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Just the other day a buddy of mine mentioned that he was good friends with Brian Austin Green, currently starring as Derek Reese in Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.
{sidebar id=1}Besides acting he is also producing a film starring Megan Fox as Aspen Matthews in Fox Atomic's Fathom based on the late Michael Turner's comic books.
Our readers will remember back late last year, that the IESB was the first to report Megan Fox was set to star in Fathom and we've kept a close eye on the project in the meantime.
I was asked if I wanted to meet Brian to which of course I said yes. We met at the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills for a quick lunch earlier this week and I quickly found out that this guy is a true fanboy.
Our conversation included info on Fathom, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, his massive Star Wars collection and we also addressed a ridiculous rumor started by MTV after Comic Con last year about him playing the Riddler in the Batman franchise. We also touched on what superhero films he is looking forward to and his push to be Hal Jordan.
Below is my complete chat with Brian Austin Green:
IESB: Congrats on Fathom, we posted her (Megan Fox's) involvement way before it was announced and have been following it closely. She seems to really love the project.
Brian Austin Green: Yeah, she grew up on it. She's huge fan of Michael Turner, she used to study his style of art and the way he drew things and the way he did things and she emulated that. She emulated his style for sure. Fathom was her comic, it related to her life. She was a swimmer and loved the ocean and wanted to do all that and was going to the Olympics and didn't make it because she hurt herself but we always talked about Fathom and trying to make the movie which for me seemed, at that point, so far fetched. Like, "yeah! Let's try and get a movie made, a big one! Let's try to get this massive movie made based on a comic book that will no doubt cost so much money to make."
And so we just kicked it around for a while and then when I started doing Terminator (The Sarah Connor Chronicles) I started running into circles of people that were into that genre and I was at WonderCon when I first met Frank (Mastromauro, president Aspen Comics) and all the guys from Aspen Comics.
I walked up to them and said, "hey, how's it goin'?" Megan had gone in and met them at one point, it was a present that her manager did, got her some signed stuff and said you can come up and meet everybody. So she got to meet everyone, it was a huge thing for her. So I said to them, "Listen, I know you've met Megan, I am really going to bust my ass and try and get a movie made, I want to try and get Fathom actually going somewhere. And he was like yeah let me know. So, I got all of his information, we talked on the phone every once in a while and I ran into him again at Comic Con and I said at that point, I've actually got some guys that are kind of interested. And he was like, that would be great!
Every time Frank and I talked about it, the big thing for me was if this movie was going to get made, it needs to be made the way Michael would've wanted it to be made. It's his artwork and it's so beautiful and so detailed and so specifically thought out, it would be such a shame to let somebody make this film just however they want and kind of tear down what he built which happens with so many comic book movies.
 So I was sitting with Ben (Jackendoff) one day and he said, "hey, a buddy of mine is looking to get some comic book films going so we are looking for any available properties and anyone available to do them, do you have any?" And I said, "Actually I do, have you heard of Fathom?" And he said, "Yeah, I've heard of Fathom." I said, "Megan wants to play Aspen, I'm already talking to the guys up at Aspen Comics and they are interested in it." Ben thought that was cool so I picked up a bunch of Fathom comics for him to give to his buddy that was looking to make these films.
Later, I sat down with Steve Bessen, we talked about it, then went to Peter Safran's office and he was like, "yeah, I think this is fuckin' awesome, let's do it." Saffron had a connection at Fox Atomic and Megan had just finished doing Jennifer's Body for them, and they just jumped on it. They were like yeah let's do it. It was fast.
IESB: Who are the execs on it? Is it Zak Kadison, Eric Lieb?
BAG: Both of them...
IESB: Those two guys are great.
BAG: Yeah, it's Zak, Eric and Frank from Aspen, he stepped in after Michael's passing. But, being able to sit with Mike before he died up at his house and just talking about Fathom was amazing for me because I got to be the one to sit there with him and say listen this is my goal and this is for you.
IESB: When you sat down with him did he already know he was [terminal]?
BAG: He already knew.
IESB: That's tough. This is going to be an emotional movie for you guys.
BAG: Yeah, at the point I went up to his house, he was actually sick at the time because he had just done chemo 3 days before and he was up and down. He was fighting already at that point. So, yeah, this for me, everytime we sit down up at Fox and read and talk about it, that's the most important thing, I want to use as many of Michael's sketches as we can for everything, for set design, costume design, everything. I want people, when they see this film, to see the vision he created. Genuinely, not just, this is the world, this is Aspen and the rest creative licensing, I don't want to do that, Frank is a huge part of it, Frank loves the comic and obviously loved Mike and Mike was an amazing guy and I think we have a chance to make an amazing movie.
