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As a fan of writer-director Gavin O’Connor (he’s previously helmed Tumbleweeds, Warrior, Pride and Glory, and Miracle), it was great to be able to sit down with him for an extended conversation about the making of his latest film, The Accountant. For those not familiar with the story, the film is a crime drama/thriller with a unique hero at its center. Christian Wolff (Ben Affleck) is a math savant and small-town CPA who prefers to spend more time with numbers than people, which works to his advantage as a freelance accountant for some of the world’s most dangerous criminal organizations. When Christian takes on a legitimate client in the cutting-edge tech company Living Robotics, a discrepancy involving millions of dollars puts his life in very serious danger. The movie also stars Anna Kendrick, J.K. Simmons, Jon Bernthal, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Jeffrey Tambor, John Lithgow and Jean Smart.

During the interview O’Connor talked about what he learned when a studio doesn’t control the project, how he landed Ben Affleck as the lead, what were the keys to getting a green light at Warner Bros., if test screenings impacted the finished film, who he trusts for honest feedback, crafting the action scenes, future projects like Seven Seconds on Netflix, and a lot more. Check out the interview above, along with a list of what we talked about below. You can also watch my interviews with Ben Affleck and O’Connor, Cynthia Addai-Robinson and J.K. Simmons by clicking the links.

Gavin O’Connor:

  • How tough was it to get the movie made?
  • What was the key to getting the green light?
  • Talks about how he got Ben Affleck to be in it.
  • Talks about what he learned about not having a studio control the project.
  • How does he show movies to for honest feedback?
  • What did he learn from test screenings that changed the finished film?
  • How long was his first cut?
  • What was it like working with Ben now that he’s a successful director?
  • Talks about crafting the action scenes.
  • Future project talk.
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Image via Warner Bros.
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Image via Warner Bros.
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Image via Warner Bros.

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