Exclusive interview: Matthias Schweighfer talks Netflix action epic Heart of Stone, Oppen

This interview was conducted in June 2023, before the start of the SAG-AFTRA strike.

Netflix has bet big on the action genre, and the streaming service’s latest blockbuster Heart of Stone has already been talked up by the key creatives as having the potential to rival James Bond, Mission: Impossible, and Jason Bourne as the newest globetrotting espionage saga on the block.

Produced by and starring Gal Gadot, director Tom Harper’s latest finds intelligence operative Rachel Stone tasked to protect a mysterious – and dangerous – piece of technology known as The Heart. To do so, she requires the help of Charter, a spy network that utilizes the cutting-edge technology to stay one step ahead of the villains. Or try, at the very least.

A huge helping hand comes from Matthias Schweighöfer’s Jack of Hearts, the erstwhile “Guy in the Chair” who maintains mission control from a top secret location. No stranger to action-packed Netflix originals after starring in Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead before headlining and directing spin-off prequel Army of Thieves, the actor gets to play an entirely different type of character this time around.

Prior to Heart of Stone‘s debut this Friday, Aug. 11, We Got This Covered had the chance to speak to Schweighöfer about the movie, how he got to grips interacting with things that weren’t always there, whether he wants to get his hands dirty in a sequel, an ingenious Army of the Dead crossover and much more, which you can check out below.

You’re one of Netflix’s go-to guys after Army of the Dead, Army of Thieves, The Swimmers, and now Heart of Stone, so how does it feel to be single-handedly carrying an entire streaming service on your back?

Matthias Schweighöfer: It’s a lot of pressure. You know, I always said “Yes, I can.” To be honest, I’m really happy to have such a great relationship with the Netflix people and to be part of all these movies, because I can explore this international world. I was a guy born in the east of Germany, you know, when the wall still was up. And now I can work with all these great directors and actors and producers. And yeah, but to be honest, it’s it’s loads of pressure, loads of pressure, sleepless nights.

It’s a big, broad, and action-packed movie, but everything from the plot to the action scenes and even the opening titles have a classic, old school spy movie flavour, is that a type of filmmaking you’ve always been a fan of, or were there plenty of other reasons why you wanted to join the project?

Matthias Schweighöfer: To be honest, I’m always a huge fan of old school things, because it’s about taking some time and you know, telling different stories. That’s what I love. When I read the script for the first time, and I heard that Gad Gadot is playing Rachel Stone, kind of a female Bond, I was super intrigued and super interested. And then when it came to my character, I read the script and I thought, “Okay, this guy has to do all these choreographies and he’s kind of love with, in a relationship with a computer, AI-driven thing.” I kind of fell in love with that part. So I said, “Yes, I want to be part of it.”

A lot of your performance requires acting against things that aren’t necessarily there on set, with a lot of elements being added in post-production. Does that make it more difficult for you as a performer to get to grips with the scene, or is it the sort of challenge you look forward to, being able to trust your instincts to make sure you get it right so it’s seamless once the rest is added in?

Matthias Schweighöfer: These questions are amazing. We had… I mean, for what I did the first time I had a choreographer, he was like a dance movement choreographer. And he really, it was really funny because I had to dance, like kind of make this dance in this dark room. And we really had to build and form a language, because you know, what is exactly that movement or with that line to that word to do that action, I have to do this and that. So it was really interesting.

And I never thought it would be that tough. Because after every take the choreographer came to me and said, “No, no, that was wrong. You have to remember, it’s just taking this to here, it’s not only doing this, you have to do it this way.” So it was like, and sometimes I really had to laugh my ass off, to be honest, because doing all these crazy choreographies in a dark room next to Gal Gadot, who was looking at me. And I, you know, sometimes looked her in her eyes, and I saw that she was just like, “What is he doing? What is he doing now?” It was a great time.

In the broadest terms relating to the action movie, your role is “the guy in the chair,” who orchestrates from afar. On paper it reads like an archetype, so how did you approach both the character and your performance to ensure that you were bringing something new and fresh to a part that’s been a staple of the genre for so long?

