Exclusive: Milla Jovovich on Alice’s Evolution and More for Resident Evil: Retribution
At the recent press day for Paul W.S. Anderson’s upcoming sequel Resident Evil: Retribution, Dread Central had the opportunity to sit down and chat exclusively with the flick’s star and “resident” badass: Milla Jovovich.
We spoke with the actress about the evolution of Alice over the last ten years since the first Resident Evil debuted in theaters, her thoughts on playing multiple versions of the same character for Retribution and more.
Check out our exclusive one-on-one with Jovovich below, and look for more on Resident Evil: Retribution this week!
Related Story: Exclusive: Paul W.S. Anderson Discusses Resident Evil: Retribution, Future Franchise Plans and More
Dread Central: You’ve been with this character for over ten years now; how did it feel to change things up with Alice’s dynamic for Retribution? Did you get to have any input regarding the direction of Alice at all on this one?
Milla Jovovich: You know, this one was really great for me because I thought it was great to see Alice become a human being again. In the first movie she’s a human being, but then in parts two, three and four, she’s pretty much superhuman. Alice had these powers and she was being controlled by the Umbrella Corporation, which left her kind of like this isolated loner.
Suddenly, here, she’s able to have her team back, have her friends back and finally get to have a sense of humor about it all because hey, the world IS how it is now, and you either deal with it by laughing and going with it or giving up- and Alice isn’t giving up.
And having the “Suburban Alice” component was a really interesting element for Paul to write because being parents now ourselves, the stakes are risen so much higher when there’s a child involved. We also thought that maybe it would also bring this character down into this world more, anchor her more and make her more relatable by seeing Alice reluctantly become this little girl’s (Aryana Engineer) caretaker.
Dread Central: Can you talk about the tonal difference in those “Suburban Alice” moments and having to play those scenes completely against character?
Milla Jovovich: It’s kind of funny- in all of the Resident Evil movies, this is the first time that we take this story into a real-life kind of suburban area, and it was really wonderful for me because I was still getting to play Alice but I was playing the Alice who grew up in a small town, who was probably the captain of the cheerleading squad in high school and got married really young. You know- she’s goes to Costco every weekend and has a minivan.
And to be able to have that kind of juxtaposition like you do here between “Battle Alice” and this really nice stay-at-home housewife kind of character… it was fun to play both sides in this, especially when you see how the Alice everyone knows has to deal with taking care of this child and having to do things like be nurturing and protective. I mean, she’s had to deal with her friends dying, but now there’s this child who pretty much changes everything. I mean, killing zombies is one thing, but kids… whoa! Nothing prepares you for that (laughs).
Dread Central: I wanted to ask- considering the state of the world and the fact that there doesn’t seem to be a safe place left on Earth, what do you feel it is that keeps Alice and all of these characters fighting despite the odds? I mean, the world’s pretty much been progressively going to hell over time so what’s left to fight for?
Milla Jovovich: Well, if there are any future movies past this, Paul will have to figure out what we’ll be fighting for then. But you’re right; there isn’t a lot of hope really left amongst these characters so I think they’re all fighting because that’s all they know how to do. It’s that warrior syndrome where if you weren’t fighting, you wouldn’t know what to do with yourself. What would Alice or anyone do if they didn’t have a gun in their hand or there wasn’t an apocalypse to try and survive? It’s hard to tell because this is their realities. I think the fight is there because that’s now engrained in all of us- it’s part of our DNA, and now for Alice it’s personal for her. She has to make Umbrella pay.
Written and directed by Paul Anderson, Resident Evil: Retribution stars Milla Jovovich, Boris Kodjoe, Li Bingbing, Kevin Durand, Shawn Roberts, Michelle Rodriguez, Sienna Guillory, Johann Urb, and Colin Salmon. Look for Resident Evil: Retribution in theatres on September 14, 2012, from Screen Gems.
Synopsis
The Umbrella Corporation’s deadly T-virus continues to ravage the Earth, transforming the global population into legions of the flesh eating Undead. The human race’s last and only hope, Alice, awakens in the heart of Umbrella’s most clandestine operations facility and unveils more of her mysterious past as she delves further into the complex. Without a safe haven, Alice continues to hunt those responsible for the outbreak; a chase that takes her from Tokyo to New York, Washington, D.C. and Moscow, culminating in a mind-blowing revelation that will force her to rethink everything that she once thought to be true. Aided by newfound allies and familiar friends, Alice must fight to survive long enough to escape a hostile world on the brink of oblivion. The countdown has begun.
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