In Hollywood, it can really feel like you’ve hit the jackpot when you have the right mix of casting and directing. With Jackpot!, it seems like the found both.
Directed by Paul Feig, Jackpot! follows Katie Kim (Awkwafina), an actress whose trying to find steady work in the heart of Los Angeles. When she accidentally comes into the possession of a winning lottery ticket of a multi-billion dollar jackpot, she can’t believe it. But, in LA, the winner is also subject to a rule that anyone can kill the winner before sundown legally in order to claim their cast prize for themselves. As she fights to survive, she enlists the support of Noel Cassidy (John Cena), an amateur lottery protection agent who will help her live through the day for a fee. Facing off against a horde of jackpot hunters (not to mention Noel’s old nemesis, Louis Lewis [Simu Liu]), the two kick, scratch and burn their way through the city, in the hopes of making it out alive.
As the director of 2016’s Ghostbusters and Bridesmaids, Feig has built his career on big, bold comedies. Though he wasn’t onboard at first, he knew that this was a movie that he had to make after reading the script.
“I was sent this script called Grand Theft Lotto, when I first got it,” Feig begins. “And I thought, ‘That sounds so stupid. I’m not going to read this script.’ It was only days later that my producing partner, the great Laura Fisher, called me up and said, “You should read the script. It’s really funny”. And so I picked it up, read it, and said, I have to do this movie. To me, it was just too much fun. It’s the Jackie Chan movie I’ve always wanted to make, It’s an action comedy. I love that, from my movie Spy and, and The Heat. It was just a chance to really make a very fun, silly, but also kind of emotional story about somebody in over their head.”
This enthusiasm was infectious for the cast as well, especially for Awkwafina. Having been attached already to the project, she was thrilled to finally have the chance to work with Feig.
“When Paul was interested, I was so happy because I’m obviously huge fan of everything that he has done since Freaks and Geeks,” she says. “I had also been friends with him, you know? So, we wanted to find an opportunity to work together.”
“We both wanted to make sure that it, it felt real and grounded, right?,” Feig echoes. “I mean, it’s always dangerous when you do a story about an actor because it’s hard for an audience to invest in wanting an actor to become famous. I think they go, “Oh, okay, well that seems more fun than what they consider to be a real job.” It is a real job. But really, we just wanted to make sure that her goals are relatable and I think we did that.”
Part of the films joy stems from the chemistry of its leads, especially that of Awkwafina and Cena. Asked what it was like to participate in the traditional ‘comedy duo’ with his co-star, Cena is nothing short of effusive with his praise.
“I think you put yourself in the best place when you create an environment to bring the best out of those around you,” he states. “We had great conversations on set. Still, whenever we get a chance to catch up, it’s like we never missed a beat. From my perspective, that makes me relaxed. It makes me swing big… And, Paul, with you as a director., we all have talent, strengths and gifts. And I think when we get to flex those muscles and learn a little bit on the way we can, we can put together something good.”
One of the best performances though comes from star Simu Liu who plays the villainous Louis Lewis. Asked how he felt finally playing a ‘bad guy’, Liu shows more empathy for his characters vision.
“I mean, is he a bad guy or is he really just like a really solid entrepreneur with solid business practice?,” he jokes. “When you’re introduced to Louis Lewis, he’s kind of a boss. He is everything that Noel, John’s character, wants to be or wanted to be. Noel is kind of this amateur insurance salesman, ambulance chasing, giant who’s just running after people. But Lewis has the money and the resources to hire. So, he has got billboards, and he has got a whole compound and a whole staff working for him. So, if you won the Grand Lottery, who would you go with?”
However, Jackpot! also makes the most of its highest profile cameo: Machine Gun Kelly. Though Kelly’s not known for his comedic work, Cena says that he was absolutely game for everything they threw at him.
“He was great,” Cena glows. ”I was fortunate enough to have Machine Gun Kelly play a live serenade for a WrestleMania that I was in. So, I’d met him before. I thought he was spectacular because he didn’t take himself too seriously. And he was very open too. He was providing jokes. He was very open to trying jokes. HGe was really great to work with on set.”
With multiple action scenes, Jackpot! is a highly physical film. Despite having starred in a Marvel film, Awkwafina said that this process really got her moving in ways that her previous work has not.
“Well, it did kick off my fitness journey for sure,” she claims. “I will say that opening sequence… Because Simu and I were in a [movie together where] we obviously… well, he had to train extensively. For that [movie], I definitely did not train. I was just like going to like the Sydney Opera route. But, for this one, I felt like it was important for me to work with the team, who was amazing and my amazing stunt double Kira and with John too. I really appreciate the way that John, kind of handles action scenes and is very [much] about safety and stuff. So, I felt like very, very safe when doing scenes as a group.”
Similarly, Cena too loved being a part of the on-set action. With over two decades of work in the WWE under his [championship] belt, he’s certainly no stranger to physicality. Even so, Cena loved the cinematic nature of the process—and definitely appreciated his stunt man to help with the rougher stuff.
“My concern is always safety, but I always wanna do as much of the activity as possible,” points out Cena. “And what I loved about a lot of the action in this film is it’s comical, but it’s also realistic. There’s a scene in a strip mall where you go through like a karate studio, a yoga studio, et cetera, et cetera. Where what I loved about Paul’s [is his] creativity, and I think I’m speaking for Paul here, when he says it’s ‘the Jackie Chan movie that [he] wanted to film’. When you look at the way Jackie tells a story, he’ll choreograph a fight when he gets on set. So, he’ll see the audio guy, or a bottle of water or a loose chair, and he’ll incorporate all those things into the action. I thought the stunt team did an incredible job of incorporating various things you’d find in the Karate Dojo, the individuals that you’re fighting with. Then, we get into the yoga studio and all that yields itself to comedy as well. So, in situations where things were safe, I was definitely happy to do it. But man, I’m not gonna sit here and say that I’m not grateful for my stunt double Spencer Thomas.”
“The whole stunt team on the movie was like the best,” chimes Awkwafina. “Without them action movies, like really can’t exist, you know what I mean?”
Jackpot is available on Prime Video now.