IESB: I am assuming because Megan is such a big fan of the property, she is going to make sure that its accurate.
BAG: Yeah, which is why she needed to be a producer also just so if there on thoughts on her side that come up when she was little, the things that she loved about it, if they are missing, she can do something about it. It's a big deal, I'm in it from start to finish on everything. I'll hopefully be there for every day of production, every day of post-production.
IESB: It's in script stage right now right?
BAG: Yeah, Jordan (Mechner) who created the video game Prince of Persia and wrote the film is writing the script, he's fantastic. He had a really fresh, great take on it, which we needed because it's hard to take a graphic novel and then make a script - something you can shoot. And especially that one, so much of it was in this first-person, like you'd have Killian just sitting there talking right at you and it was really tough to make [movie] sense of and Jordan was great.
IESB: I know Atomic is trying to give creators the license and freedom to do the movie they want to make, so far things have been good?
BAG: They've been fantastic, they're completely on board, Jordan's draft should be done soon. I think that this film and this concept has turned out to be bigger than anybody originally envisioned.
IESB: Will it get so big it goes to big Fox?
BAG: I don't know if it will go to big Fox but I think it would be smart on some level to have the help of big Fox.
IESB: Distribution etcetera?
BAG: Yeah, I think big Fox is used to promoting and putting these things out and getting them where they need to be and you know, we're going to need the money to back this. Everytime we sit down with Frank and everyone to talk about the concept of how this is going to be shot, we don't even know. I mean, we don't know...
IESB: It's almost like an Aquaman level.
BAG: It is, but in a way that hasn't been done, I mean, you had, I think the closest thing I've seen to this much underwater work was The Abyss, but they were either in their underwater station or they had the suits on and they're swimming. They aren't talking and swimming freely with sea-life. We have action sequences underwater, so, for us I think we are going to be breaking ground with just creatively with computers.
IESB: I know Atomic wants to get going on this pretty soon, when's the goal? I know it's still be scripted but ideally when do they want to start shooting?
BAG: Well, we've kicked around Fall, but it's hard to say, it's still so early on and there is so much pre-production that has to be done.
IESB: Are there storyboard artists already?
BAG: Everybody is really on it and excited. I think for Atomic, it's a big move for them, it's a big move for myself, it's big move for Peter Safran, Gold Circle has never done anything on this level and it's exciting because it's a comic property that in a way a lot of people really don't know about, but I think a lot of people are really going to love. Oddly enough, just timing wise, with everything, with this whole "green" movement and with people being more connected and dedicated to taking care of the environment, this property ties into that.
 IESB: I think DC and Marvel are going to kick themselves for not moving on Aquaman or Submariner sooner, because I think you guys will be able to touch on pretty much the same topics.
BAG: And that's a part of, Jordan's done a really good job of splitting up the story, I think we are pretty set for a three parter, we have a nice trilogy.
IESB: And the fact that Megan Fox is starring in this movie and with Transformers...
BAG: I know you saw the pictures that people have done of her as Aspen.
IESB: Oh yeah. It's gonna be huge.
BAG: It's going to be sick.
IESB: And Transformers 2 is coming out, which is going to be bigger than ever.
BAG: Transformers 2 is going to be awesome but this is one of those things that if it works, Megan is this film. It's the difference between people going, "oh yeah, Transformers, let's go see the robots transform," they are the stars of that, this is Megan's show.
IESB: Any chance you'll be acting in it too?
BAG: No, I have so much work to do, I mean, it's weird for me, I've had producer contracts before but to have this and it's like, the three of us are seriously hands on through every single aspect of it, it's way more work than I've ever done.
IESB: But it will be gratifying when you get to the premiere and look back at the last few years.
BAG: What's been really helpful is doing the show that I am doing. Working on Terminator and being as close as I am to the producers and kick of watching them go through the process and when they shoot plates for specific things that they have and CG that is going in, it's been a really good advanced look at what I have to do. If I hadn't been doing this show I would be completely in the dark.
IESB: Let's talk about Sarah Connor Chronicles, you've been in 21 episodes so far?
BAG: Episode 20 just aired so we have 21 and 22 coming up and then our season is done.
IESB: You mentioned you were up WonderCon, just because you are a genre fan or because of the show?
BAG: Because of the show, we did a panel up there and then we did a panel at Comic Con also, but I grew up in sci-fi. I have a movie room at my house and the only shit I have in it is Star Wars, everything.
