Have you ever met someone who radiated positivity, strength and encouragement? That is how I would describe Lupita Nyong’o and Giancarlo Esposito. Lupita gorgeously glows with warmth, and can usually be seen in a designer piece at an event. Meanwhile, jazzy Giancarlo does not go anywhere without his recognizable and stylish hat. We had the opportunity to interview this pair of true thespians and hear about their experiences with The Jungle Book movie and their fascinating life.
When we spoke with actors, they had not seen the completed movie apart from their personal clips, and “obstinately” and endearingly “want to see it together as a family”. As with many cast and crew who work on a project they are impassioned with – The Jungle Book seemed to have formed a family of their own off-screen as well.
Q to Lupita: What life experiences did you have to draw from, for this character as a mothering role?
Lupita: Well, I have a lot of very, very powerful women in my life. My mother being the first, and most important. But in my culture, in my mother’s sisters are also my mother. And my father’s sisters are my mother’s, too. So I’ve have many mothers. My mom has a fierce love for her children. And she’s known to say things like “if you die I’ll kill you”.
That spirit, that tenacity of mothering was something that I thought of. And that inspired my version of Raksha, because it takes a woman with one huge heart to take on not only a child that’s not hers, but of a completely different species. And the fact that she does this, and she doesn’t look back, and she does everything in her power to protect that child.
And then to have to let go of that child as well. That takes even more love, you know, to allow your children to do what they need to do. And all mothers go through that.
BEVERLY HILLS – APRIL 04 – Actress Lupita Nyong’o & Giancarlo Esposito during the “The Jungle Book” press junket at the Beverly Hilton on April 4, 2016 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Becky Fry/My Sparkling Life for Disney)
Q: What drew you to this role? What was the process like?
Giancarlo explained that he had been working on the Destiny’s trailer with Jon Favreau, and had also worked on a show called ‘Revolution’ with him as well.
During the trailer of Destiny: the character was reading “The Law of the Jungle” to his son. And it was a highly technical trailer that we did. I stepped away from reading this, and had a conversation with Jon about Kipling and the book: ‘Jungle Book’.
Giancarlo: We had a wonderful and marvelous conversation, which ended when he said “well, wouldn’t it be wonderful to do this movie again and re-envision it for a new generation?” A year and a half later he called me and said “Are you in?”. I said “of course, I’m in.” I had read this book when I was probably about 10 years old, and my mother and I talked about it afterwards. She’d have me read everything from Edgar Allen Poe’s ‘The Raven’ to Shakespeare, to Kipling. I was really moved by Kipling because of his background. Where he was raised. He was born in India, and he was raised through that caste system. He’s an Indian in London, and this story was such a story of freedom, yet in music, in jazz music, they say there’s no freedom without time. There has to be a parameter, a meter to measure to be free within! And, that makes me think so much about this particular time of this book. There was so much going on in the world.
So that’s how I got involved! Jon asked me. My life was coming full circle. To be able to be in this particular story, which is told in a new way, with more eminent danger, yet with a great deal of compassion and understanding for the world which it’s placed in, which is our world of now.
Lupita: For me this was the very first role that I performed after I got off the “12 Years a Slave” train – as I like to call it. What appealed to me was this idea of playing a mother – something that I hadn’t yet done. To do it in voice-over, just opened myself up to something new! And, I have always loved children. I been fantasizing about motherhood since I was probably 2 ½… But I also had a kind of fear about being a mother, and doing work like this makes you really put yourself there. I like being put in those kinds of uncomfortable places that help me to expand my empathy.
Both described the recording process, and we learned that Giancarlo had been working behind a microphone since he was seven year old – with RKO.
Giancarlo: I couldn’t get my face in front of a camera because I wasn’t black enough, back in the ‘60s and ‘70s. It was a really interesting situation. So I went on the mic because I wasn’t regarded as black ‘cause I’m half Italian and from Europe and all these things. But because I spoke well, I would do recordings that would teach young black kids how to speak English.
We also learned that Jon “put up three different cameras that captured our motion so that he could blend our physicality with the physicality that he was planning for the wolves.” He remade the Disney movie with new technology. The cast had a rough picture of the section of story, their scene and their partner’s voice to play off of.
Q to Giancarlo: Do you identify with Akela as you were playing the role?
Giancarlo: Oh, in so many ways. I have four daughters… and I feel like the importance of the female and the mother presence in our society is greater than ever.
He continued to express such beautiful and genuine appreciation for the journey of motherhood through his daughter’s lives.
Giancarlo: I have this vision that I’m watching each of my daughters start to become women and mothers. And this is what’s going to save our planet… there is such a grace and understanding in the female persona when women have really come into their own. Part of that is to have children, and to be caring for those children and not only in the care for them, but also in the nurturing and raising of them, they have to pass on their souls, and their intelligence.
He also described his friendship-relationship with his former wife. His overall passion for life and relationships was contagious. It was very clear how well this family worked together, which carries over into the heart of the movie, ‘The Jungle Book’.
Q: What is one thing that you want children to take away from your character? What is one role model quality that you want the kids to see from adults and parental figures in the movie?
Lupita: I think Mowgli is dealing with finding belonging. What Raksha offers him is home. Her as home, and as an anchor. I think that’s a really important thing for children to have.
Giancarlo: This movie is opening people’s hearts… and if it’s entertaining you as well… it’s precious!
Q: Do you have a favorite book?
Giancarlo: Jungle Book. Edgar Allen Poe poems – they were very dark. The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran. And I love Sidhartha.
Lupita: I much preferred climbing trees and making up my own worlds.
BEVERLY HILLS – Group photo with Lupita Nyong’o & Giancarlo Esposito during the “The Jungle Book” press junket at the Beverly Hilton on April 4, 2016 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Becky Fry/My Sparkling Life for Disney)
Future projects for this dynamic duo includes:
Giancarlo:
- This is Your Death (2nd feature film as director). It’s an unflinching look at reality television, also starring Josh Duhamel and Famke Janssen
- Maze Runner 3: The Death Cure
- A story about the first black US Marshal named Bass Reeves (History Channel)
- Money Monster (coming out this month)
- https://twitter.com/quiethandfilms
- https://www.instagram.com/thegiancarloesposito/
Lupita:
- Eclipsed by Danai Gurira (on Broadway) Five-female play in the Liberian Civil War. It is the first all-female performed, directed and written play on Broadway.
- Queen of Katwe (comes out Sept 23rd) about a Ugandan chess prodigy
- Star Wars: The Force Awakens (on DVD/Blu-Ray – as Maz Kanata)
- https://twitter.com/Lupita_Nyongo
- https://www.instagram.com/lupitanyongo/
Leave a Reply