Back in 2017, Jackie Chan worked alongside director Martin Campbell (from the James Bond franchise) on The Foreigner. Although the movie was very well-received by the audience, the director did have his fair share of terrifying activities while shooting.
Martin Campbell, known for his explosive movies, directed James Bond movies like Casino Royale, and GoldenEye. As per the reports, the director gave a real scare to the people of London when he actually exploded a bus right next to the Houses of Parliament!
When Jackie Chan And Martin Campbell Scared The People of London
Back in 2016, the James Bond director and superstar Jackie Chan were busy shooting The Foreigner. Depicting the story of a Londoner out to get revenge on the politically motivated terrorists that killed her daughter, Jackie Chan portrays the role quite beautifully.
For the shooting of the movie, director Martin Campbell wanted a hint of realism in the explosions. The director had the brilliant idea of actually exploding a London bus right beside the Houses of Parliament on Lambeth Bridge. As per the director, the filming took four months of negotiations but they had the blessing of the city councils and everybody else was also made aware of the upcoming explosions.
“Yes, the infamous bus explosion. We blew up a bus right next to the Houses of Parliament. That took four months of negotiations.”
Although the scene was shot properly with every safety equipment possible, Jackie Chan and Martin Campbell had quite received backlash. As per the director, Campbell recalled a newspaper headline calling the decision “moronic”.
When London Revolted Against Jackie Chan and Martin Campbell
Well, the people indeed had the right to be afraid since they were reminded of the 7/7 attack in London back in 2005. Several newspapers gave the front page headline to Martin Campbell and his decision of perfecting realism by criticizing the James Bond director.
“I remember The Daily Mirror, literally on the front page, said something about it being ‘moronic.’ It was a huge headline. What the paper says and what the truth was are two entirely different things. They acted like we didn’t tell anyone. We had the blessing of the local city council and everybody else. Everyone was tipped off.”
The director was indeed right since posters and warnings had been put on nearby buildings and citizens were alerted about the shooting of the exploding bus. Although the dup gave the people of London quite a scare, The Foreigner received a rating of 7/10 on IMDB and 66% on Rotten Tomatoes.
With explosions and Jackie Chan’s action in the mix, The Foreigner is available to rent on Apple TV+.
Source: USA Today
