How Daniel plays cowboy effectively

MANILA, Philippines - 1875. New Mexico Territory. A stranger (Daniel Craig) with no memory of his past stumbles into the hard desert town of Absolution. The only hint to his history is a mysterious shackle that encircles one wrist. What he discovers is that the people of Absolution don’t welcome strangers, and nobody makes a move on its streets unless ordered to do so by the iron-fisted Colonel Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford). But Absolution is about to experience fear it can scarcely comprehend as the desolate city is attacked by marauders from the sky.

Now, the stranger they rejected is their only hope for salvation. He pulls together a posse comprised of former opponents — townsfolk, Dolarhyde and his boys, outlaws and Apache warriors — all in danger of annihilation. United against a common enemy, they will prepare for an epic showdown for survival. Cowboys & Aliens opens in cinemas Aug. 10. Released and distributed by United International Pictures through Solar Entertainment Corp. Check out what Daniel Craig had to say about the film below.

What was it like preparing for this role?

“I really just watched as many Westerns as I could. I watched a lot of John Wayne ones, but my personal favorite ones are the ’70s ones, things like Little Big Man — the so-called dirty Westerns, ones that are a little bit more reality based. But obviously Butch and the Sundance Kid is a big favorite of mine. Director Jon Favreau and I had these great chats, it helped me a great deal because obviously I have to be an American in the film — so the less I said the better (laughs). I tried to let everyone else do the talking and I do the action, really that’s how I base my character, very much on the silence of a Clint Eastwood Man with No Name.”

Working alongside Harrison Ford, what was that experience like?

He’s a kind of hero of mine, Jon said in an interview that he’s our generations’ John Wayne. For me, it’s even more than that really, you think of Star Wars and Blade Runner, movies that were seminal in my movie life, growing up with movies. So I was nervous as hell when I started working with him, he’s nearly nice so it’s OK (laughs). Harrison is an incredibly generous and funny man who’s also an incredibly generous and funny actor. Just getting the chance to work with him has been a joy — getting to know him has been a joy as well.”

Being on location filming, how was that in building a rapport with the cast and crew?

“We were all stuck out in this beautiful place, Santa Fe, on location in this amazing place. As a unit, the crew, the actors, we’d all get together — I haven’t done that for a long time. I’d hold parties at my house just to get people to sort of bond, the crew would come along, the actors would come along, Olivia Wilde would come along, she was a major instigator of that, basically. She would always go, ‘have another party!’ So we’d have margarita nights on a Friday or Saturday night after work, Harrison would come over, Sam would get the music going. We all really got on — I’m not just saying that for this interview (laughs). We really did.”