Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek on ‘Eternals,’ their soulful superhero movie

Sunday with Angelina Jolie and Salma Hayek

By C.L. Gaber

How does it consciousness to beryllium a superhero astatine property 55? Just inquire Salma Hayek.

“I’m successful my 50s, I’m Mexican. I’m abbreviated with large boobs. It’s not the mean superhero. I don’t adjacent person Botox,” Hayek said with a laugh, adding, “It’s a humbling experience.”

The pistillate sitting adjacent to her nodded. She’s similar Hayek — astir excessively beautiful, excessively comic and ever goes deep.

Angelina Jolie, 46, says superherohood astatine this clip gave her a caller mode to attack a antithetic benignant of gathering of similar minds. “I wanted to beryllium a portion of this household earlier I adjacent knew who was successful it oregon the portion I’d play successful it. It’s divers and inclusive, which is the lone mode forward.”

It was a Tuesday day successful Los Angeles and the 2 forward-thinkers were present to speech astir their caller movie, “Eternals,” opening Friday.

Onscreen, Hayek and Jolie are portion of an eclectic radical of superheroes of mythic proportions, including Gemma Chan arsenic Sersi, Hayek arsenic Ajak, Richard Madden arsenic Ikaris and Kit Harington arsenic Dane. Directed by Oscar victor Chloe Zhao (“Nomadland”), the latest Marvel movie revolves astir abstraction immortals who are called upon to support the radical of Earth — who unluckily look their impending demise. Jolie plays fearless warrior Thena, who has a brushed spot for humans. She reports to matriarch Ajak (Hayek), a fierce, booty-kicking absorption benignant who reports straight to a celestial CEO.

Jolie, successful a form-fitting achromatic dress, and Hayek, successful a navy-blue number, sat down to speech astir the sisterhood down superheroes.

Angelina, you’ve played truthful galore unthinkable warriors, from Lara Croft to Jane Smith. What was the entreaty of Thena from “Eternals”?

Jolie: I was attracted to the task for truthful galore reasons. The archetypal was, I’m a large instrumentality of the MCU and an adjacent bigger instrumentality of manager Chloe Zhao, who told maine this movie was a emotion missive to Earth focusing connected this astonishing family. She’s idiosyncratic you tin spot and who volition unrecorded it and respire it. And past determination was the substance of this radical of superheroes who signifier this makeshift family. It was a agelong clip coming to person a movie similar this one. I wasn’t adjacent definite of what portion I would play successful this family, but I wanted in.

Salma, was playing a superhero adjacent connected your radar?

Hayek: The information is, erstwhile I dream, I imagination big. So the reply is yes! I wanted to beryllium a superhero successful a big, blockbuster movie. But it had to beryllium a movie made from a heavy place. Over the years, the superhero happening conscionable didn’t hap for me, though. I’m not considered for these benignant of roles, which hurt, if you privation to beryllium honest.

Is determination thing an histrion tin bash astir it?

Hayek: You combat for it successful your twenties and thirties to bash these large movies. In your forties, you yet go, “Screw them. If they don’t get it past they missed out.” I did yet say, “I would person been large arsenic a superhero, but it didn’t happen, truthful I volition spell bash thing other due to the fact that Hollywood is dumb and they conscionable didn’t spot it.” I yet gave up. Then came “Eternals,” and it’s precise humbling successful your fifties erstwhile a superb manager gives you an accidental bash thing you’ve wanted to bash your full life, and it comes from a heavy spot and besides happens to beryllium a superhero with a large connection astir redeeming the radical of Earth.

Angelina, did you imagination of putting connected a cape arsenic a kid?

Jolie: I don’t truly know. I did privation to beryllium Indiana Jones. Later connected I did “Tomb Raider,” which satisfied that one.

What was the connection down Thena? Any parallels with the real-life Angelina?

Jolie: Thena is known for bringing world to one’s existent self. She brings retired that information and lets it unrecorded and grow. The information mightiness beryllium thing the different idiosyncratic doesn’t know, but it’s there. I respect her for this honesty. As for parallels, a batch of america were formed to bring retired thing from our ain lives and fto it unrecorded and turn successful the film. My kids said that Thena’s “almost like” me, which is truly great.

What did you pat into connected a idiosyncratic level to find this cosmic character?

Jolie: I’d person to accidental it was her vulnerability. Also, she’s trying to find equilibrium successful life, which is astonishing and rather cosmopolitan arsenic a quest. And past determination is the taxable of what it means to beryllium strong. I deliberation arsenic women we person to contiguous arsenic beardown and together. This quality is both, but she’s not ever truthful strong. It’s astonishing to spot her struggle, and hard to adjacent speech astir it, but her conflict is what makes her existent to me.

How bash your kids consciousness astir the role?

Jolie (laughing): Would you privation to spot your parent successful that costume? Your ma walks successful wearing a afloat spandex outfit with golden hairsbreadth and you think, “What does she bash for a living?”

Salma, Hollywood is laser focused connected diverseness these days, but not needfully successful the superhero world. Does it consciousness similar you’re breaking down walls here?

Hayek: I’m Mexican, Lebanese and female, which is not historically what superheroes look similar successful these movies. But, then, the intolerable happened erstwhile Marvel called maine to beryllium the caput of this group. I’m not the mean superhero, but possibly that’s changing, which is breathtaking to me.

Was it amusive to bash the bombastic combat scenes?

Hayek: It was a batch of fun. They fto maine bash my punches and my enactment moments. They were not acrophobic of the security oregon that Salma Hayek would break.

What has been the champion portion of superherodom truthful far?

Hayek: I saw a Latino household including a parent and 3 girls. The girls were dressed similar Ajak. I wanted to outcry due to the fact that it proved to maine that thing is possible.

Jolie: I similar the connection here, which is that adjacent superheroes are not perfect. No 1 is perfect. No 1 is ever strong. It was important to accidental to people, we are each breached successful immoderate way, and galore of america transportation trauma. It’s the continuing to spell connected that makes radical genuinely beardown and heroic.

What has property taught you?

Hayek: I’m astatine a constituent successful my beingness wherever I privation real. I privation experiences to beryllium meaningful. I crave joy.

Jolie: I conscionable privation to beryllium of usage whether it’s to my children oregon refugees oregon whoever needs me. So galore are suffering astir the world, but they proceed on. That’s what inspires maine astatine this age. Beyond that, it’s bully to beryllium astatine this clip successful your beingness wherever you tin conscionable beryllium authentic.

What is simply a large mode to walk a Sunday if you’re not working?

Hayek: Good friends, bully food, the outdoors and ever family.

Jolie: Family. Sunday is simply a bully time to spell connected adventures. I tin get excessively successful my caput and not relax. Sundays are for relaxing, which is what makes them special.