They had built the entire sperm whale’s stomach, so I was stuck in there while they filmed, Austin Abrams says when he and Josh Brolin meet TT for a Zoom interview.
Brolin plays Jay’s father, Mitt. They have had a turbulent relationship, to say the least. When Mitt commits suicide at sea, Jay decides he wants to repair the relationship by finding his father’s remains on the seabed.
But things go wrong. A giant sperm whale is chasing an octopus, and in the chaos between the two animals, Jay is pulled into the whale’s mouth and ends up in its stomach. Will he find his way out before he runs out of air?
Trapped in the sperm whale’s stomach
Austin Abrams, who previously appeared in “The Walking Dead” and “Euphoria,” underwent extensive diving training before filming, but nothing could prepare him for what it felt like to sit day after day, squeezed inside a sperm whale’s stomach built in a studio.
It was really built in 360 degrees, so when you see me sitting squeezed in in the film, it was real.
Could the sperm whale scenario happen in real life?
Technically, it could happen. The sperm whale has an incredibly large mouth and a very wide throat. We made everything as realistic as possible. So technically, it’s correct, but at the same time it’s speculation, because we don’t know if this has ever happened.
Growing conflict
The film is very much shaped by the father-son relationship and the growing conflict between Jay and Mitt.
It’s about when you listen to your parents, then you don’t listen to them, and then you refuse to listen to them, even though that’s probably the most important time to listen. And the parents want to make an impression and don’t care about what’s at stake - in the end, it’s all about themselves, Josh Brolin says.
When I watch the movie, I feel sad. The closer they try to get to each other, the more separated they become. They are different but at the same time far too similar in the way they keep their distance.
Age: 30.
Lives: Los Angeles.
Occupation: Actor.
Selected previous roles: “Gangster Squad,” “The Walking Dead,” “The Americans,” “Less Than Zero,” “Euphoria,” “Wolfs,” “Weapons” and “Resident Evil.”
Current: In “Whalefall,” which opens in Swedish cinemas on October 16.