RZA may play a dangerous slum lord in “Brick Mansions,” but talking about the action film, he was quite gracious, especially when it came to talking about his late cohort Paul Walker.
The “Fast & Furious” star died in November last year, and since then the rapper/actor/director has been reflecting on the movie medium.
“The beauty of film is that it captures you. While none of us will be able to physically break bread with Paul anymore, we will be able to go see his smile and see his blue eyes and see his energy on the screen and enjoy him through his art. That's the blessing of it,” he told HitFix during the press junket for “Brick Mansions.”
“It's not easy being out here promoting a film without him, we actually talked about when the press comes up,” the “Man with the Iron Fists” creator explained, mentioning he was looking forward to his reunion with all his “Brick Mansions” co-stars. “This is one without this good brother. All I can say is let's enjoy his art.”
The “art” of this new film is remaking all the parkour glory of 2004's “District 13.” Directed by Camille Delamarre and co-written by the original film's penner Luc Besson, “Brick Mansions” has RZA playing Tremaine Alexander, who holds the neglected, isolated ghetto (and a few of its inhabitants) hostage.
RZA said that after “The Man with the Iron Fists,” it's hard sometimes to keep his director's hat off, with a rule of thumb: to “only speak my suggestions one out of five.” Watch the full interview below for more of his thoughts on the actor's process, and for his thoughts on the current state of Wu-Tang Clan and its albums “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin” and “A Better Tomorrow.”