Why ‘Grey Man’ played Dhanush and kept his character alive

• Bollywood star Dhanush has a scene-stealing role in Netflix’s ‘The Gray Man’.
• Insider asked directors Anthony and Joe Russo in June how his casting in the film came about.
• The Russos teased that he has a story they want to tell more about in the future.

Netflix is ​​expensive”The Gray Man,” directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, may star Hollywood A-listers Chris Evans and Ryan Gosling, but it cleverly brought in Bollywood star Dhanush as a scene-stealing partner for Gosling’s CIA assassin, who manages to win him over a bit late. the movie.

If you’ve seen the movie, one adaptation of Mark Greaney’s bestselling novel of the same nameyou might be pleasantly surprised that the Russos didn’t just put the beloved action star in for a small cameo before killing him off.

On the contrary, Dhanush’s character, the assassin Avik San aka the lone wolf, leaves the film very much alive and will likely return for recently announced spin-off or sequel to the film.

During a one-on-one chat with the Russos in late June, Insider asked the directing duo what inspired Dhanush’s casting and why they did so without killing him off as a quick cameo.

The two told us that their time with Marvel Studios, directing a total of four films, including “Avengers: Endgame,” helped in their decision process.

“Part of the universal narrative is that you’re trying to invite more people to watch the movie from their perspective,” Joe Russo told Insider. “Movies have been so American-centric, so Anglo-centric for so long.”

“One of the biggest benefits of working with Marvel has been that we’ve been able to travel around the world and meet fans up close and talk to them and understand culturally where they’re coming from when they’re watching stories,” Russo continued, adding, “Bollywood has as rich a history as Hollywood and has incredible talent and stars that just don’t get a platform on a bigger stage.”

Promoting Marvel films in India has allowed the Russos to connect with other talent, including Priyanka Chopra who stars in the upcoming Amazon Prime sci-fi thriller “Citadel”. The two also filmed Netflix’s “Extraction” in part in the country.

Online fans were really excited to see the extent of Dhanush’s role in the film.

As the Russos told us in June, they were well aware that the comments in the trailer for “The Gray Man” weren’t so much about Evans or Gosling as they were about Dhanush.

“We’re lucky enough to be using Dhanush,” added Russo, teasing that they already had plans for the actor’s return. “We weren’t interested in him playing a one-off character who appears only to be outdone by the protagonist in the film. He’s just as capable and determined as Gosling in the film. He has a story that will allow him to return to the narrative at some point — as his of the hero”.

The weekend after the $200 million film hit Netflix, the streamer announced that a sequel to “The Gray Man” along with a spin-off film are already in the works with the Russos and Gosling returning.

It is possible that Dhanush’s character will be a big part of at least one of these projects.

“We wanted to build a lot of tension around this character,” Anthony Russo told Insider of Dhanush’s Lone Wolf in June. “The Gray Man doesn’t get past him. Danus decides to let the conflict continue on his own. This is the character we’ve seen best “The Gray Man. This is what we know about him. For us, she is very pregnant going forward. “

“The Gray Man” is now streaming on Netflix. You can read our longer interview with the Russos here.