove & Basketball marked the trailblazing arrival of Gina Prince-Bythewood, the award-winning director takes the helm of her first big-budget action film. In keeping with the tradition established by her influential debut and films such as 2014’s Beyond the Lights , Prince-Bythewood once again upends genre expectations by delivering a story infused with purpose, compassion, and a love for family in all its forms. From a script written by Eisner-winning comic book writer Greg Rucka — which was adapted from his own acclaimed 2017 graphic novel series — The Old Guard flips the conceit of immortality as being something desirable on its head: It instead focuses on the inherent tragedy of living forever.

It’s also a superhero story that places the work of saving mankind firmly in the hands of two female warriors. “ This is a story with mythological elements and themes of relationships, family, and love that were very appealing to me,” says Prince-Bythewood. “But at its core, the fact that I got to put two badass women on screen was everything. The script came to me at a time when I had been looking to move into a bigger sandbox and it ended up presenting me with the opportunity to do exactly what I wanted: To put female heroes into the world, one of whom is a young black woman.”

By stepping into the role of Nile, a tenderfoot immortal who comes under the reluctant tutelage of Andy, KiKi Layne (I f Beale Street Could Talk , N ative Son ) becomes the face of an all-new kind of hero. One whose powers may be unique, but whose grief over her former life and resistance to her newfound responsibilities are universally relatable. Prince-Bythewood recalls getting the call from Skydance to read the script for The Old Guard and feeling excited about working with the company responsible for bringing recently revitalized franchises such as S tar Trek and M ission: Impossible, and elevated sci-fi such as 2018’s A nnihilation , to global audiences. “Skydance makes really good films in this space. It cannot be stressed enough how determined they were to find a female director for this film. They developed this project — one of their favorites — with Greg Rucka for a year, and I’m grateful they trusted me to bring these characters and this story to life. They’re a smart, dope group of people who truly love movies.”

Says Don Granger, President of Feature Film Production at Skydance Media: “Once we had Greg Rucka’s amazing adaption of his graphic novel, we knew we wanted to find a filmmaker who would bring a fresh and original perspective to the material. Someone who would not only capture the soulful nature of our main characters, but would also be able to tackle theaction and scope of the movie with intensity and passion. Gina was all that and more. Her eagerness to move into this genre was infectious, and her experience launching careers through her films is unparalleled. We couldn’t say yes fast enough.”

When Skydance brought the project to Theron and her production company Denver & Delilah Films, it was the story’s realness that spoke to her the most. “As a company, we’d been looking for a project like this for a while,” says Theron. She and Prince-Bythewood connected and found they were immediately on the same page. “We wanted this to be a fast-paced action film that felt fresh and original; one that doesn’t sacrifice the heart and drama of the story at the core. We set out to make a really grounded, dynamic film with characters and predicaments that we haven’t seen before in the genre.”

“When we started to discuss who would be the perfect Andy, we all said that Charlize Theron is the sort of actress we should use as our north star,” says Granger. “No one actually thought we would be able to get Charlize because how often do you get your perfect dream casting? This sort of thing happens once in a lifetime. We threw caution to the wind and took the shot—the rest is history, as they say. Charlize is Andy, and Andy is Charlize. The movie works so perfectly because it sits squarely on her shoulders.”

According to Producer Marc Evans: “What’s genuinely great about The Old Guard is that lives in the world we live in. Most of the movie was shot handheld, and it has that genuinely modern aesthetic to it. The idea of presenting immortality in the real world, as opposed to a fantasy version of it, lends a genuine believability to it. It seems like it should be impossible, but I think fits perfectly for the actors who have been cast.” “I love that the Old Guard struggle to find their purpose,” says Prince-Bythewood. “It’s such a universal story and it's certainly been a theme in my work. But also inherent in my work is the normalcy of women being warriors. I love to reframe what it means to be a female, and I feel that movies can absolutely change the narrative and the conversation. Courage has no gender. Badass has no gender. It just is.” “What resonates for me is our need for heroes,” Prince-Bythewood continues. “I love that so many people who aren't thought of as often as they should be are now considered heroes, and I think people are craving ones who come in every package.”

