Aaron Taylor-Johnson felt daunted playing a conceited actor in David Leitch’s new movie The Fall Guy.

In the new action-comedy, based on the 1980s TV show of the same name, the British actor plays a self-absorbed action star named Tom Ryder, who goes missing and holds up production on his latest big-budget blockbuster.

The Atomic Blonde director admitted to Entertainment Weekly that the Kick-Ass star was hesitant about playing such a character.

“I think it’s always daunting for an actor to play that sort of narcissistic actor,” Leitch said with a laugh. “(Aaron) came in cautious, but at one point, he just said, ‘You know what? I’m going for it.’ And he turned on the gas.”

In a separate interview with Empire, Leitch explained that he was excited to team up with Taylor-Johnson on The Fall Guy after working with him on 2022’s Bullet Train.

“I want to call Aaron on every single movie, he’s so fun, he’s so talented, he’s so collaborative,” he shared. “I had the best time on Bullet Train with him and Brian (Tyree Henry). Playing such a maniacal actor type is a little scary for an actor! He’s a pro and he’s so funny. I’m excited we’ve gotten to do comedy with him and he’s created a great character that people will love and hate at the same time.”

The Fall Guy stars Ryan Gosling as Ryder’s stunt double Colt Seavers and Emily Blunt as Jody Moreno, the director of Ryder’s latest movie. It will be released on 1 March 2024.

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