John Cena in “Freelance”/Jennifer Garner in “Peppermint”.Photo:Santiago Garcia/Freelance; Michael Muller/STX Entertainment/Courtesy Everett Collection
Santiago Garcia/Freelance; Michael Muller/STX Entertainment/Courtesy Everett Collection
Liam Neeson,Sean Penn,Jennifer Garnerand nowJohn Cenaall have one thing in common: kicking butt in a Pierre Morel movie.
Now that Cena is joining the director’s action-packed cinematic universe withFreelance(in theaters now), Morel is uniquely qualified to answer the top question on audiences’ minds: If pitted against each other, which of these badass actors would win in hand-to-hand combat?
“That’s a tough one,” Morel, 59, tells PEOPLE with a laugh. “They’re all equal… I would not have them go against each other. The four of them would be quite something!”
Upon reflection, however, the filmmaker adds, “Maybe Jennifer Garner, actually.”
(Left to right:) John Cena, Juan Pablo Raba and Alison Brie in “Freelance”.Santiago Garcia/Freelance
Santiago Garcia/Freelance
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AlongsideAlison Brie,Christian Slaterand Juan Pablo Raba, Cena leadsFreelanceas a former special forces operative hired as personal security on what turns out to be a dangerous mission amid a military coup. Morel calls the wrestler-turned-actor, 46, “a beast of a man, and so precise and so sharp.”
In an imagined face-off between Cena and the other stars he’s worked with, Morel says, “John, obviously physically, can do many things. He would probably be the strongest one because it was his job before, he’s a wrestler, he’s a fighter.”
“But,” he continues, “Jennifer showed extremely combative skills when we shotPeppermint.”
Garner, 51, toldPEOPLEuponPeppermint’s 2018 release about playing a character who becomes “a machine,” as she put it.
“He was born for this,” confirms Morel. “He has both the physicality and he is hilariously funny.”
Cena’s days as a professionalwrestling champprepared him for a career headlining action-packed films, he adds. Wrestlers “know how the show works and they know how to make fun of themselves.”
John Cena and Pierre Morel filming “Freelance”.Santiago Garcia/Freelance
Who in Hollywood would Morel like to work with next? “There are so many fantastic actors who never had the chance, who never did action but [who] would be great for that," he answers. “Obviously, the more unexpected it is, the better it will work.”
Whoever he next gives a butt-kicking, likely vengeful role to, Morel says they’ll have to have the acting chops for drama as much as Neeson, Penn, Garner and Cena had. “It’s not just about the action, it’s about the character and the emotional connection we get with them. If it’s just action for action’s sake, it’s not fun.”
Freelanceis now playing in theaters.
source: people.com
