Halle Berry and Mark Wahlberg have a new movie coming out on Netflix on Friday, August 16. It’s a spy thriller called The Union that costars J.K. Simmons, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Mike Colter, and Alice Lee. The trailer, which you can watch below, makes the movie looks fun, minus the whole Mark Wahlberg aspect of it. Surely, there are better actors out there to cast in these kinds of films.
To promote the movie, Halle and Marky Mark did an interview with People. Since The Union had a lot of stunt work, the actors started talking about all of the different skills they’ve had to learn for roles over the years. For example, Mark had to learn how to crochet, as well as do ballet and the tango while Halle learned kickboxing, how to shoot and hold her breath under weather, as well as a ton of martial arts. As they were listing off their acquired skills, the topic turned into all of the times they’d been injured while filming action movies. Halle shared that not only has she broken her arm, ribs, tailbone, toes, and middle finger, she’s also been knocked out three – yes THREE – times while on set.
The actress sat down with The Union costar Mark Wahlberg for an interview surrounding their new Netflix film, where they listed off the physical ailments they’ve endured on the sets of action movies.
Berry, 57, began by sharing that for work over the years, she learned Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Muay Thai, kickboxing, taekwondo and how to shoot, as well as capoeira specifically for 2004’s Catwoman. After Wahlberg, 53, lamented having to learn to crochet and to dance ballet and the tango (the latter of which he dubbed “the worst”), Berry added, “I’ve been knocked out three times.”
The Academy Award winner went on to recall that she has broken an arm, five ribs (two while filming her 2021 directorial debut Bruised and three on 2019’s John Wick: Chapter 3), her tailbone, two toes and one of her middle fingers.
For his part, Wahlberg said he has suffered a torn meniscus and a separated shoulder, joking that he has also had his “ego bruised quite a few times.”
Additionally, Berry said that she trained to hold her breath for nearly two and a half minutes for her 2012 film Dark Tide, which “felt like eternity.”
As for her time as Storm in the X-Men films, being suspended in the air for the superhero role also presented its own set of challenges.
“It felt like the guy had gone to lunch. That’s how long I was up there,” Berry said. “I was like, ‘Hello? Hello, anybody?’ “
Holy moly, what the heck was happening on those sets?! We’ve heard tales from actors like Tom Cruise and Russell Crow about getting injured while filming, but is that normal for an actress to have that many injuries over the course of so many films? Are there not stunt coordinators or trainers or anyone around to make sure people are doing stunts properly? Oh, and you know that Marky Mark thought he was going to come in and be a badass with his tales of a torn meniscus and separated shoulder, lol. Whomp, whomp.
At the movie’s premiere, Halle embraced this year’s trend of wearing a see-through dress. Thoughts? I normally don’t like dresses like this, but Halle is rocking it and I like the black lacy pattern, so I’ll make an exception here. At first, I thought it was a body suit, which I think would have looked kinda cool, too. I also like her hair that length.
Here’s the trailer for The Union:
Photos credit: Laura Radford/Netflix, Getty Images for Netflix, Jeffrey Mayer / Avalon
Halle looks amazing and i too hate these naked lace dresses.
As for Marky Mark, he seems to be quite powerful behind the scenes. Otherwise, who would hire him? He is unwatchable.
I usually can’t stand these dresses, but she struck just the right balance. She is fully covered up, while still showing skin.
The stunts she does in John Wick (along with the dogs) are insane! She’s an amazing action star, and the training shows!
Concussion is TBI. She’s at increased risk for cognitive impairment and dementia.