Paul Rudd has revealed that one of the biggest reasons he signed on for the upcoming action-comedy Anaconda was the chance to finally share substantial screen time with Jack Black, someone he openly calls a personal hero.
Speaking to People, during an interview the two actors gave together, Rudd said opportunities like this don’t come around often. “Every once in a while, something will happen where I’m afforded the opportunity to get to work with a hero of mine,” he said, before affectionately turning his attention to Black. “It happened on this one in the form of this old hunk of love.”
Anaconda, set for a Christmas release, marks the first time Rudd and Black have taken on lead roles together, despite having crossed paths briefly in films such as Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy and Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, where they appeared as Beatles icons John Lennon and Paul McCartney, respectively.
Rudd said he thoroughly enjoyed watching Black at work this time around, noting that this was the first project where he truly got to see his co-star in full flow. He described the admiration Black commands on set as completely deserved, adding that what impressed him most was the actor’s warmth and generosity toward everyone, especially children. According to Rudd, Black made every interaction feel special, no matter the time or place, something he found genuinely inspiring.
The actor also had praise for the rest of the ensemble, including Steve Zahn and Thandiwe Newton, stressing that the camaraderie among the cast was what made the experience memorable. “It’s the people, really, right?” Rudd said.
Black echoed the sentiment, pointing out that Anaconda felt particularly personal because the characters they play are filmmakers chasing their dreams, not unlike themselves. “In a way we are playing ourselves,” he said, adding that the story hit close to home. “These friends are going out to make their dreams come true. And that’s how I feel every time I go out to make a movie.”
In Anaconda, Rudd and Black play best friends Ronald ‘Griff’ Griffen Jr and Doug McCallister, who head deep into the Amazon rainforest in South America to reboot the 1997 cult thriller of the same name, which originally starred Ice Cube, Jennifer Lopez and Jon Voight. Their ambitious project takes a deadly turn when they find themselves hunted by a massive, bloodthirsty anaconda.
Reflecting on his time with Black, Rudd couldn’t resist offering one final compliment directly to his co-star, telling him that the way he treated everyone on set left a lasting impression. “You gave everybody a bit of a Jack Black experience,” he said, calling Black “a very good person” and saying it was a privilege to witness that energy up close.