Published in 2017 by Image Comics, The Old Guard was written by prolific comic book author and screenwriter Greg Rucka (Wonder Woman, Lazarus , Stumptown), whose award-winning work has also straddled both the DC and Marvel universes. All of the volumes in the series are illustrated by acclaimed Argentinian artist Leandro Fernández (P unisher, American Carnage, The Discipline). When the story was initially conceived, Rucka had set out to write a rollicking story that enabled him to have a little fun with the characters in a manner that only comics can provide. But he soon realized the story was also helping him work through his own thoughts on deeper issues. “In a way, The Old Guard is like a Looney Tunes cartoon because you can blow the characters up, you can hit them with a truck, you can drop them off a cliff, and they get up and keep going,” he says. “But halfway through, I realized that the real reason I was writing it was because I had lost my father recently and was trying to rationalize the necessity of death. Why do people have to go? Why do they have to leave and what happens if you can’t? The story delves into and explores the flip side of immortality. What it truly means to live forever, how that impacts the character's sense of family, and how they live without the knowledge that they will die someday.”

According to Fernández , “these people see everyone they love die. It must be so hard to continue, but the characters move forward and they affect change in generations in the process. But there has to be a deep feeling of loneliness within each of them.” “The story continued to surprise me,” says Prince-Bythewood. “I knew within five minutes that I had to do it. It moved me. I don't know that you always get that in this genre, and I felt it was a way to disrupt the genre, elevate it, and do something different and special.” When it came time to polish the screenplay, Prince-Bythewood collaborated with Rucka on enhancing a few storylines in order to better serve the medium of film. “The graphic novel was always specifically Andy's story," says Rucka. “But when it came time to adapt the novel as a screenplay, one of the first notes I got was that Nile, in particular, was not well served. And the second I got that note, I knew they were right. It’s been remarkably beneficial in writing further comics, just because it forced me to do a lot of character work.”

Prince-Bythewood pushed hard to have Nile’s character integral to the third act to give her more agency. “One of the things that was important to add to Nile and Andy’s characters was the fact that killing was not an easy thing for them,” says Prince-Bythewood. “It's not something that you do and forget, which I think you see often in this genre, where you kill somebody, make a funny quip, forget about it and move on to the next set piece. It was important to me to show the reality of soldiers and what the toll of taking lives does to you.” This decision influenced in particular a scene in the final act of the film where the camera stays on Nile in real time as she ascends 15 floors in an elevator, knowing what she's about to do in order to save her new family. “Knowing the importance, having seen the good that the Old Guard does, she understands now that they take a life to save a life.”

Prince-Bythewood additionally paid homage to Fernández’s original illustrations by incorporating some notable shot-for-shot images in the film. “The use of silhouette was something that I absolutely took from the novel,” says Prince-Bythewood. “When the Old Guard are walking along a ridge, or approaching the bunker leading up to the kill room scene, and you see the four of them in silhouette, that’s all Leandro.” “The work that I do as a comic artist isn’t only about the drawings,” says Fernández. “The way I see it, it’s more about how to tell the story. The artist is the one who decides how to show the script that’s been given to him. Every single detail on the visuals of the comic book is there because it’s meant to be there. It’s not only about showing what’s happening, but showing the right emotion.” “In comics, it's not enough to know how to draw," says Rucka. “You have to know how to tell a story visually. Leo loves to play within his art, and his choices on how to compose and move from one panel to another are vital to the fluidity of the story.”

The Old Guard consists of elite fighters who almost universally came out of a military or a martial arts background and were all given the gift — or curse — of immortality . “They’ve moved through the centuries and, in some cases, the millennia, making every mistake you could make and learning from it to become the most dangerous soldiers you can ever imagine,” says Rucka. “What sets the Old Guard apart from other portrayals of immortals in film is that they aren’t gods,” notes Theron, “They never flaunt or showcase their immortality — they have real personalities with humor and emotion.” The cast needed to be able to handle the demanding physicality required of their roles and possess natural chemistry, both on- and off-screen, in order to portray a family unit derived from a melting pot of cultures. Casting Directors Lucy Bevan and Aisha Coley, who has worked with Prince-Bythewood on every one of her films, sought actors who could carry the weight of living for thousands of years behind their eyes. “Each of the actors we cast has a soulfulness that makes you believe they’ve been alive for centuries.” says Prince-Bythewood. “We’ve also created an incredible ensemble that’s organically diverse and reflects the world I see every day.”

