MANILA, Philippines – Ryan Gosling has always been giving range.

Throughout his career, we’ve seen him play a struggling jazz pianist in the musical drama La La Land, a socially awkward man who starts a romance with a sex doll in Lars and the Real Girl, a stunt driver taking part in a dangerous heist in Drive, and, recently, a bleached blonde, tanned, and denim-clad human Ken doll in the upcoming film Barbie.

In The Gray Man, Ryan diversifies his acting portfolio even further as he plays the titular gray man Court Gentry aka Six, a member of a black ops agency who, after executing an operation, suddenly finds the target on his back when he comes in possession of a drive with incriminating videos.

Six then goes on the run around the world – from Bangkok to Prague – to escape the clutches of psychopathic Lloyd Hansen (a bemoustached Chris Evans), who is hired to retrieve the drive and take him out. 

The film shows yet another side to Ryan, who makes it through one action sequence after another without missing a beat. For an actor with his range, it was the kind of film he’d always wanted to make.

“I was a fan of spy films, action films – you know, these are the movies that made me fall in love with movies as a kid. I always wanted to be in a film like this, so you know it’s exciting to finally be in one,” he told media at a press junket for the film on July 12.

‘Physically challenging’

The film leaves viewers breathless with almost nonstop action from the moment it begins, and Six is at the center of it, managing to make it out of seemingly impossible situations. He falls out of a plane without a parachute, takes down attackers while handcuffed to a bench, and jumps off a derailed train onto a moving car.

As one can imagine, shooting the film was physically demanding.

To prepare for the film, Ryan worked a lot with stunt coordinator Danny Hernandez to find a fighting style that suited his character.

“We spent months sort of learning different styles of martial arts and curating what would be the best style for me and style for the character. So much of the credit goes to him and all of the other stunt performers making it look like I actually know what I’m doing,” he shared.

He also worked closely with technical adviser and ex-Delta Force member Chili Palmer.

“He was as close to the gray man as you’re gonna get. I really just tried to be joined at the hip with him, and he was there for every scene…he had so many great suggestions…a lot of the details that make the movie kind of special and unique came from him. I’m just leaning on all the great experts they surrounded us with and taking their advice,” he said.

Despite the demands of shooting, Ryan pushed through.

“I took a lot of Epsom salts baths,” Ryan laughed. “You know, it was very physically challenging. It was fun to kind of push myself in that way. This was the kind of film I always wanted to make since I was a kid, so even though it was hard, I always felt very excited to be having the opportunity.”

‘A blue-collar Bond’

The action sequences and international locations might call to mind other spy thrillers like the James Bond films (which was briefly referenced in The Gray Man too). But for Ryan, his character is not your typical superspy.

“I really thought it was compelling, this idea of a spy who doesn’t wanna be a spy, who has no romantic ideas about being James Bond, who would rather be at home watching Netflix like the rest of us,” Ryan shared, later explaining that for him, his character was “like a plumber,” a guy with a job to do and does it.

“This is just someone doing their job. You have a leak, and he goes in and fixes it. They put him in fancy clothes and they go to fancy locations, but he’s a very blue-collar kind of guy. I thought that was an interesting juxtaposition to the kind of work that he does and the glamorized way that we’ve seen these kinds of characters in other films,” Ryan said.

He described Six as “like a blue-collar Bond,” and pointed out that unlike other superspies who have an arsenal of high-tech weapons and self-driving cars, Six relies on his own quick thinking and whatever else he has around him.

He also said that Six’s spirit was inspiring.

“He never gives up. No matter what situation he’s in, no matter how impossible the obstacle or extreme – you know, falling out of a plane with a parachute – he still has hope. It’s like that line in Dumb and Dumber – ‘Are you saying there’s a chance?’ – it’s just that relentless kind of optimism in a way, in spite of how bleak things are. I loved those kind of characters as a kid, and it’s fun to play them. I think it’s exciting. For myself as a kid, I always found inspiration in them,” he said.

For the actor, Six’s motivation is what makes him both relatable and unique.

“A lot of the heroes in these films, they want revenge, or they want power, or they want money, or they want information, but Six just wants to be free. He just wants his freedom,” he said. “That’s something that most of us can relate to, and that makes him relatable in a unique and interesting way.”

The Gray Man premieres on Netflix on July 22. – Rappler.com