Dev Patel brings his perspective to the action genre with @monkeymanmovie, as he talks us through his passion for showcasing his culture and the meaning behind this action-packed event. #MonkeyManMovie only in theaters this Friday. #MakeItUniversal
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Oscar® nominee Dev Patel (Lion, Slumdog Millionaire) achieves an astonishing, tour-de-force feature directing debut with an action thriller about one man’s quest for vengeance against the corrupt leaders who murdered his mother and continue to systemically victimize the poor and powerless.
Inspired by the legend of Hanuman, an icon embodying strength and courage, Monkey Man stars Patel as Kid, an anonymous young man who ekes out a meager living in an underground fight club where, night after night, wearing a gorilla mask, he is beaten bloody by more popular fighters for cash.
After years of suppressed rage, Kid discovers a way to infiltrate the enclave of the city’s sinister elite. As his childhood trauma boils over, his mysteriously scarred hands unleash an explosive campaign of retribution to settle the score with the men who took everything from him.
Packed with thrilling and spectacular fight and chase scenes, Monkey Man is directed by Dev Patel from his original story and his screenplay with Paul Angunawela and John Collee (Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World).
The film’s international cast includes Sharlto Copley (District 9), Sobhita Dhulipala (Made in Heaven), Pitobash (Million Dollar Arm), Vipin Sharma (Hotel Mumbai), Ashwini Kalsekar (Ek Tha Hero), Adithi Kalkunte (Hotel Mumbai), Sikandar Kher (Aarya) and Makarand Deshpande (RRR).
Monkey Man is produced by Dev Patel, Jomon Thomas (Hotel Mumbai, The Man Who Knew Infinity), Oscar® winner Jordan Peele (Nope, Get Out), Win Rosenfeld (Candyman, Hunters series), Ian Cooper (Nope, Us), Basil Iwanyk (John Wick franchise, Sicario films), Erica Lee (John Wick franchise, Silent Night), Christine Haebler (Shut In, Bones of Crows) and Anjay Nagpal (executive producer of Bombshell, Greyhound).
Serving as executive producers are Jonathan Fuhrman, Natalya Pavchinskya, Aaron L. Gilbert, Andria Spring, Alison-Jane Roney and Steven Thibault.
Universal Pictures presents a Bron Studios production, a Thunder Road film, a Monkeypaw production, a Minor Realm/S’Ya Concept production, in association with WME Independent and Creative Wealth Media.
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Oscar® nominee Dev Patel (Lion, Slumdog Millionaire) achieves an astonishing, tour-de-force feature directing debut with an action thriller about one man’s quest for vengeance against the corrupt leaders who murdered his mother and continue to systemically victimize the poor and powerless.
Inspired by the legend of Hanuman, an icon embodying strength and courage, Monkey Man stars Patel as Kid, an anonymous young man who ekes out a meager living in an underground fight club where, night after night, wearing a gorilla mask, he is beaten bloody by more popular fighters for cash.
After years of suppressed rage, Kid discovers a way to infiltrate the enclave of the city’s sinister elite. As his childhood trauma boils over, his mysteriously scarred hands unleash an explosive campaign of retribution to settle the score with the men who took everything from him.
Packed with thrilling and spectacular fight and chase scenes, Monkey Man is directed by Dev Patel from his original story and his screenplay with Paul Angunawela and John Collee (Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World).
The film’s international cast includes Sharlto Copley (District 9), Sobhita Dhulipala (Made in Heaven), Pitobash (Million Dollar Arm), Vipin Sharma (Hotel Mumbai), Ashwini Kalsekar (Ek Tha Hero), Adithi Kalkunte (Hotel Mumbai), Sikandar Kher (Aarya) and Makarand Deshpande (RRR).
Monkey Man is produced by Dev Patel, Jomon Thomas (Hotel Mumbai, The Man Who Knew Infinity), Oscar® winner Jordan Peele (Nope, Get Out), Win Rosenfeld (Candyman, Hunters series), Ian Cooper (Nope, Us), Basil Iwanyk (John Wick franchise, Sicario films), Erica Lee (John Wick franchise, Silent Night), Christine Haebler (Shut In, Bones of Crows) and Anjay Nagpal (executive producer of Bombshell, Greyhound).
Serving as executive producers are Jonathan Fuhrman, Natalya Pavchinskya, Aaron L. Gilbert, Andria Spring, Alison-Jane Roney and Steven Thibault.
Universal Pictures presents a Bron Studios production, a Thunder Road film, a Monkeypaw production, a Minor Realm/S’Ya Concept production, in association with WME Independent and Creative Wealth Media.
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Short filmTranscript
00:00 [dramatic music]
00:01 When I was a kid, I used to run away from my culture in school.
00:06 It wasn't cool to be Indian.
00:08 But to break the mold, you have to enter it.
00:10 [dramatic music]
00:11 I thought, no, I'm going to go in, and I'm going to double down.
00:13 I'm going to triple down on the culture.
00:15 It's vibrant.
00:16 [laughing]
00:17 And it can be cool.
00:18 [dramatic music]
00:21 [speaking foreign language]
00:23 My grandfather used to tell me the stories of Hanuman
00:26 that really captivated me.
00:28 Being scolded for reaching too high and aspiring too big.
00:34 [screaming]
00:36 [dramatic music]
00:38 I was like, I can take this and give it some real social weight.
00:42 You need to fight for all of us.
00:44 [dramatic music]
00:48 This is an anthem for underdogs.
00:50 The people that are pushed to the frays and the edges
00:52 swept to the side.
00:54 We need people that have gone through trauma to inspire us.
00:57 [dramatic music]
00:59 We try and give a voice to the voiceless, really.
01:01 [dramatic music]
01:05 Jordan Peele's mission in his company is to bend genre.
01:09 And that's what I wanted to do on the action genre.
01:11 I wanted to inject it with culture and philosophy.
01:14 [dramatic music]
01:19 The film takes place in the festival of Diwali at the end,
01:22 which is a festival of light, the festival of fireworks,
01:25 in the Hindu calendar.
01:27 I was like, what would a guy do going into this huge compound
01:31 to face 100 men alone and not use a gun?
01:35 [dramatic music]
01:37 I just love that texture.
01:39 [dramatic music]
01:42 There was a guy that came up to me yesterday, an Indian man,
01:45 and he goes, I'm jealous of my 14-year-old son.
01:47 And I was like, what do you mean?
01:48 He goes, he's finally got someone to look up to in this space,
01:51 and I never had that.
01:52 And I just-- I was about to cry.
01:54 That's boogie.
01:55 [dramatic music]
01:56 This is my humble addition to the genre.
01:58 And I hope that like Slumdog did, it opens the door
02:01 and it allows a lot of other cultures
02:03 to come in and put their spin on it.
02:05 [dramatic music]
02:10 [upbeat music]
02:14 you