Pop-Culturalist.com

Award-winning actor Gilles Marini is renowned for his exceptional ability to fully inhabit his roles. His career highlights include powerful performances in critically acclaimed films and series such as Dark Feathers, Sex and the City, Brothers & Sisters, and Switched at Birth.

His latest feature, Murder Company, is a riveting tale of resilience and bravery. Set against the backdrop of the D-Day invasion, it follows a group of U.S. soldiers tasked with smuggling a French resistance member behind enemy lines to eliminate a high-value Nazi target.

Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to speak with Gilles about Murder Company, how he was able to honor his family lineage through his performance, and more.

PC: You’ve done so much throughout your career. What was it about Murder Company and this character that resonated with you?
Gilles: What resonated with me is that it’s real. It’s based on a true story. I was born and raised in France. My entire family was involved with the resistance, experiencing trauma, losing people, and facing deportation. It was bad. The Second World War is something that many remember. We understand that tyranny should not come back. We understand that we have one life and we should strive to live it well, not in complete devastation and war. That’s what the Second World War was: devastation. Hopefully, by making a film like this, people will say, “I don’t want to go back there. No, thank you. I’m good,” because this film is so real. It was shot so realistically. I’ve never experienced anything like this before. You become that character real fast.

PC: Without giving any spoilers, your character has suffered a lot of loss in his life, and you brought so much depth and nuance to that, where you can see the toll it has taken on this character, both externally and internally. As an actor, how did you find your way into this character and create the space for yourself to tackle that emotional arc?
Gilles: You nailed it. I’ve been waiting to do a role like this for seventeen years. I’m going to tell you my inspiration—it’s my grandma. My grandma was a bit aloof. She never smiled or made jokes. She was hardened because of PTSD. She lived through horrific things that I can’t talk about. My entire life, I saw someone who was hurt. Before I even thought about being an actor, it was always very easy for me to recreate things. I always loved doing that. I know she’s a female, but with this character, I played my grandmother with the abilities that my father had because he was a sniper during his service. I went into the army too, so I was in tune with whatever weapon they put in my hand. We had the special forces of Bulgaria to help us get into character and make sure we were portraying things accurately.

For me, everything became very blurry every time I heard “action.” Every time, I was this person whose soul was crushed, and now the only light left in his life is to kill somebody. That’s deep. Of course, he appreciates the fact that he was rescued, but now he has a mission. Even the General of America understands that he’s the guy who can do the job. That’s the story. It’s really powerful. I’m really appreciative that the director and producer offered me this job.

PC: You’re absolutely captivating in it. Similar to yourself, this is a personal story for director Shane [Dax Taylor]. What was it like collaborating with him to bring this vision to life? Is there a different weight to a project like this, given how personal it is for both of you?
Gilles: You need to be one with the director because we don’t have 5,000 years to shoot it. We had like five minutes. [laughs] It was like, “This is your character. This is the script. Make it as real as possible.” Shane had that vision. Shane was like, “If I do it this way, it’s going to look proper.” I recently watched the film on my iPhone with bad reception, so it was stopping every five minutes because I was at a cabin up in the mountains, but I’ll say that I saw a couple of scenes that really affected me. This is the first time in my life that I’ve ever seen a scene of mine and felt that way. I’m my own worst critic. I saw this scene and it made me tear up. That’s never happened in my life. I was next to my wife with my cellphone. I was like, “This guy is in pain.” I was able to bring the pain of my family lineage into this role. I feel very proud that I was able to play a character like this.

PC: As an audience member, you feel that as well. Like you were saying, you shot this in Bulgaria. Between the scenic design and the costumes, everything is so immersive for audiences. How helpful was it having all those elements as you stepped into this role?
Gilles: I’m always so joyful when I get to set. I’m not a method actor. I don’t stay in character the entire time. I get to set, and I’m watching different things and studying while doing it. But as soon as I start putting the clothes on, the makeup, holding the weapon, sweating in the dirt, everything made it immersive. I was so focused on playing this guy. This character isn’t a joyful man. He’s experienced things. So I tried to portray that as much as possible for audiences to understand. He’s a character who isn’t afraid of dying. He’s lost his family. He doesn’t care about dying. If someone wants to try and kill him, they need to be careful because he’s going to kill them first. This is a man whose soul has been shattered.

PC: There’s a touching moment where your character reveals to the other soldiers why he’s doing what he’s doing. That chemistry is so palpable on screen and electric to watch. Many of these characters are discovering each other for the first time. How were you all able to build that bond on such a tight filming schedule?
Gilles: By not going home at night. We were all staying at the same hotel. You learn how the others live. What I do is we go out, have a drink, relax, and we become one. Then, when we get to set, it’s like I know that dude. With Pooch [Hall], I was giving him information on what I knew about France in 1944. From what I heard, for someone like Pooch, it’s dangerous for you here in France. You are the light in the darkness here. You need to be very careful. Character-wise, it’s going to be tough because you’re in a place where they don’t want you in America, and they don’t want you here. That helps quite a bit so that when we are on set and they yell “action,” we know where we are.

PC: You’ve worked on projects of all sizes. What is it about independent filmmaking that excites you as a storyteller and an artist?
Gilles: You can go up to the director, the producer, or the makeup artist, and say, “How about this?” You’re able to bring your creativity to the film a lot more than when there are nineteen bigwigs who think their ideas are better than yours. There’s a camaraderie there. Independent film gives you the freedom to be the artist that you are. You have the freedom to say things, to move, to try. There were a lot of things that I tried during that scene you were talking about. I literally saw my kids and wife dying. I was immersed in this story. The place that was bombed—I’m not kidding you—was in Bulgaria, and that place was completely dilapidated. You have soldiers around bleeding. You can’t be set up in a better way to be able to act in a way that you don’t even realize is acting. I love that. Thank you, Shane. It was great.

To keep up with Gilles, follow him on X and Instagram. Murder Company is in select theaters, on digital, and On Demand on July 5th.

Photo Credit: Maverick Film & Complex Corp