John Cena spent much of his childhood playing with Matchbox cars, so when the chance came to hit the gas in "Matchbox: The Movie," he jumped behind the wheel.
The action-comedy, out this Friday on Apple TV, follows a reunion of childhood friends that veers unexpectedly when they are caught in a mission to recover a nuclear warhead.
Starring Cena, Jessica Biel, Arturo Castro, Sam Richardson and Teyonah Parris, the film directed by Sam Hargrave combines high-octane action with humour.
It taps into nostalgia for the toy cars, which originated after English engineer Jack Odell designed the first model to comply with a 1952 British school rule requiring toys to fit inside a matchbox.
"If you have childhood memories like me of Matchbox, I think you're going to appreciate all the Easter eggs in there. And if you don't know anything about Matchbox or the Mattel franchise, you're going to sit down and really enjoy this movie," Cena told journalists.
The action scenes challenged both Cena and Biel. Training focused on learning to move in new ways and performing fight scenes with greater fluidity, Cena said.
And, of course, to "gain the courage to jump off a building," he added.
Biel said driving pushed her out of her comfort zone.
"I've never learned how to spin a car, you know, in a 180 and stop it on a mark," she said.
For Biel, the experience brought an adrenaline rush as she tackled driving techniques she had never tried before.
Driving "was the coolest stuff I got to do," she said. "Going 60 plus miles an hour on a freeway with a bunch of camera cars everywhere, and guys on motorcycles, and gals in giant semis... There was a really major sense of being safe for everyone else's sake."
Both actors said Hargrave's direction was crucial to the demanding scenes. The filmmaker is known for stunt work and coordination on Marvel Cinematic Universe films.
"He was such a big draw to this movie because of his experience and his expertise in the stunt world, and how he likes to do things practically," Biel said.
The film also offered an opportunity to reflect on friendship and share stories from behind the wheel.
Cena, a car collector, recalled one of his most significant purchases: "a fake Lamborghini."
He bought it cheaply, intending to fix it himself. Ultimately, he blew $825,000 and two decades of work on the venture in vain.
But he learned a valuable lesson.
"If you think it's too good to be true," he said, "it's too good to be true." — AFP
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