Gunpowder Milkshake is Netflix’s next action thriller, out on the streaming service July 14. The film centers on Sam (Karen Gillan), a fierce hitwoman who is forced to reunite with the assassin mother who abandoned her years ago in order to protect a young girl from a mission that’s spun out of control.
Gillan spoke to Screen Rant about the physical training required for her intense action scenes, as well as the fascinating dynamics between Sam and her mother Scarlet.
You play Sam, who is such a cool character. She's a straight up badass, but she's emotionally vulnerable. Can you tell me a little bit about Sam's backstory and what interested you in the role?
Karen Gillan: What I really liked about this character is that we do get that backstory that you're mentioning. We see her when she's 12 years old, and we see that her mother actually abandons her at that age, but we don't know why. And so for me, the emotional hook was just right there. I could dive into all of those abandonment issues, and then play around with how that manifests in her adult life.
And also, she's a really fierce hit woman, and the action sequences definitely attracted me to the role. What was nice is you have those, but I also had a whole wealth of emotional baggage to play around with.
Lena Headey plays your mother Scarlet in the film, and Sam follows in her footsteps by being an assassin. In the 15 years that Scarlet is away, how does Sam feel about her mother?
Karen Gillan: I think it's a really complicated relationship. I think my character is very unhappy with her mother, but deep down, what I decided in my head is that Sam blames herself for the abandonment because a lot of people can do that. If they have been abandoned in their life, they can blame themselves or assume that they're not worth sticking around for.
That's what I played around with Sam, even though there was still a lot of aggression towards the situation. And for me, that all came out whenever she was fighting - and that's why everything is so vicious.
You're no stranger to action with the Marvel films and Jumanji, but Gunpowder Milkshake is a whole new level. Can you talk to me about the physicality and the training required to play Sam?
Karen Gillan: Yeah, it definitely was a whole new level. I have done it before, and I feel like I've been doing better with each movie in terms of the fighting. But this is like nothing I've ever attempted before. It's a full action movie; there's so much action, and it's nonstop, basically. So, yeah, there was a lot of training.
I only had three weeks to prepare before we started production, but I'd just come off Jumanji 2. I'd been training with the Mission Impossible stunt team on that, so I was kind of ready to roll right in. Even though when I got to Gunpowder, I was like, "This is gonna be way harder than anyone could have anticipated." But it was a really fun challenge.
The world building in this film is amazing. Navot did a great job of creating the mythology behind Gunpowder Milkshake. Can you talk to me about the collaboration process with him, and what you took away from his directing style?
Karen Gillan: Oh, it was great working with Navot. I met him in London in a restaurant to talk about the film, and as soon as he started talking, I was like, "Oh, he's gonna make a really special film." Like, I could just feel it from him. I don't know why, it was just his personality. I'd seen his last movie as well, which was amazing, but I just knew that he was going to kill it on this.
And the collaboration was amazing. I feel like we pushed and pulled on each other in a really great way. He had a slightly more indie approach, so it didn't feel like a big huge studio movie; it felt very inventive and spontaneous. He's kind of like a mad professor running around, but then you realize he knows exactly what he's doing. He knows exactly what he needs. He's already edited the film in his own head.
Sam is protecting Emily, played by Chloe Coleman. What did she bring to the role that wasn't on the page?
Karen Gillan: So much. I was lucky enough to get to go to the auditions as well. And as soon as I saw her, I was like, "Guys, this is not even a question. This is a no-brainer." She's just so emotionally mature beyond her years when she's acting. When she's off camera, she's a typical kid. She's playing pranks on me all day. But then when she starts acting, she clicks in and it's like she's 20 years old or something. And we thought that could be really cool for the part.
And also, that was a lot to handle. It's a violent movie, and so we needed a kid that would be okay with that. And we definitely kept it fun for her as well.
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