Charlize Theron returns to Iconic Badass Hero form in a genre that’s given the world characters such as M ad Max: Fury Road’s Imperator Furiosa and Atomic Blonde’s Lorraine Broughton. As Andromache the Scythian, she’s the eldest of the Old Guard by several millennia and their natural leader. “The thing Andy values most in life is her team. They’re her only family and the reason she continues to carry on with life,” says Theron. “They fight for what they believe to be the greater good — the betterment of society and the world — and look out for those who need help the most. But she’s become tired and frustrated with her immortality, and when we meet her she is reluctant to continue fighting as it doesn’t seem to have made a difference after all this time.”

According to Rucka, “Andy ’s tired. She’s done everything, seen everything, and experienced everything more times than she can count. There’s not a language that she can’t speak and not a weapon she can’t use. But she’s not impressed with what the world has become, and the story is, in many ways, about her finding the will to live.” “There are very few women in our industry who can play and act a hero like Andy and be believable in that role,” says Prince-Bythewood. “Charlize is at the top of her game. She wants each scene to be great, and she won't stop until it is. That spilled over to the rest of the cast. I’m very excited for people to see what she has created.”

KiKi Layne plays the newest member of the Old Guard — a American Marine at the time of her “rebirth” and a baby in the eyes of her teammates. “Andy teaches Nile what life as an immortal is going to be like, how to navigate it, how to use this power, and what it means, both the positives and the negatives,” explains Prince-Bythewood. “But Nile comes in with this innate goodness and a belief that we're here for a reason — things Andy needs to be reminded of.” "Once I read the comic and got to know more about Nile, I thought it would be interesting to explore the type of young strength that she has," says Layne. "Accepting that this is her new family, being committed to them, and learning to accept that commitment is a big part of her journey in the film. Nile is very strong-minded, but she is also dealing with being young and, in this case, extremely young compared to all these new people that she’s met. I also loved that the story is centered on women. It brought a lot more heart and depth to it.” "I love that we have these two women leading this group and that we got to play with the trope of a veteran/rookie, but do it in an interesting and cool way. The fact that one's an old immortal and another is a baby immortal — I love that dynamic. I know there's a huge audience that’s craving women of color to be able to be up on screen as heroes and not sidekicks. KiKi was an amazing find. So beautiful, and talented and badass." Says Prince-Bythewood.

Award-winning Belgian actor Matthias Schoenaerts (R ust and Bone , A Hidden Life ) plays Booker, a French soldier from the Napoleonic era whose jadedness is rivaled only by Andy’s, someone who views his immortality as a curse more than a gift. “Booker is someone who’d love to remember what it’s like to have a life that’s structured witha beginning and middle and end, to experience real feelings of connection and interaction," says Schoenaerts of his character. “He’s walking this planet all by himself and he's lost everything that he has ever cared about; he's on a lonely journey through eternity.” “Matthias has made the depth of Booker’s pain so palpable,” says Prince-Bythewood. “ We shot a scene between Booker and Nile in the mine where he's telling her the story about his son. When I first met with Matthias, he talked about that scene as one of the reasons why he wanted to do this film, because he doesn't typically do films like this. But that story, the relationship with Booker and his son really struck him. And to see it play out, to see Matthias embody it so beautifully and have me feel everything his character was feeling while I was sitting at the monitors...As a director, you're always chasing that perfect take, and I feel that I got to witness a perfect take.”

