Jacob Elordi has praised Sir Ridley Scott, describing the veteran British director as “one of the greatest filmmakers of all time” following the London premiere of their new film The Dog Stars.
The Australian actor stars as Hig in Scott’s adaptation of Peter Heller’s bestselling post-apocalyptic novel, which follows the survivors of a devastating pandemic that has wiped out much of humanity.
Speaking at a press conference attended by The London Standard following Thursday night’s world premiere, Elordi said working with the 88-year-old filmmaker had lived up to – and even surpassed – his expectations.
Elordi on working with Scott
“I just had such a great time,” the 29-year-old said. “He’s so wonderful to work with and so open to us as actors.”
“He’s obviously such a visual filmmaker, but he gave us such freedom within the text to kind of do what we wanted to do, and he gave us the space to do that.”
Asked whether anything about working with the Gladiator and Alien director had surprised him, Elordi added: “That’s not necessarily surprising because he’s one of the greatest filmmakers of all time. He kind of lives up to and exceeds expectations.”
Brolin on their on-screen bond
In The Dog Stars, Elordi plays a pilot who has carved out an isolated existence alongside military survivalist Bangley, played by Josh Brolin, and his beloved dog.
Their carefully controlled world is disrupted when Hig picks up a mysterious radio transmission, prompting him to wonder whether there could be something – or someone – waiting beyond the life he has come to know.
Brolin also opened up about developing his on-screen relationship with Elordi, revealing the pair “hit it off” almost immediately. “I think when we met, we kind of hit it off right away,” the 58-year-old said.
Scott’s set environment
He explained that Scott created an environment on set that was “a little dangerous and a little elusive”, allowing the actors to experiment with their performances rather than rigidly sticking to what had been planned.
“You have your base, and then you’re kind of rewriting and experimenting while you’re doing it,” Brolin said. “I think, as much as the characters were developed in the book or in the script, we took it from that point and we had our own thing. We started to really rely on each other, and I think that really comes across in the movie.”
The film boasts an impressive ensemble cast alongside Elordi and Brolin. Margaret Qualley stars as Cima, with Guy Pearce playing her father, Pops, while The White Lotus star Allison Janney and 3 Body Problem actor Benedict Wong also appear.
The Dog Stars lands in UK and Irish cinemas on August 26.
