To save the world, Dan Forester and Dorian must travel to the future to fight a war against an alien species known as the White Claws -- but that hasn't put their present troubles on pause. When The Tomorrow War picks up, both characters are in the middle of a conflict with their own personal demons. As humanity's hope for a secure future wanes, they may have to resolve their own issues before they can save everyone else.
Speaking to CBR, The Tomorrow War stars Chris Pratt and Edwin Hodge broke down the very human conflicts at the root of their characters. They discussed how these issues impacted their performances, as well as the way they motivated their characters. They also shared the joy of working with director Chris McKay on his first live-action feature and more.
CBR: On top of the whole future war thing, both of your characters are struggling with some deeply human issues. What aspect of that did you identify with the most, and how did it impact your performance?
Chris Pratt: Wow, that's a great question. This is a character who has severe abandonment issues with his father who is having a hard time forgiving the man for not being there in his life. That is not something, thankfully, that I ever dealt with at home, but I do have issues with my dad the way I suppose anybody might.
So my character comes to learn that he himself is becoming a version of his dad, perhaps, in a way. So I've been coming to grips with that as well, in my life. Now that I have young children, I hear myself, the way I talk to them, or the way I discipline, and I'm like, "Oh my gosh, that's exactly what my dad would have said then." So I think coming to terms with your own mortality and your own similarity to the parents you once held in a particular esteem, it's an interesting dilemma. I guess it's just part of life and part of having children, but that would be what I would say for myself.
Edwin Hodge: I mean, as far as my character is concerned, I think his inner demon is actually his friend. [laughs] At this given point in time, besides his two buddies to his left and right, it is just him and his sickness. At the end of the day, he's going out one of two ways, and both of them are catastrophic in their own nature. So, for him to survive, I think he has to identify with all of that and he has to take it on, because I think it's the one thing that actually keeps him alive.
What is something that shocked or surprised you about this film?
Pratt: Well, I just have to say watching Chris McKay, our director, blossom into a really extraordinary filmmaker. That was really cool. I mean, he's a guy who's made awesome animated movies, and that's no small feat. That's really hard. That's a really hard thing to accomplish. But this was his first time on set working with actors, giving them direction, doing the day-to-day slog of location work and all that. He just took to it so well. So watching him become Chris McKay was pretty extraordinary, and I promise you this is just the very beginning of everything he has to offer.
Hodge: For sure! He makes a fine point! I think we all mature and develop in this industry in very distinct ways and McKay, with his background, he jumped into a new element fearlessly. He just did and he took on this role as a director, as a creator, as a communicator, with one that you would carry with due diligence. This was his baby, as well as Chris' baby. Like he said, he's gonna have a really healthy career after this film! [laughs] He did an amazing job with putting it together.
Starring Chris Pratt, Yvonne Strahovski, Sam Richardson, Betty Gilpin, J.K. Simmons and Edwin Hodge, The Tomorrow War is now available on Amazon Prime.