Dutch actor Marwan Kenzari (A laddin , M urder on the Orient Express ) plays Joe, a soldier from the Middle East who met his immortal lover Nicky, played by Italian actor Luca Marinelli (Trust , R ainbow: A Private Affair ), as they fought on opposing sides during the Crusades. They are two soulmates who, as they came into their immortality, also fell in love — a deep love that's lasted over a thousand years — despite the time in which they met. “ Joe and Nicky were born into a time of fervent religious hatred. They’re supposed to be eternal enemies, but what they discover instead is that they’re one another's true love; that together, they are better than they ever could have been apart. That’s the reason they’re the most well-adjusted of any of the immortals we meet,” says Rucka.

Kenzari was the first of the pair to be cast according to Prince-Bythewood. "I cast Marwan off of our Skype meeting. His passion for the character was so pure. It was an inspiring meeting. One of the best I've ever had." Prince-Bythewood first saw Luca on a taped audition and was immediately drawn to him. "He gave such a great reading. He has this innate warmth to him, but there was also a strength. We then had him do a chemistry read with Marwan, and it was insane. Chemistry is a tricky thing. I feel as long as there is a crackle, I can build it into a fire, but the fire was already there. They were so free to give themselves over to the characters.” Says Marinelli: "Nicky is a calm soul and very wise, but he also has a fire inside. The thing I love about his story is that he was taking part in one of the most horrible events of our history, the Crusades, and yet he found one of the most beautiful things in his life — his love, his man — Joe. That, for me, was breathtaking.”

“I was immediately attracted to the fact that Joe and Nicky behave as one would do in a modern world even though they are centuries old,” says Kenzari. “I thought that was mysterious and original. Joe has this symbiotic relationship with Nicky, and there's a specific scene where he tries to explain their relationship that really did it for me.” Halfway through the film, the actors share a moving scene together where Joe expresses what Nicky means to him. Filming it moved some of the crew to tears. “It’s a speech that any person would want their loved one to say to them,” says Prince-Bythewood.

Award-winning British actor Chiwetel Ejiofor (1 2 Years a Slave, The Lion King ) plays Copley, a former CIA-agent who enlists the Old Guard on a mission that turns out to be more dangerous than he lets on. “The best villains are those who are complicated, who aren't so easily dismissed because they are only evil,” says Prince-Bythewood. “We wanted to give Copley complication and nuance. His intentions are absolutely noble. The problem is his means are terrible. Also, when you cast Chiwetel, you want to give him as much great stuff as possible.” “ I feel there's a real soul to what Copley is doing,” says Ejiofor. “He's a very layered character, so his reasoning for coming into this and the fine line of ethics and morality that he plays with, I thought, was very intriguing and extremely interesting to play. It’s also rare to find characters that are morally ambiguous and surrounded by several characters who are also morally ambiguous. It plays with those expectations about what heroism is, and it feels like Copley fits into that pretty well." Says Theron: “Chiwetel is a master of his craft, and a total gentleman and professional on set. He brought exactly what was needed to this character and elevated it in a way we never saw coming.”

Merrick, a pharmaceutical executive who seeks to replicate and monetize the Old Guard’s incredible gift for his own gain is played by British actor Harry Melling (The H arry Potter films, His Dark Material). According to Rucka, Merrick’s philosophy is, “My end justifies the means.” “When I first read the script, I thought playing Merrick could be so much fun," says Melling.“He thinks he's the cleverest person in the room at all times, which is always a fun proposition for an actor. It would be very easy to start with Merrick being an out-and-out villain, for want of a better word. I think he truly does want to find these cures and produce revolutionary medical advances for the world. The problem is, he goes too far.” “Harry is so nice in person it was crazy seeing him transform into this completely hate-worthy character! Just goes to show how great he is at what he does,” says Theron. Prince-Bythewood echoes Theron’s sentiments: “Harry is such a good guy it’s so interesting to see him embody this character who is so narcissistic and evil. He’s able to really touch on what is happening in a timely way with some business and world leaders who are damaging the world.”

