Actor David Oyelowo says he had reserved his goofy side for his children and friends but is now excited to show it to the world through Gringo.

Gringo, also starring Charlize Theron, Amanda Seyfried and Joel Edgerton, combines dark humour with dramatic intrigue. It is directed by Nash Edgerton. 

"Before Gringo came along, I had never done a dark comedy. The goofy side of me had always been reserved for my kids and my friends. So for me, Gringo was a great opportunity to express that part of my personality," says David Oyelowo. 

Gringo revolves around mild-mannered businessman Harold (Oyelowo) who is assigned the task of delivering the formula of a new weed pill to a lab in Mexico and all the obstacles he faces. It is set to release on March 9. 

Oyelowo brought some of his own ideas into the project. 

"I challenged Nash to make Harold a Nigerian immigrant," says the actor.

The Selma star adds: "My parents are Nigerian and I lived in Nigeria for seven years, so that element gave me something I could really relate to. I wanted to bring something fresh to the role because when you have a character who is deemed a loser, there are temptations to go for fairly low-hanging fruit by making him an overweight nerd wearing glasses. I felt having Harold be a Nigerian in Mexico was an interesting way to truly make him a fish out of the water."