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With Kong: Skull Island now playing in theaters and IMAX, I recently sat down with Jason Mitchell for an exclusive video interview. During our wide-ranging conversation he talked about how he got involved in Kong: Skull Island, what it was like filming in Vietnam, Australia and Hawaii, how Skull Island is pioneering something different in the King Kong legacy, working with Kathryn Bigelow on her Detroit Riots project, playing the comedic relief in The Disaster Artist, his incredible Sundance experience with critically acclaimed drama Mudbound, and much more.

If you’re not familiar with Kong: Skull Island, the film takes place in 1973 in the midst of the Vietnam War, and features a disparate group of people exploring Skull Island—from Samuel L. Jackson’s military commander to Brie Larson’s photojournalist. The film also stars Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, John Goodman, John C. Reilly, Toby Kebbell, Tian Jing, Corey Hawkins, John Ortiz, Thomas Mann, Shea Whigham, and Eugene Cordero. I’ve seen the film and am happy to report it’s a fantastic ride. Unlike Godzilla, Kong is all over this film and the way Vogt-Roberts has collaborated with cinematographer Larry Fong is exceptional. You want to see this film on the biggest screen possible.

Check out what Jason Mitchell had to say in the player above and below is exactly what we talked about followed by the synopsis.

Jason Mitchell:

• What have things been like since Straight Outta Compton came out?
• How he met Jordan Vogt-Roberts and ended up bringing him to the Compton premiere.
• What it was like to film on location worldwide in places like Vietnam, Hawaii and Australia.
• How Skull Island is pioneering something different in the King Kong legacy.
• What was it like working with Kathryn Bigelow on the Detroit Riots project?
• Talks about playing the comedic relief in The Disaster Artist.
• His incredible Sundance experience with critically acclaimed drama Mudbound.
• What is Mudbound about?
• Rolling with the punches and coming together as people through political discord.
• What else is coming up in the year ahead?

Here’s the official synopsis for Kong: Skull Island:

The producers of Godzilla reimagine the origins of one the most powerful monster myths of all in “Kong: Skull Island.”  This compelling, original adventure tells the story of a diverse team of scientists, soldiers and adventurers uniting to explore a mythical, uncharted island in the Pacific, as dangerous as it is beautiful.  Cut off from everything they know, the team ventures into the domain of the mighty Kong, igniting the ultimate battle between man and nature.  As their mission of discovery becomes one of survival, they must fight to escape a primal Eden in which humanity does not belong.