Overview
Before they were chasing storms in Twisters, the 28-years-later sequel to one of the disaster-film blockbusters of the 90s, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell and Anthony Ramos were no strangers to whirlwinds. Filmmaker Lee Isaac Chung, who directs the Twister follow-up, swirls alongside them in the same category. The last few years have seen the careers of all four rise rapidly. Normal People made Edgar-Jones a star. Powell has enjoyed a Top Gun: Maverick, Anyone But You and Hit Man hot streak. Ramos is a Lin-Manuel Miranda favourite with an originating part — two actually — in Hamilton and a lead role in the big-screen In the Heights adaptation. And Chung is fresh from drawing upon his own life in Minari, which won an Oscar and collected five more nominations, including for Best Director.
How did this quartet end up following in the footsteps of Helen Hunt (Hacks) and the late Bill Paxton (The Circle), as well as cinematographer-turned-filmmaker (and Die Hard and Speed veteran) Jan de Bont? Chasing fun, valuing the chance to focus on the human side of weather wreaking havoc, bringing America's Tornado Alley to the screen, not only having a personal connection with the first film but wanting the second to feel personal: they're among the answers that Twisters three leads and its director shared with Concrete Playground. For Chung, growing up on the Oklahoma border means that he's also no stranger to tornadoes IRL. As a teenager in the 90s, he was mesmerised with the original Twister, as the entire world was. "That was a really big deal for me, and for my friends and for my family," he advises.
Under his guidance — working with a script by The Boys in the Boat and The Revenant screenwriter Mark L Smith, which started with Top Gun: Maverick helmer Joseph Kosinski — Edgar-Jones, Powell and Ramos play storm obsessives on a mission. Make that missions, plural, beginning in college. At first Edgar-Jones' Kate and Ramos' Javi are on the road attempting to establish that tornadoes can be tamed. Then, tragedy strikes. Five years later, the pair reteam to scan the seasonal gusts that terrorise the US heartland, using portable radars that Javi has built a business around, albeit with now New York-based meteorologist Kate reluctant to be back out in the field and Javi leaving the details of his funding out of their conversation.
Also seeking the same squalls is Powell's swaggering Tyler Owens, who prefers livestreaming his crew's exploits — and being a "tornado wrangler", merchandise and all — over taking the ultra-professional ethos sported by Javi's team. As Edgar-Jones and Ramos do with their characters, he ensures that this is a part that feels like only he could've slipped into. Indeed, Twisters doesn't enlist its impressive main on-screen trio just to get them caught up in the well-staged spectacle and action.
Jeff Spicer/Getty Images for Warner Bros.
No one gets out of the film without battling wild weather, of course, a process that's "like being in a washing machine, really", Edgar-Jones explains. "A great dirty washing machine," Powell adds. That said, the naturalistic imagery that Chung and cinematographer Dan Mindel (Star Wars: Episode IX — The Rise of Skywalker) paint their tale with, favouring an aesthetic approach that makes Twisters visually resemble Minari more than the standard disaster flick, also mirrors the film's handling of Kate, Javi and Tyler. There's always storms to chase, plus run from, with special effects proving both pivotal and phenomenally convincing; however, there's also a genuine sense of character as its key threesome face devastating vortexes alongside their own baggage. Appreciating the communities impacted by destructive gales feels equally as authentic.
If it seems like a leap for Chung to hop from Minari to here, he went via an episode of The Mandalorian — and that his latest movie falls in the middle of those two extremes, even if it might appear closer to the latter on paper, also came up in our chat. With Twisters in cinemas Down Under since Thursday, July 11, 2024, we also spoke with Edgar-Jones, Powell, Ramos and Chung about tackling a sequel to a beloved film after almost three decades, perfecting the right look, the human element of the narrative and more, including preparing to play the resident cowboy who wants to shoot flares into the storm.
"I always came to set with fireworks and rockets," Powell jokes. "Nobody ever knew when I was just going to fire those things off."
On Twisters Falling in the Middle of Minari and The Mandalorian
Isaac: "After I made Minari, I was editing Minari and watching The Mandalorian — that's where I decided I'd love to do an episode of The Mandalorian, just because I fell in love with that TV show.
When I worked on that show, it was so much VFX work, so much work on these LED screens and on a stage that, in taking Twisters, I wanted to bring our production back out to the field and back out to Oklahoma.
So it did feel like it was kind of zigging and zagging and trying to figure out what I've learned from Minari, what I've learned from The Mandalorian, trying to bring those two things together in some way."
On the Appeal of Chasing Tornadoes On-Screen
Anthony: "It sounds fun — and that's kind of the biggest appeal. It's something that I never thought I'd ever do. And to work with this team has been a dream.