Played by Vietnamese actress Van Veronica Ngo (Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi , Bright ) plays Quynh, an immortal second only to Andy in age and skill. She and Andy had fought alongside one another for centuries until they were wrenched apart in a manner that still haunts Andy and the rest of the Old Guard in profound ways. Though Quynh is one of the oldest members of the Old Guard, one could say that, in a sense, she’s gone fishing. “I love this character so much,” says Prince-Bythewood. “When you think about a woman who has suffered the way she has for over 500 years — what that would do to your psyche — what becomes of her is so fascinating and so epic.”

The cast worked with Stunt Coordinators Brycen Counts and Adam Kirley (Black Panther , Spider-Man: Homecoming ) and Fight Coordinator Danny Hernandez (J ohn Wick , A vengers: Endgame ) in order to believably portray soldiers who are proficient in multiple styles of hand-to-hand combat and can move fluidly between both modern and ancient weapons. Tactical and combat training began nine weeks ahead of shooting for the cast with regimens that included everything from boxing to martial arts to horseback riding. Even for Theron, who has trained extensively for several stunt-heavy action films, The Old Guard demanded an entirely new level of A-game. “I trained five days a week for about four months leading up to the start of shooting. I did a mixture of strength conditioning and combat training,” says Theron. “The training process for this was different because a lot of the combat involved an ax-like weapon I use in the film. I’ve never done any weapons training quite like this. It also involved a lot of techniques drawing from various different styles of combat, and I’m not going to lie, it was really tough.”

“Andy's style is a combination of everything,” explains Hernandez. “We went all over the spectrum. She uses all the martial arts she has learned over 6,000 years, which included Iaido and Kendo, Japanese arts of the sword; Silat, which is an Indonesian martial art with knife work and close-quarter handwork; Kali, a Filipino martial art which focuses on stick and knife work that we translated to the ax; Hungar, which uses an open hand and closed fist; a little bit of Wushu; definitely some Korean Tae Kwon Do; Greco-Roman wrestling; Judo; and Jiu Jitsu.
We put elements from all those together and gave it a little twist.” Theron and Layne also underwent additional weapons training with Taran Butler, a multiple three-gun national champion and owner of Taran Tactical Innovations, and Jade Struck, a competitive shooter and instructor at Butler’s ranch. “We worked with them for about 4 weeks and they’re awesome. I’ve never seen a progression like we had with these women on any kind of project I’ve worked on,” says Struck. “For most movies nowadays, the audience is smarter than ever,” says Butler. “They want to see the actors do the grunt work, the hard stuff: manipulating the guns, doing the reloads, and being behind the gun the right way. Otherwise it just takes you out of the movie. KiKi is a total natural, just like Charlize.”

“Whenever I do a film with stunts or combat, I always want it to be as authentic as possible. Our incredible second unit led by Jeff Habberstad and our stunts teams shared my exact concerns, and not only did they make everything seem real, they elevated it in ways I truly didn’t think would be possible in a film. We have some wild stunt and combat sequences that really showcase our cast in the best way possible,” says Theron, who additionally underwent training on horseback with Van Veronica Ngo for a flashback sequence. She also learned to wield a labrys, the traditional double-headed ax of the Amazons, that’s been modified for optimal efficiency. “An ax is a very versatile weapon," says Count. “We decided we wanted her to be ambidextrous so she would be able to use both sides and manipulate people into going in the direction she wants. She’s a savage killer.”

Charlize Theron’s dedication to training and stunt work paid off in spectacular ways, but not before exacting a physical toll on the actress, who fought through the pain of an injury to her left arm in the final three weeks of filming. “Charlize is as tough as they come,” says Marc Evans. “In another career, she could’ve been an A-level stunt performer. There is no substitute for those actors who are able to perform these stunts at such an exceptional level. It makes a difference in every frame.”

For Nile, who’s a few thousand years younger than Andy, the team went with a more contemporary approach. “Nile is in the military, so we went for a grittier MMA style," explains Hernandez. "She’s someone who’d be an expert with modern weapons, but also very hands-on with a knife.” According to Layne, “I had never trained before a day in my life. It was a lot of fun. The base of Nile's style is mixed martial arts and boxing — which I enjoyed and plan to keep it up after the movie. We started back in March 2019 and our main focus was on the fight between Andy and Nile on the airplane.”

