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Paul Bettany Describes the Camaraderie of Civil War‘s Set

The Vision from Avengers: Age of Ultron

Don’t let Civil War‘s title fool you; all the actors in the Marvel movies have become quite close after having made so many films together, according to Paul Bettany. After playing The Vision in Age of Ultron, Bettany’s so well-acquainted with his cast-mates that he endearingly refers to them as “boys and girls”:

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We all had a bit more fun. You know, there were more improvised jokes between me and Downey Jr., and me and Chris Evans, and it was a really loose atmosphere on-set. It was one really loose set, it was great! I would totally lie to you if it wasn’t, but I don’t have to lie. And we all get on. They’re all a really nice bunch of boys and girls. They’re all happy to be there. They’re being terribly well-paid, so they should be happy to be there. And work’s really creative and fun, you know? I got to be born on camera, you know, that’s unlikely to ever happen again.

I guess no one’s doing any method acting, then. Sounds fun, but improvising on-set doesn’t always work that well (remember that gross “Prima Nocta” joke in Avengers 2? That wasn’t in the original draft).

On a more serious note, here’s Bettany reflecting on his research process for his role:

I was given comics. I also was looking to think about what could be edifying for me to learn. I took the opportunity—you see my character get born… something unlikely to ever happen to me again. He must be both omnipotent and yet totally naive at the same time. And experiencing the world in real time and his place in it. Is he going to be a force of good or a force of evil? It was really interesting, fun to play with, because he is dangerous, you do not know if he’s going to go one way or another. And I’m continuing that theme in Captain America.

What do you think of Bettany’s portrayal of The Vision? Are you excited to see his character return?

(via Geek Tyrant, image via Business Insider)

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Maddy Myers
Maddy Myers, journalist and arts critic, has written for the Boston Phoenix, Paste Magazine, MIT Technology Review, and tons more. She is a host on a videogame podcast called Isometric (relay.fm/isometric), and she plays the keytar in a band called the Robot Knights (robotknights.com).

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