With Moonfall arriving in theaters this weekend, the other day I got to speak with director Roland Emmerich about his latest disaster movie. During the interview, Emmerich talked about why people love watching end of the world movies and TV shows, the way he balances using real science with movie magic, what were the VFX shots they struggled with inside the moon, what surprised him about working with John Bradley, and more. In addition, we talked about how he figured out the end of the movie, sequel plans, if he knows the outcome for what he sets up, how he still wants to make Maya Lord and why it's been a struggle, and why Anonymous is his best movie.
If you haven’t seen the Moonfall trailer, or the first five minutes of the movie, the film tells the story of an unlikely team of individuals (Halle Berry, Bradley, and Patrick Wilson) who are tasked with saving the Earth when the moon is knocked off its orbit by a mysterious force and comes hurtling towards earth. Moonfall also stars Michael Peña, Donald Sutherland, Kelly Yu, Eme Ikwuakor, Carolina Bartczak, and Charlie Plummer. The script was written by Emmerich, Harald Kloser, and Spenser Cohen.
Watch what Roland Emmerich had to say in the player above, and below is exactly what we talked about.
Roland Emmerich
- What movie would he love to make if he could get the financing?
- How he’d love to make Maya Lord which is about the only conquistador that did the right thing.
- How one of the hold ups for the film is Mexico doesn’t have a tax rebate.
- If someone has never seen any of his films, what should they watch and why?
- Why do people love watching movies and TV shows about the end of the world?
- How much does he try to make the science in his movies as realistic as possible?
- What were some of the VFX shots he struggled with inside the moon?
- What surprised him about working with John Bradley and his performance?
- The ending of the movie reveals who built the moon. How did they figure out who built it?
- When he sets something up at the end of Moonfall, does he already know the answer, or will he figure it out later?
- If Moonfall is a hit, would he make a sequel?