IESB: You a big Star Wars fan?
BAG: I have all the Master Replica stuff, I have Vader's helmet signed by Hayden Christensen and James Earl Jones. I've got a Ray Park signed double light-saber. So much shit man.
IESB: I have to ask a couple of things, there was a goofy rumor online a while back about you being the Riddler.
BAG: I was hoping you would ask me about this. At Comic Con, we were at the Warner Bros. booth that has this upstairs viewing area and then we went to the Fox booth later. I'm up in the Warner Bros. booth and this guy from MTV News or whatever...
IESB: Larry Carroll?
BAG: Yeah, he was interviewing people. He says to me at one point, and I couldn't believe when this came out, I was like - unbelievable, which is why I won't ever comment to people I don't know personally on stuff like this again. He was talking about films and he asked what was my favorite movie this year and I said The Dark Knight, hands down, I fucking loved it. And he was like, "would you want to be in a movie like that?" And I was like are you fucking kidding me? Of course I would. He was like, "Well, who would you want to play?" And I said I don't know who I want to play I don't know what characters they are even bringing in, I guess the Riddler would be the closest to what I could play because there aren't really any other characters that I fit the mold of. He was like, "Well, how would you play him?" I said, dude, it would take me years to figure out how to play that character, are you kidding? I can't answer that question like, well I'd give him a funny laugh and a limp and I'd skip sideways and I'd scribble things a lot and ask a lot of questions. It's stupid. And all of a sudden it was like, I was putting out there that I think I should be the Riddler. It was just asking what my favorite movie was and who I would play.
IESB: MTV is getting a lot of grief from the rest of the online community because they will ask those questions to everyone. Would you like to be in Chris Nolan's next movie? What is an actor going to say? "No, I fucking hate Chris Nolan." Of course everyone is going to say you would, it would be an honor.
 BAG: My fucking dream.
IESB: What's the news? It's fine to ask or whatever and say, "hey we talked about genre films and he totally loves the character of Riddler in the Batman franchise." But it's their headlines, "Brian Austin Greene wants to play The Riddler!"
BAG: And it leaves it open to people thinking, is this guy for real? Like he really thinks he should be The Riddler? It's like, no, I don't think I should be the Riddler, (laughing) if the opportunity presents itself would I be the Riddler? I think so.
IESB: (laughing) Perfect lead in question, if there was a superhero other that the Riddler, well he's a supervillain not a superhero, but speaking of Chris Nolan and what he's done with Batman and what Zack has done with Watchmen and put superhero movies with such a high bar. What superhero film are you excited to see?
BAG: Lantern, Green Lantern. I had like Green Lantern action figures and shit when I was a kid. I had Spider-man and Justice League. That was it as far as comic book characters for me. Fantastic Four, which I did the voice of Johnny Storm in the cartoon, which you can buy now on DVD (laughing) and I make no money off of.
IESB: That's a bad contract man.
BAG: Lantern, just visually, I love the look of him. Do you have the new Mortal Kombat DC game?
IESB: No.
BAG: Lantern is the shit in it!
IESB: I do have that Green Lantern script though.
BAG: Is it good?
IESB: Wow, it's amazing.
BAG: I hear they keep going younger though. He's gotta be a grown man that's gone through some shit.
IESB: An ace test pilot. He's gotta be in the 28 to 35 range. Can't be a young pup. He has to have experience in life. You have the look, you've got the square jaw.
BAG: The first person who ever said that to me was Megan. We were playing the Mortal Kombat game and she was like, "you should play him in the movie." I was like yeah that's funny. Then someone sent me a picture that somebody make with my face on Hal Jordan's body. That's fuckin' weird and it all started because of the Riddler thing. People were like, "oh sure (sarcasm), he could be the Riddler, blah, blah, blah, but you know who he could play, Green Lantern. So it came up that way. That was interesting, I never thought of doing films like that until Terminator, you always feel like you could be an action star, like most poeple to but then they look like assholes once they have (laughing). But doing this show, I've really gotten into it.
IESB: Did you put any feelers out there?
BAG: We have, the response has been they've got names in mind but I am hoping to get in and meet with the producers and I'm gonna push for it like Tobey Maguire. Push for it. That's all I can do.
IESB: That would be interesting.
BAG: It's always interesting when it's the last person you would expect, like, who would have thought Robert Downey Jr. in Iron Man?
IESB: I was the first one to say they were out of their minds.
BAG: And then you see the trailers and you realize it's perfect. Like perfect, who else could have done that the same way. And you wouldn't think of him for action.
IESB: Everything worked. Everything was perfect.
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