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With Mile 22 now playing in theaters, I recently got to sit down with director Peter Berg for an exclusive video interview. If you haven’t seen any of the trailers, Mark Wahlberg stars as an operative from the CIA’s most highly prized unit, who is tasked with retrieving and transporting a valuable intelligence asset (Iko Uwais) through 22 life-threatening miles of dangerous territory. As you would expect from a Berg/Wahlberg collaboration (they previously made Lone Survivor, Deepwater Horizon and Patriots Day), the film is loaded with edge-of-your-seat action and intense situations. It also features some incredible stunt work by Iko Uwais, who blew away audiences in The Raid and The Raid 2. Scripted by Graham Roland and Lea Carpenter, the film also stars Ronda Rousey, Lauren Cohan, Carlo Alban and John Malkovich.

During the interview, Peter Berg talked about how they created Wahlberg’s character, how the CIA really has a ground branch team like the one portrayed in the film, why they made the film at STX, his thoughts on the test screening process, if he changed anything in Mile 22 as a result of early screenings, why he wanted to work with Iko Uwais, how he worked with Uwais to create his action set pieces, and a lot more.

Check out what he had to say in the player above and below is exactly what we talked about followed by some recent links to other Mile 22 coverage.

Peter Berg:

• Talks about the real people he based the characters on and why Mark Wahlberg talks so much in the film.
• How Steve Bannon factors into Mark’s character.
• Did he end up cutting any of Mark’s dialogue?
• How they set out to make their version of a fun movie. How the CIA really has a ground branch.
• Why did they want to make the film at STX?
• How much has he changed his films based on test screening results?
• Did he make any changes on Mile 22 from early screenings?

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  How does he like to craft his action set pieces?
• Talks about why he liked A Quiet Place and how that film did action well.
• When did he first see The Raid?
• Reveals Mile 22 was made because both Berg and Wahlberg wanted to work with Iko Uwais.
• Talks about how he worked with Iko Uwais in crafting his fight sequences and how it’s different from filming in Indonesia.

For more on Mile 22:

• ‘Mile 22’ Featurette and Exclusive Clip Celebrate the Martial Arts Brilliance of Iko Uwais
• Ronda Rousey Discusses Taking the Leap into Acting with ‘Mile 22’
• Lauren Cohan on Surviving a CIA Boot Camp for ‘Mile 22’
• Mark Wahlberg on Crafting a New Action Franchise with ‘Mile 22’
• The Art of Mastering Chaos on the Set of Peter Berg’s ‘Mile 22’