David Ayer Interview | HEART OF THE BEAST, Brad Pitt & Making the Film

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David Ayer discusses the emotional core of his new film *Heart of the Beast*, focusing on the profound bond between Brad Pitt's character, James, and his dog, Odin. Although Ayer has not owned a dog since childhood, his family's German Shepherd helped him understand the deep trust and familial connection animals share with humans, which became essential for portraying this relationship authentically. The production utilized four dogs to play Odin, with the lead actor Uber chosen for his unique soul and presence, while younger stunt doubles assisted in physically demanding scenes like running through fields. Ayer highlights that Uber possessed a rare quality of heart that made him perfect for the role, ensuring the audience could feel the genuine love between the soldier and his companion. The physical commitment required from Brad Pitt was extraordinary, as he performed many of his own stunts without relying on doubles for safety or convenience. Pitt engaged in underwater work, pulled cases out of a plane, swam in alpine lakes, and even endured being kicked out of a helicopter with a camera attached to him while walking across glaciers. Ayer praises Pitt's vulnerability and willingness to open his heart to the camera, noting that the actor brought total commitment to every shot, often continuing to limp after taking a break from intense action sequences. This dedication extended to the film's musical score by composer Jared Michael Fry, whom Ayer has worked with multiple times on projects ranging from *The Beekeeper* to this latest feature. Fry is described as a talented collaborator who is willing to experiment and rewrite music until it perfectly matches the delicate emotional needs of the story, acting as a crucial partner in bringing the film's atmosphere to life. The script itself resonated deeply with Ayer on multiple levels, touching upon themes of a veteran's journey after losing their comrades, the unconditional love animals provide, and his own childhood loss of his father. These personal connections drove him to tell this specific story, as he sought to explore how individuals find support and healing through relationships that choose them rather than the other way around. Ultimately, the film aims to capture the magic of these bonds and the resilience required to face life's dangers, whether from nature or internal struggles.

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So, kind of a fun question I want to ask you. If it's life or death, you can only pick one, okay? And you you have like like a stick or a knife. Would you rather face a moose charging at you like in this film, a giant grizzly bear or three raging wolves trying to bite your neck off? >> As you can see, I'm a big fan of your work. >> Right on. Thank you. >> Yes, sir. I really love Fury as well. And um also just want to say thank you for your service. Uh have a lot of respect for that. And I've seen the film twice now and loved it even more the second time around. So you know good job two uh thumbs up. So starting off personally I have not owned a dog since I was a child. >> But after seeing this film and the way that you portrayed the strong bond, the strong relationship between Brad's character James and his lovely companion >> Odin, I want to adopt a dog immediately or go pick one up off the street. And I was also under the impression that you only use one dog to portray Odin, but you use four. So, can you talk a little bit about that process, the challenges that may arise? And also, do you have any pets yourself or a dog that helped influence the making of this film? >> Yeah, I mean, I I learned about dogs. uh you know we had a family uh German shepherd Nenah who lived to be 12 and and so seeing how much they become a part of your family and seeing the trust they have for you really helped me understand this movie I don't know if I would have been able to do that you know otherwise and we got lucky with Uber who plays Odin you know we did a a big casting call in New Zealand and met every dog in the island and >> Uber just had soul, man. He has presence. He has like like these eyes, this heart. But like any good actor, um any great actor, he's going to have his stunt doubles. So he had a few stunt doubles who happen to be his sons. Uber's a little bit older, you know, so you know, running through the field and and some things like that. Uh he had a little bit of help with. >> Okay. We all know that Brad Pit is great. You worked with him 12 years ago in Fury, but working with him now 12 years later, are there any big differences? And how did Brad approach the role of James for like physicality and emotion? And was there anything about his performance that exceeded your expectations? >> Yeah, I mean with Brad's performance, there's two two ways he kind of blew me away. One is just his vulnerability, you know, and really opening up his heart for the camera and and willing to be in in a tough place emotionally and sharing that. You know, an actor's instrument is is their life and their heart and their experience and and when they can connect with that, there's nothing like it. And that's what he did. And then his his physical stamina. Um, you know, the way he threw himself into the work, you know, he did the underwater work. He's pulling cases out of that plane for real. You know, he's swimming in an alpine lake for real. It's, you know, we we kicked him out of a helicopter with a camera, you know, and he's walking across glaciers. Uh put him up in a in a small plane and flew it around in in some pretty intense conditions. And >> he was up for everything like and you know, I'd call cut, you know, a shot of him limping call cut. And then he's even limping more after that. you realize like he's just bringing it in a way total commitment. >> Okay. The land and nature in this films are a character in themselves. >> But what stood out to me more is the score by Emmy nominated composer Jared Michael Fry. A scene comes to mind in particular where brass character James is crawling up a hill and the piano starts playing. My favorite scene out of the whole movie. It it was very very moving. And this is your third time working with Jared as a composer from a working man, the beekeeper, and now Heart of the Beast. So, what is it about Jared as a composer that keeps making you want to work with him? >> Jared is um I'm going to tell you a little secret about him. He he does a lot of ghost writing for some real bigname composers, you know, and >> he's willing to keep trying and willing to rewrite and willing to experiment, but he just has an understanding of of music and instruments and composition and and you know, something like this was so delicate and so important that score, you know, it's like a like a big old school movie and and music is one of your best collaborators, you Yeah, this film is very emotional. Last night during the screening, you can hear all the sniffing and crying from the people in the audience. And so when you read the script, did you actually started crying? And if so, that's no judgment at all. But where did that emotional reaction come from? Did it have to do maybe with your relationship with pets or animals or dogs, your military background, and how that ties into Brad's character, James, with him being part of the military, serving in the military, or was it a combination of those things or something else entirely? >> Yeah, I mean, reading that script hit me on on a lot of different levels. just that veteran's journey of coming out of an intense experience with the best friends you're going to have in your life doing something that's probably the most important thing you're going to do in your life and and then that goes away and who are you in the quiet understood that um also yeah having a dog and and going through that relationship and understanding the the power of the heart when you really connect and and you know dogs choose us we didn't choose them you know right? >> They showed up for us and and and they prefer us over each other which is pretty magic. But um you know I lost my father when I was real young and uh there's something in the script that connected me to that where I wish I had you know that kind of love that kind of relationship in my own life growing up and that kind of support and unconditional love. So, as a filmmaker, you want to find material you connect to personally and and it was just a story I had to tell. >> Right on. Right on. Now, you're not a small guy. You're like 6'2, 63. You served in the military in the the US Navy again. So, respect that. So, I think it's safe to say that you know how to handle yourself when you're facing dangerous situations. So, tying this to Brad's character James, there was a number of animals that he faced in this movie. So, kind of a fun question I want to ask you. If it's life or death, you can only pick one. Okay. And you you have like like a stick or a knife. Would you rather face a moose charging at you like in this film, a giant grizzly bear, or three raging wolves trying to bite your neck off? >> Oh man. How about none of them? Um maybe an alleycat. Uh man. Uh I'll I'll I'll take I'll take the moose. >> Okay. >> I'll take the moose. Maybe I can sidestep it a little bit, you know, and get out of the way. You know, the bear is going to keep coming. He's got claws. >> I I think I would take the bear, but that's that's just me. That's just me. That I love the response, though. But Mr. Air, thank you so much uh for your time. I really do appreciate this, and I can't wait to see everyone's reaction with the film. >> All right. Appreciate you. Thank you. Yes, sir.