F*** Magazine features TMR

Dylan, Wes, and Will are featured in 'The Lost Boys' in F*** Magazine Issue 55.

More after the cut!

Wes Ball

Wes on how he'd describe the film:

It's a good rollercoaster ride. We really designed it to be really tense all the way through, so it would be a constant escalation all the way, right up until the end. What's really going to be interesting is the ending, because the book has kind of an open ending. But we're taking a little bit of a gamble because we open up to the next movie. It's all about escaping from the maze, and they definitely escape, but it's a case of out of the frying pan, into the fire. If the film's successful, we'll continue to explore the world and answer all the questions, but we'll see how it goes. It's a gamble.

Wes on being a first-time director:

It's a big risk they're taking on me. It's the first movie I've ever done. I've had a love of VFX experience in the past and I made this little short called Ruin, which is what got me on the radar for the studio. I guess I had a good take on what they wanted for the movie, and since then, it's been a very smooth process. They're been very supportive, and have set me up for success. I'm surrounded by really good people, and having my VFX background helps a lot as I can make good choices when it comes to filming scenes. I'm really fortunate that the studio let me take on this movie. It was a fun movie to make.

Wes on comparisons to other franchises:

It's not very much like Divergent, and if anyone wants to compare it to The Hunger Games, I'll take that any day. We're much smaller in terms of the scale of the first Hunger Games, but it's a little darker and more intense. Hopefully, it's just as emotional. The biggest difference with us is that this is not a movie in which kids are trying to kill each other; it's a film about bonding and trying to beat the odds against them. It's very much about a brotherhood in that way. I've described it as Lost meets Lord of the Flies, but there's also a little bit of a Twilight Zone aspect about it. It's definitely a movie that's fueled by mystery.

Wes on James Dashner's involvement:

I wanted to get James Dashner involved with the project as much as possible. He's a bit of a film geek like me, so we got on really well. I've tried to stick as closely to the spirit of the book as I could. I invited him out onto the set and he was amazed by it. I then invited him out to the scoring session, when we get to do the orchestration stuff, and he was just like a kid in a candy store. It was a really good experience working with him, and hopefully he's going to love the final movie.

Will Poulter

Will on signing onto the film:

You know, crazily, I think I was the first person to get cast, which, when you think about it, is an incredibly brave movie, or even a stupid one. I don't know. Wes Ball cast me first because he had seen a film I was in when I was younger, and had always kept me in mind for this, which was really kind of him. I auditioned without having read the script, just because it wasn't available, it hadn't been written yet.

Will on his experience with the books:

After I was given the part, I went and read the books after that, and came to realize what an amazing following this film has. As soon as it was known that I had been cast, I received a lot of backing from fans on Twitter wishing me well, so I really had them in mind throughout the filming process. There was so much interest from them throughout.

Will on fan expectation:

They are so powerful in many ways because they are the voice of the film - they're out army. They're just been phenomenal. To know they are all going to see the film and only one trailer has come out. It's just amazing. 

Will on fan pressure:

Well, it's the classic conundrum of developing a book into a film. There is an element of pressure that comes with that, purely because the reders have formed some sort of expectations, and you have to deliver something that is going to satisfy those expectations. It's a unique situation when it's a book adaptation, but I think the greatest testament to the job. Wes and the rest of the cast have done is that James Dashner, the writer of the books, has said he is happier with the film than he is with the book. He said he wouldn't change a single thing.

Will on being on set:

It was just so hot; I have never experienced temperatures so high. 90 degress Farenheight! I spend most of the film squinting because the sweat is going into my eyes, but my character is a bit of a grumpy dude anyway, so it was a look that suited him.

Will on working with Wes:

Yes, he was just one of us. He was keen to hang out with us all. It definitely flavored our experience, and it was like having one of the boys making a film with us. Easily one of the most excitable directors I have worked with, and I'm sure that will translate to the finished film.

Dylan O'Brien

Dylan on the young cast bonding:

Yeah, 100%. We were all partying together until 4 in the morning some nights, and I've met some friends for life. 

Dylan on the physical nature of filming:

I do like doing physical stuff like that, and I do love running. In fact, this was the perfect kind of running for me. I do not like long-distance running. I'm a huge hater of that. It's always bugged me. If anything, I would like to sprint and then stop after 100 metres. I love sprinting. There's something about the act of a human moving as fast as he can that's really cool to me and I love doing it. So I liked the action side of the movie, and got involved with it all as much as I could. If anything, they had to tell me to stop as I was doing too much.

Dylan on the interview process:

But no, I was not asked to run as part of the audition process! I was cast for the role and flew out there to start work before they knew what I could do physically. Most the movie, I'd say about 85% of it is me running. It was just so funny to me - I could have shown up there as the girliest runner. Can you imagine that? It would have been a disaster for them.

Dylan on his favorite scene to act:

I loved doing the wrestling scene with Will. There is just something about the spirit of the scene that, as a kid, I would have loved. Watching that would have made me stay on the movie for sure if I was flicking channels. It was really fun to do, and it was the first scene when we went through the choreography of it. So, when we finally got around to filming it after about three weeks, it was really cool to do. It was my character's first night in the Glade, and to prove himself, he had to wrestle against the biggest guy there. It was an epic fight; I think it will stand out as one of the film's highlights.

Thanks to Dylan O'Brien Daily and Maze Runner France for the scans!