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| Mamoudou Athie |
By Darlene Donloe
You can hear it
in Mamoudou Athie’s voice when he talks about his latest role in the indie film,
Patti Cake$, slated for release
Friday, August 18.
It’s the sound
of enthusiasm, gratitude and satisfaction in playing, what can only be
described as one of the more unique characters he’s ever played in his career.
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| Mamoudou Athie as Basterd in Patti Cake$ |
In Patti Cake$ Athie, 28, plays a shadowy
man named Basterd, who doesn’t speak much vocally, but who speaks volumes in
his actions and intent.
The gritty coming-of-age film tells the
story of an unlikely rapper who goes by the name Killa P, although her real
name is Patricia Dombrowski. Killa P’s goal is to blow up and gain fame in the
hip-hop world. While on her personal and professional journey of discovery she
is met with opposition, setbacks and lots of disappointment, but she remains
undeterred. As luck would have it, one day she comes upon a mysterious man
named Basterd (Athie), who piques her interest. She follows him home only to
discover he’s a brilliant music producer, who refers to himself as the anti
Christ. After some persistence and
persuasion, he agrees to help her on her musical quest.
Athie, a Yale School of Drama graduate, is
described by Patti Cake$’ first time
feature film director Geremy Jasper (best known as a commercial and music-video
director) as an actor who “Brought real depth and authenticity to a far-out
character. He’s an actor with a capital A and we were so lucky to get
him.”
Patti Cake$ was a hit at the Sundance Film Festival,
resulting in a bidding war that was won by Fox Searchlight for $9.5 million.
I recently
caught up with Athie to talk about his role, the film and his career, which
includes having made his stage debut opposite Diane Lane and Tony
Shalhoub in The Mystery of Love and Sex
at the Lincoln Center Theater, playing
Grandmaster Flash on Baz Luhrmann’s The
Get Down on Netflix, starring in the NBC comedy pilot Me & Mean Margaret and appearing in The Circle based on Dave Eggers’ novel of the same name. Athie is a
busy, highly sought after actor whose star is on the rise.
DD: What drew
you to the role of Basterd?
MA: The
director, Geremy Jasper. Initially I had reservations. I said, ‘I don’t think
I’m the person to play this part.’ I have a religious background. Long story short,
a friend of mine and a casting director - they both hit me up and said I need
to come in for this part. I met Geremy and I said, ‘Oh, please let me in your
movie. He has an extreme sensitivity. He
has a way of protecting himself from the world. That's his armor. That’s an interesting way to go about life.
He is overtly rebellious.
DD: You
mentioned that you have a religious background.
MA: I came from
an extremely religious background. We are a Christiam family. My mom does
mission trips occasionally. I’m very much a Christian as well.
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| Mamoudou Athie as 'Basterd' in Patti Cake$ |
DD: Any
apprehension in playing a character who calls himself the anti-Christ?
MA: That was literally my thing. That’s what I
was concerned about. I thought, ‘I don’t think this is for me.’ Then I met Geremy
and the casting director and I talked to my friend Yahya. This is a great
script.
DD: Describe
your character, Basterd, for me.
MA: He’s an
introvert. He lives alone. He’s an extraordinarily talented musician. His is a post,
punk industrial hardcore kind of music. He’s in to all kinds of music. He has
specific tastes. He has a great ear. He is sensitive. One of the things that
connects him and Patti is that they are lonely.
DD: What do you
like/dislike about him?
MA: I love him. He’s a great guy. He’s innocent
in an extraordinary way. There’s not a lot I didn’t like about him except maybe
that penchant for calling himself the anti Christ. In terms of who he is – he’s
a sweetheart.
DD: Is there any
part of your character that you can identify with? Are you like him at all?
MA: Absolutely.
I’m not as sensitive, but I can be at times. I think he has a deep love for his
friends. So do I. Those are the two things I share with him.
DD: How did you
go about developing Basterd?
MA: I feel like a lot of it came from outside
help, like Jon Carter, who helped with the hair, the dreads. That wasn’t my
hair. I couldn’t tell where my hair stopped and the clips began.
