October 06, 2011

‘Real Steel’ director: Hugh Jackman offered warmth amid the metal

Hugh Jackman stars as Charlie Kenton in "Real Steel." (Greg Williams / DreamWorks)

One of the biggest challenges Hugh Jackman faced while filming “Real Steel” was putting aside his good nature to portray someone who behaves despicably, the film’s director Shawn Levy said at an early IMAX screening.

“Truly, in any profession or category, he is maybe the actual nicest guy in the world, Levy told the audience at Monday’s screening, hosted by Hero Complex’s Geoff Boucher. “That was a source of great discomfort for him, especially in the scenes where it was him and Dakota [Goyo, his on-screen son,] and I would push him to be really kind of hard toward this kid.”

Both Levy and Jackman’s “Real Steel” co-star Evangeline Lilly praised the actor’s warmth, kindness and generosity.

“When you’re acting, a lot of it is very selfish, and a lot of the time, it’s every man for himself,” Lilly said. “But Hugh was always looking out for me. And I just think he made me suddenly realize acting could be a lot of fun.”

Hear more about Jackman behind the scenes of “Real Steel” in the video above, and be sure to check out the first clip of the Q&A here.

– Noelene Clark

RECENT AND RELATED