Naomi Ackie, known for her roles in Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker and The End Of The F*ing World, is back with a new movie titled Blink Twice. This psychological thriller, directed by Zoe Kravitz in her directorial debut, stars Ackie alongside Channing Tatum and a star-studded cast.
The movie follows the story of Frida (played by Ackie), a cocktail waitress who meets tech billionaire Slater King (played by Tatum) at a fundraising gala. She gets invited to his private island for what seems like a dream vacation with him and his friends. However, things take a dark turn when strange events start happening, leading Frida on a dangerous journey to uncover the truth and survive.
Ahead of the film’s release, Pinkvilla had an exclusive interview with Naomi Ackie, where she shared her experience of transforming into Frida, the challenges she faced during filming, and her experience working with Zoe Kravitz and Channing Tatum.
From the trailer, Blink Twice appears to be light and sunny at one moment but quickly dives into dark and intense situations. When asked if there was a particularly challenging scene to film, Naomi mentioned one horrific scene that stood out. She said, “There’s this one scene that was really hard to shoot. We had to prepare a lot as a group. We all knew it had to be done to tell the story, even though it was tough. But overall, filming was an amazing experience. The thrill and the intense scenes, especially the running around, were really exciting. But that one scene was especially difficult for good reasons, and viewers will understand why when they watch the movie.”
Naomi also talked about her journey of becoming Frida in Blink Twice. She shared, “Zoe and I had a lot of conversations about the character. From the moment I read the script, I felt that this story mattered, and that’s important when choosing projects. For Frida, it was about understanding what it feels like to be someone who doesn’t know their direction in life but wants more, who sees others having things she doesn’t. That determination, without knowing where to put it, is something many people can relate to, and that’s what I wanted to bring to Frida.”
Speaking about Zoe Kravitz as a director, Naomi expressed her admiration, saying, “Oh my god, it was amazing! Zoe made it look so natural, but I know it took a lot of practice. She put in a lot of hard work to create the story and had a clear vision by the time we started filming. She handled the daily stresses of directing incredibly well. She’s truly special, and I can’t wait to see her continue to grow in this field.”
Naomi also shared her experience of working with Channing Tatum, describing it as a treat. She said, “He’s one of the most supportive people I’ve worked with. Even though he’s been in the industry for a long time, he’s still so humble, wise, funny, and hardworking. I learned a lot from him because I’m still relatively new to this, with only about seven years in film. Watching him play a character like this was incredible, and it was a dream to work with him. The whole cast was amazing, and I feel privileged to call them my friends now. That’s really special to me.”
Blink Twice is produced by Amazon MGM Studios and features a talented cast including Christian Slater, Simon Rex, Adria Arjona, Haley Joel Osment, Kyle MacLachlan, Geena Davis, and Alia Shawkat. The film is distributed internationally by Warner Bros. Pictures and is set to release in cinemas in India on August 23, 2024.