DD: Do you have
to like a character in order to play them?
MA: I know there
is an argument for that, but I don’t think so. You should find a point of view
and find something within yourself that can relate. There are certain situations
where you’re dealing with a morally reprehensive person like a neo nazi or a
rapist. You don’t have to like that guy to play them. If you take the job you
have to do it. You have to get into their skin. You can feel disgusted. I’ve
played characters that weren’t the best of people.
DD: How do you
go about shaking off characters that weren’t the best of people?
MA: When I was
younger, I played characters closer to me. When I do it, I do it. I don’t have
too much of an issue. Although I will say this, if you say something enough it
will have an effect on you.
DD: The movie is
about a female rapper pursuing her dream. Do you like rap? If so, do you have a favorite rapper?
MA: I do like
rap. I can’t get enough of Tribe [Called Quest]. I don’t listen to a lot of
today’s rap, though.
One of my
favorite songs is by De La Soul. They are just great. Eye Know is one of my favorite songs. Ok, I’m going to sound corny
when I say this, but I don’t care. It’s so open-hearted. The lyrics are
amazing. It’s a beautiful song. Tribe has a lot of songs like that.
DD: What kind of
director is Geremy Jasper? Were you able to adlib?
MA: He was open
for anything. This was his first feature film. He was so generous. The sun was
setting and he would offer me another take. He was totally down for adding more
lines. The interesting thing for Basterd or Bob was that he listened a lot.
DD: You are a
Yale trained actor. Why did you want to
become an actor?
MA: I went
through three stages. When I was a kid it looked like a lot of fun and I thought
I could make a lot of money. Then when I went to school, I started to get
obsessed with acting in a technical way. Then, in my final year of grad school
I honed into how I can do it for the rest of my life. It felt like being an
actor would be a socially useful piece of art.
DD: Your
director, Geremy Jasper, had nothing but praise for you. Following is his quote about you. “He was clearly really sharp, but he is so
different from Basterd when you meet him,” says Jasper. “He was very preppy and
I just didn’t see it. But he brought real depth and authenticity to a far-out
character. He’s an actor with a capital A and we were so lucky to get
him.” Your thoughts about what he had to
say about you?
MA: That’s
actually amazing, generous and moving. I love that guy so much. I think he’s brilliant. That means the world
to me. He’s the next rising hotshot in town.
DD:
What’s next for you?
MA: I’m doing Unicorn Store opposite Brie Larson. This is her directorial debut. She is
incredible. It will be shown on Sept 11, at TIFF (Toronto International Film
Festival). I call it the sister project
to Patti Cakes. I love this movie so
deeply. I’m also doing a blockbuster
thriller called Underwater.
(Unicorn Store is about a
woman named Kit who receives a mysterious invitation that would fulfill her
childhood dreams.) The film also stars Samuel L. Jackson, Joan Cusack and
Bradley Whitford.
(Underwater is about a crew
of underwater researchers who must scramble to safety after an earthquake
devastates their subterranean laboratory.
The movie stars Kristen Stewart, Vincent Cassel, John Gallagher Jr., T.
J. Miller, Jessica Henwick). The film is
set for a 2018 release.)
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| The cast of Patti Cake$ |
DD: The chemistry between the Patti Cake$ cast seemed authentic.
MA: The cast,
particularly Danielle, was incredible. As we come to the close of this press
junket thing, I miss them already. They were and are such a pleasure to work
with.
Patti Cake$ stars Danielle Macdonald (Every Secret Thing, The East), Bridget
Everett (Trainwreck, Fun Mom Dinner),
Siddharth Dhananjay, Sahr Ngaujah (Broadway’s “Fela!,” Money Monster), McCaul Lombardi (American Honey, Sollers Point), Wass Stevens (Public Morals, House of Cards) with hip hop legend MC Lyte (The Dempsey Sisters, Civil Brand) and
Cathy Moriarty (Raging Bull, Analyze That).
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