Matthias Schweighöfer: Yeah, I mean, it’s because he is operating the computer and we found out – or we created – that Jack of Hearts is yeah, that this is his life. Yeah. The relationship he has is not being ears and eyes for Gal’s character. It’s just having a relationship and really fighting for this relationship with a computer, because that’s all he has. So everything is very existential, and that’s what I loved about it.

Because immediately you have this kind of underdog who is totally weird, and like this nerd dude. We all know these people and we have like, even in the family when we have, even on Christmas, there’s always the one guy in the family. And you know that there’s something like totally awkward. And that’s Jack of Hearts, but in a good way, with loads of heart.

Did you ever find yourself getting jealous at all knowing there are some cast members getting into shootouts, fistfights, car chases, and running away from explosions, which isn’t a part of the movie that your character gets too heavily involved in?

Matthias Schweighöfer: No, no, no. I mean, I saw the movie and I thought, Oh my God, these days, they’ve been like really hard when all the other actors and all my colleagues had to do all the stunt scenes, and all these crazy, very dangerous looking scenes, and I had a totally fantastic cold room just for myself. The toilet was nearby, and the coffee machine. Fantastic day. No jealousy.

There’s an ending that not only leaves the door wide open for a sequel, but sets you up to have a much more hands-on role in it, so is that something you’re looking forward to, or based on what you’ve just said, absolutely terrified about?

Matthias Schweighöfer: I mean, it would be really funny if there would be a sequel. Of course, it would be funny to throw this guy into all these action-driven sequences, you know, because it would be really funny to see him like, somewhere even skiing down a mountain with a computer. You know, “Oh my God, I want to die! What am I doing now?” This would be really, really nice. So cross fingers, there will be a sequel, and Jack of Hearts will be back. You know, doing some action and feeling the love.

As well as Heart of Stone, you’ve got Oppenheimer this summer, so it’s shaping up to be the summer of Schweighöfer with a blockbuster action movie and a Christopher Nolan film arriving just weeks apart.

Matthias Schweighöfer: Yeah. I mean, even the Chris Nolan movie, even Oppenheimer is a dream. It’s still a dream because… but for example, on the first day on Oppenheimer, it really helped me because Cillian Murphy and Tom Harper, the director of Heart of Stone, they’re friends, and they did Peaky Blinders together. And that was the first day when I was so nervous. I, you know, I sweat like, you know, when you say hi to someone, and you have like oceans under your arms.

That was even just the first five minutes on a Christopher Nolan set. So I said hi to Cillian Murphy. And he was just like, “Oh my God.” No, when I met Cillian the first time I said, “Hey, I’m doing this movie with Tom Harper.” And he said, “Oh my God. Yeah, Tom told me about it, it’s called Heart of Stone.” And that was the icebreaker, you know, for us. And after that everything was super cool. So, yeah, but I can’t wait to see Oppenheimer. That was a bucket list thing. Same with Heart of Stone.

Out of your two biggest Netflix characters, who do you think would fare best doing the other’s job? Would Dieter be any good at working for a major spy organization, or would Jack fare better as a safecracker? In fact, it would be hilarious just to see them share a scene to see what happens.

Matthias Schweighöfer: To be honest, I think Jack of Hearts would try to understand a safe, and will stare at it, but would totally be lost without a computer. It would be very silent movie, I think. But having Dieter in that world is always fun. You know, Ludwig Dieter is a character I really love, but I think maybe Jack of Hearts and Ludwig Dieter… are brothers. Think about this.

That’s the crossover sorted.

Matthias Schweighöfer: Imagine! This would be funny. “Oh my gosh, you look like me?” “Yes.” “Yeah, but, but totally different.” This would be really funny. I mean, imagine these two characters together in the film. Let’s call Netflix.

Well, if that happens I’m going to take all the credit for it.

Matthias Schweighöfer: Yes, of course. Of course. That was your idea.

Heart of Stone premieres on Netflix this Friday, Aug. 11, and Oppenheimer is playing in theaters everywhere.

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