The knock-em-down fight sequence on the plane was the first scene shot on the entire film. Theron and Layne had trained separately, then came together about two weeks before filming began to fine-tune the choreography. Together, the pair performed 90% of the fight themselves, with doubles subbing in for the parts that might actually hurt. Says Prince-Bythewood: “I've shot fights before, but the plane fight basically actualized everything that was in my head in terms of a great action scene between two women. How do we tell a story within that fight? It's not just about the action, but it’s about what’s happening within that fight. But also, walking on the set the very first day...I mean, my last film cost $7 million. The first day I walk onto this set, there’s an airplane, and it's up against these sky murals that are like 100 feet high. I literally said to myself, ‘Oh, my God, I'm not in Kansas anymore.’”

“I don’t exactly win this fight,” says Layne. “But I win Andy over just a little bit just because I show her my heart and my passion and that I don’t give up easily. She knocks me down quite a few times, and I keep getting up, even when she's literally breaking my body. I'm getting back up, and I think that's a powerful moment between us.” To equip an Italian who was fighting in the First Crusade at the time of his rebirth, Armorer Tim Lewis gave Nicky a longsword and Hernandez deliberately choreographed his movements as if he were cutting through armor. “We made Nicky’s movements very direct and strong — like he was making a true 45 degree angle cut. We felt it was in line with his character. But for Joe, we went the opposite way. Like Yin and Yang.” For Joe, who uses an updated scimitar that’s similar in shape to a much older incarnation called a kilij, “his movements are more fluid and circular, swirling in figure eights. It was exciting and made a wonderful dance when Joe and Nicky fought together,” says Hernandez. As the youngest of the Old Guard before Nile’s arrival, a roughly 200-year-old Booker would naturally feel more comfortable with a musket. “We made him a lot more tactical than any of the other characters,” says Hernandez. “He’s elusive. He would roll out for a split second to be in the line of sight and then surprise them from a different angle. He also has an open-handed fighting style, much like Savate, a French style of martial arts that uses hands and feet.”

At the outset of production, Prince-Bythewood planned to hire as many female heads of department as possible to bring this global story to life. For a film starring two female heroes who operate behind the scenes, it was fitting to have just as many behind the camera, their work impactful beyond measure, but not always apparent to all. From department heads like Editor Terilyn Shropshire, who has worked with Prince-Bythewood on every one of her films in addition to series such as Netflix’s When They See Us, to veteran Music Supervisor Julia Michels (A Star Is Born ,The Greatest Showman ) — it’s clear there are more heroes of The Old Guard than meets the eye.
“The women who came to the table were all so talented and passionate and dedicated. It is a sad truth in our business that women are rarely given the opportunity to work on big action films. But every one of these women proved how wrong our world is. I’m lucky to have worked with them. They helped elevate the film.”

Among those women are Special Effects Supervisor Hayley Williams (M aleficent: Mistress of Evil , A nnihilation ) and Oscar-winning Visual Effects Supervisor Sara Bennett (E x-Machina, The Alienist ), who were primarily responsible for creating the regeneration effects seen whenever one of the Old Guard begins healing from the many injuries they sustain throughout the film. A complicated regeneration effect such as the one created for Booker when his stomach is destroyed in a blast, required three teams — make-up, prosthetics, and finally VFX — to blend the sequence into one.

“ We wanted to show that as a progress, but it needed to happen very quickly because obviously you don’t want to be looking at it for a very long time,” says Bennett. “We needed to keep it interesting, and show all the different layers, and how everything heals in stages. WithSFX, it’s always nice to have a bit of reality when you’re shooting, to have a physical thing in the shot that gives us lighting and tracking and acts as kind of a base.” Dressing the Old Guard is veteran Costume Designer Mary Vogt (C razy Rich Asians, Long Shot ), “Although it’s an ensemble piece, Andy is the main character,” says Vogt. "We take her through different periods in time. One of the earliest looks is from 600 A.D., then we go to the Middle Ages, then we were in 1820, and finally, we're in the present day. One of the challenges was to keep her consistent through the different periods. We tried to find something that would correlate so that you can relate to her each time she appears. Her style doesn't change that much, even though she has lived for 6,000 years. It’s just a variation on the jean and T-shirt themes.” As for Nile, Vogt wanted to keep her looking younger and more hip. “Andy's look is quite serious. Nile is a little more fun and more sporty. In the last few scenes, you can see more of her personality. She is looser and more relaxed.”

