'Very Similar to Superman': Dev Patel Reveals Mythological Origins of Monkey Man - CBR - Comic Book Resources

Ancient Hindu lore lies at the center of Monkey Man's underdog story.

While appearing on The Tonight Show, lead actor/director Dev Patel spoke with host Jimmy Fallon about finally bringing his upcoming action film to the big screen and being surprised by the audience reactions to Monkey Man at SXSW. A big source of inspiration, Patel revealed, was the Hindu deity Hanuman, stating, "My dad wears this chain around his neck with this monkey holding this one mountain in his hand. And I used to ask him, I was like, 'Dad, what's that about?' And he's like, 'Wait til your granddad comes back from Kenya, and he'll tell you this story.'"

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After pointing out how Hanuman is frequently seen in Indian gyms alongside pictures of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Ronnie Coleman, Patel broke down some of his characteristics, stating, "He represents nobility and strength and courage. You know, he's very similar to, like, Superman in the sense that he splits the chest and the iconography and flies. And you know, for me, he was also a hero that lost faith in himself. He didn't have courage at one point and needed to be reminded of who he was. So that was kind of the basis of the story for me."

After Fallon brought up Monkey Man's underground fight club setting, Patel tied the journey Hanuman faces to the one protagonist Kid faces in both the arena and during his revenge mission. "It's this guy donning a cheap... he's literally a performing monkey in this, donning a cheap rubber gorilla mask. And people are throwing trash at this guy. And it's basically about... it's the ultimate underdog action film," he continued. The Green Knight star also declared himself a big fan of action movies, finding Kid a departure from typecast roles like "the funny sidekick or the guy that hacks the mainframe for the lead dude. You know, I was like, "I got to write this thing myself.""

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Leading up to his directorial debut's release, Patel has been open about the numerous setbacks Monkey Man faced during production, ranging from filming scenes on GoPros to relocating production to Indonesia because of COVID-19. It was later picked up by Netflix for distribution, but after catching an early screening, Jordan Peele signed on as producer and helped give the film a theatrical release. Hype for Monkey Man was later boosted by positive reception to its trailers, which showcased Kid fighting his way through henchmen to defeat those who killed his mother as a child.

What Is Next for Dev Patel?

Patel's next role after Monkey Man will be the upcoming horror film Rabbit Trap, starring alongside Rosy McEwen and Jade Croot. Other action-thrillers shown at SXSW include Alex Garland's Civil War and David Leitch's The Fall Guy, which will release in April and May respectively.

Monkey Man premieres in theaters on April 5.

Source: YouTube

Monkey Man

A recently released ex-felon living in India struggles to adjust to a world of corporate greed and eroding spiritual values.

Director

Dev Patel

Release Date

April 4, 2024

Cast

Dev Patel , Sharlto Copley , Pitobash , Vipin Sharma

Writers

Dev Patel

Runtime

113 minutes

Main Genre

Action

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2024-04-02 00:42:59Z

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