“The second reason I was attracted to the project was the opportunity to shoot fight scenes in a way that’s never been done before,” Wadlow continues. He learns this lesson from the mixed martial arts instructor Jean Roqua, and I had this feeling that seeing Jake grow emotionally, as he improves physically, could be really compelling. Of course, the tragic irony is that more than ever he needs a strong paternal figure to teach him an important lesson: It’s not just him everyone struggles in life, and it’s our responsibility to make the best of every situation. “Here’s a guy who lost his dad and deals with that trauma by lashing out at the world. “I immediately connected to the emotional story of Jake Tyler,” Wadlow says. In fact, the emotional and physical facets of the film drew Wadlow to the project and made all the other challenges worthwhile. And the shooting schedule included both long days and nights, filmed in Florida’s grueling summer humidity. There were intricate, fast-paced MMA sequences coupled with the character-driven relationship between the master fighter and mentor Jean Roqua and his truculent student Jake. The film featured huge fight scenes populated by hundreds of extras, and it was punctuated by the intimate dynamics of a family in crisis and a young man’s struggle to make peace with his past. Never Back Down was an ambitious undertaking for young director Jeff Wadlow. I then asked (producer) David Zelon to get involved as he had a lot of knowledge and experience in the MMA world.” I met with screenwriter Chris Hauty and we hit it off. Producer Craig Baumgarten knew immediately after reading the script that “…it was a great idea for a movie. His decision will not just settle a score it will define who he is. For Jake, there is much more at stake than mere victory. Roqua will take Jake under his wing, but it is up to Jake to find the patience, discipline and motivation to succeed. It is immediately apparent to Jake that MMA is not street fighting, but rather an art form he’s determined to master. He tells Jake about the sport known as mixed martial arts (MMA) and invites him to meet with his coach, Jean Roqua (Djimon Hounsou). But it’s Jake’s enthusiastic, good-hearted classmate Max (Evan Peters), who sees a champion in Jake. He is defeated and humiliated in the fight and subsequently wary of everyone, especially Baja, who may have set him up. At her invitation, Jake goes to a party where he is unwittingly pulled into a fight with a bully named Ryan McCarthy (Cam Gigandet). She’s beautiful-and smarter than she lets on. Things take a turn when he meets Baja (Amber Heard) in class. It’s not long, however, before Jake’s troubled past re-emerges when a clip of a spectacular football-field fist fight from Iowa is forwarded around his new school. Quiet and withdrawn, he’s silently suffering from the recent loss of his father. Considered “the new kid” with his taciturn attitude and lumberjack attire, Jake’s not winning friends anytime soon, and that’s OK with him. Jake was a star athlete on the football team back home, but in this new city he is an outsider. The privileged teenagers of this American Dream on steroids want for nothing they zoom around upscale neighborhoods in expensive cars, wearing bikinis and flip-flops, affecting the jaded ennui of kids with too much, too soon. Orlando, Florida may as well be the moon for Iowa-native Jake Tyler (Sean Faris) with its ten-million dollar mansions set ten feet apart. Roqua will take Jake under his wing, but it is up to Jake to find the patience, discipline, willingness and reason within him to succeed. It is immediately apparent to Jake that MMA is not street fighting, but rather an art form he wants to master. He sees a star in Jake and asks that he meet with his mentor, Jean Roqua, played by Djimon Hounsou (Blood Diamond, In America). While he is defeated and humiliated in the fight, a classmate introduces himself to Jake and tells him about the sport known as Mixed Marshall Arts (MMA). Making an attempt to fit in, at the invitation of a flirtatious classmate, Baja (Amber Heard), Jake goes to a party where he is unwittingly pulled into a fight with a bully named Ryan McDonald (Cam Gigandet). Jake was a star athlete on the football team at home, but in this new city he is an outsider with a reputation for being a quick tempered brawler. He has recently moved to Orlando, Florida with his family who has relocated to support his younger brother’s shot at a professional tennis career. Jake Tyler, played by Sean Faris, is the new kid in town with a troubled past. Set against the action-packed world of Mixed Martial Arts, Never Back Down is the story of Jake Tyler, a tough kid who leads with his fists, and, often, with his heart.
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