Piecing together the rich tapestry of visual images in the film are Production Designer Paul Kirby and Set Decorator Jille Azis. “There’s a theme throughout the film that history is all set in the present day, you want to portray that sense of their past. It was important to us to impart a respect of culture, belief systems and civilization. I wanted to impart a feeling of wonder into the movie so that the audience could take a journey into the history of the world.” No set captures the essence of this more than the sociogram seen in Copley’s home that takes up multiple walls, top-to-bottom, but only scratches the surface of documenting the Old Guard’s history of the people they’ve saved over the centuries.

“Greg created that and put that in the script,” says Prince-Bythewood. “Then it became a group effort between Greg, Paul Kirby and his team, and myself in terms of what things we wanted to pull. We wanted things that really happened in history. Things that weren't always well-known and cultures that aren't always showcased. And so some things are personal. Others are just events that we felt were important and wanted to talk about. Greg was so detailed in his research, so he was such a wealth of information, but the whole team embraced the sociogram. Everyone across the board loved creating something really fascinating.”

Production for The Old Guard began on May 20, 2019 and was shot on location in Marrakech, Morocco and at various locations in the UK, including Shirburn Castle, London, Kent, Surrey, Berkshire, and Shepperton Studios. “When you’re on location, you’re immersed in the culture of that place and it adds a level of authenticity that you don’t get when you’re just on a stage,” says Theron. “You’re working with a local crew who can attest to how certain things should be according to the culture, and any questions or concerns can usually be addressed on the spot instead of through research.” Scenes filmed at the historic Shepperton Studios featured the incredible interior sets that Kirby and Azis created for the Rectory in Goussainville, the Abandoned Mine, and the Kill Room. The castle and grounds at Shirburn Castle in Watlington, Oxfordshire were used to depict the village of Goussainville in France in the Middle Ages. “I absolutely love shooting in the UK. I’ve had amazing experiences with the crews there, and this experience was no different,” says Theron. The locations around Marrakech included the El Fenn hotel, the Berber village of Obaki on the Plateau du Kik (a region in the Atlas Mountains that doubled as an Afghan village), as well as the Jemaa el-Fnaa marketplace, Tamansourt, Harbil, Tayzelt, the Agafay Desert, Boukhriss, and Kettara.“I had never shot in Morocco before and I have nothing but great things to say about our experience there. The people there were beyond accommodating and so willing to help in any way, and they were invaluable in ensuring that we were showcasing Moroccan culture in the best way possible,” says Theron.

Synopsis :
Led by a warrior named Andy (Charlize Theron), a covert group of tight-knit mercenaries witha mysterious inability to die have fought to protect the mortal world for centuries .But when the team is recruited to take on an emergency mission and their extraordinary abilities are suddenly exposed, it’s up to Andy and Nile (KiKi Layne), the newest soldier to join their ranks, to help the group eliminate the threat of those who seek to replicate and monetize their power by any means necessary.

The Old Guard
Directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood
Produced by David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, Don Granger, Charlize Theron, Beth Kono, A.J. Dix, Marc Evans
Written by Greg Rucka
Based on The Old Guard by Greg Rucka, Leandro Fernández
Starring Charlize Theron, KiKi Layne, Matthias Schoenaerts, Marwan Kenzari, Luca Marinelli, Chiwetel Ejiofor
Music by Hauschka, Dustin O'Halloran
Cinematography : Tami Reiker, Barry Ackroyd
Edited by Terilyn A. Shropshire
Production company : Skydance Media, Denver and Delilah Productions
Distributed by Netflix
Release date : July 10, 2020 (United States, France…)
Running time : 124 minutes

Photos : Copyright Netflix

(Source production Notes)