Gary Oldman had a message earlier this year for athletes. “Stay the f–k out of movies,” the actor said on “Jimmy Kimmel Live.” “Who the hell told you that you could act?”
One imagines many actors feel the same way. But none of the professionals involved in the new family film “Thunderstruck” had a word to say against their co-star, NBA player Kevin Durant.
“It impressed me how well he knew his lines,” Brandon T. Jackson said. “It was great to work with somebody who was cool onscreen and offscreen.” His only advice to other actors who might work with the Oklahoma City Thunder ballplayer: “Bring a neck brace.” Because having to look up at the 6’9″ athlete can get tiring.
James Belushi, joking as much with reporters as he does in his movies, said Durant easily improvised with the best of them. “I usually change the dialogue in every take. Not creatively, but because I can’t remember my lines,” he said. “Kevin rolled with it and came up with some good jokes.”
It seems to have helped that Durant, the guy who hugs his mom after his games, wasn’t a spoiled star. Director John Whitesell agrees the basketball player was “really good at improv.” While he talked about what a great guy his star is, Durant seemed shy, suddenly looking down. “He’s a genuine, likeable guy,” producer Mike Karz said. “And most important, he loves his mom.”
Durant plays himself in the film, about a high school player who magically switches talents with the NBA player — the problem being that the 16-year-old doesn’t have any.
When asked what led him to take a film role, Durant responded, “I just wanted to step outside the box, like I’ve been saying for the last two days.” He hasn’t learned yet — or perhaps doesn’t care — to pretend each question is a fresh one. Belushi seems genuinely surprised when Durant reported that on arriving on set, “I was so nervous on that first day.”
It’s been a banner year for KD. The Thunder made the NBA finals, he helped the U.S. bring home the gold at the London Olympics, and he made his first feature film. “I’m 23, so I can handle a lot. That’s what I signed up for,” he said. “I wanted to play basketball my whole life. My mom told it’s not just basketball, it involves other stuff.”
His mother, Wanda Pratt, appears in the film, too. She talked about how emotional she still gets when she thinks about how hard her son worked as a child in pursuit of his dream. “It was so surreal to me. This is my son, starring in a major motion picture, as himself.”
“The crazy part about it is I think D.C. is so cutthroat,” Durant said. He was born in the District and graduated from Montrose Christian School in Rockville. “It’s a crazy basketball world there.” But it pushed him to become, eventually, NBA Rookie of the Year. “I wanted to be better than every single person in my neighborhood, in my county, in my state.”
He hopes “Thunderstruck” encourages youngsters like his mother, and other mentors, did himself. When I asked what he hopes kids take away from the film, he responded immediately: “Always work hard, do what you believe in. Continue to have faith in yourself,” he said. “The sky’s the limit.”