It's cool, just the thought of going out into Oklahoma and driving trucks and being in the elements out there, and working with an incredible cast — I think that's what made it so appealing. That's what made it sound like 'hey, this is something I want to do, sounds fun'."
On How Growing Up on the Oklahoma Border Influenced Chung's Decision to Direct Twisters
Isaac: "That was a hugely influential part of taking on this project. I felt like growing up, there aren't many big films, blockbuster films, that take place in that world. And when Twister came out, that was a really big deal for me, and for my friends and for my family. And I remember that being really special.
When I saw that this project was happening, I thought it was just a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to go back to where I grew up with a big tentpole action movie.
So absolutely, that was a huge part of that decision-making."
On Ensuring That This Is a Disaster Film with a Strong Human Element
Daisy: "I think that was a big part of why I was so excited to be involved with this film. I'd watched Minari — I'm such a huge fan of that film and Isaac as a filmmaker — and obviously that's got a very indie sensibilities, very character-driven. And so when I heard he was making Twisters, I was so curious to see what that mixture would be like, someone who has this real interest in detail and interpersonal dynamics, but also this huge scale, this blockbuster feel.
And so I think that was what was so exciting when we were involved, that all of the characters feel very beautifully drawn out. It's imbued with a lot of reverence for nature, but it also has this fun, this scale, this adrenaline to it.
And I just think Isaac did such a remarkable job of really making all the individual characters feel so grounded in truth. As an actor, that's the thing I'm most excited about: to represent people truthfully."
On Taking on a Sequel to a Film That's Widely Adored — and Making It Personal
Isaac: "It really makes it very challenging because everybody has their own reason for loving that previous work. I'd encountered that already when I was working on the Star Wars shows, which I think Star Wars audiences are maybe the least forgiving, because I love that world so much.
So I got my feet wet already with the idea of 'how do I honour something that a lot of people love for very good reasons, and still try to bring in my personal side and my own spin to things?'.
In general, what I find with audiences is that if you really start with that love and appreciation for something, then they come around to whatever you choose to do as long as you're really honouring. So that was my approach with this. I wanted to honour that first film, but also make it personal to myself."
On What Goes Into Playing the Resident Cowboy Storm Chaser Who Wants to Shoot Fireworks Into the Wild Weather
Glen: "At the end of the day, it's Kate's journey to rediscover something she loves, something that should give her a lot of joy. And so Tyler's role in this movie is just to remind Kate why chasing something that gives you joy is the greatest pursuit of your life.
And so it's fun to show up in a cowboy hat and jeans, and cowboy boots and drive trucks across the Oklahoma plains, and shoot rockets into the sky. I recommend it. It's a good way to go to work."
On Favouring Naturalistic Cinematography That Grounds the Film Over a Glossy Action-Blockbuster Sheen
Isaac: "I worked with an incredible cinematographer named Dan Mindel, and he's a real legend behind the camera. When he came on board, we were already talking about old western movies like The Searchers, we were talking about Kurosawa. We wanted to create a sense of place and space, and also evoke a feeling of a western with this movie.
And then when we knew that we were going to be filming a rodeo, we wanted it to really feel like rodeo photography from the 1970s in magazines.
So there was a lot of that thought going into the process to bring out the texture of the place. And hopefully that comes through. It was just a real joy working with him."
On Filming Action Scenes in a Movie That's Not Only About Tornado Season in Oklahoma, But Was Shot During Tornado Season in Oklahoma
Daisy: "Every scene felt quite laced with irony in the sense that we would have to shut down filming pretty constantly for actual weather, to then start filming again to then recreate the weather we had to shut down for.
It was so incredible to really be in Oklahoma during storm season. There were a lot of tornadoes that did touch down while we were filming, and weather like I've never seen before, but it really helped us imbue the whole thing with truth. And everybody we met that was there, that were background artists from Oklahoma, they were chasers, they were also Red Cross workers, it really helped, I think, to imbue the film with as much truth as possible.
The actual filming of tornado sequences is just sort of wild. It's like being in a washing machine, really. You don't really know what's happening."
Glenn: "A great dirty washing machine."
Daisy: "You're just hoping that there's some acting happening, but you're just kind of in it."
Anthony: "Yeah, if you're getting pelted with wind and your face, you can't help but to make a face because you're getting rained on, there's dirt all over you.
I see stills of me in some of the scenes that we shot, and I'm dusty and my clothes are filthy — and that's what you want when you shoot this kind of movie. You want to be in it. You want to feel that, and they were so good about making sure that we did it."
Twisters opened in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, July 11, 2024. Read our review.