ComingSoon Editor-in-Chief Tyler Tories spoke to Next Goal Win star Oscar Kitely about the sports movie. A football film based on a true story directed by Taika Waititi is now available digitally, with Blu-ray and his DVD set to be released on February 27th.
“Based on a true story, this heartwarming underdog comedy follows the American Samoa soccer team, infamous for their 31-0 loss to FIFA in 2001,” the synopsis reads. “As World Cup qualifying approaches, the team hires down-on-their-luck maverick coach Thomas Rongen (Michael Fassbender), hoping he can turn the world’s worst soccer team into a winner. ”
Tyler Tories: What I really liked about Next Goal Wins is that it’s a true story. It’s inspirational and has a great message, but it’s not about the greatest person who ever did anything. It’s more grounded and more relatable. What was it like knowing that you had the opportunity to tell this amazing story to such a wide audience through this film?
oscar kitley:For certain of us, the fact that we were able to have this opportunity and that it was the story of our world was huge. And for Americans, the only thing they probably know about American Samoans is the stars they see in the NFL.
But this was a different side of the people, and that was really cool. Aside from the fact that we were going to shoot in Hawaii and be there for a few weeks, that’s when I knew I was going to be a part of it. It was special to get the story out there. Because I love what you said about how it was grounded and made it more relatable. Because I know that’s what I already love.
In the end, they failed to qualify. Being able to participate in the Olympics was no icing on the cake. And what Taika says about this movie is that it’s okay to lose. What does that actually mean? Back when our culture was a zero-sum game, and even in sports, there has to be a winner. But there’s always a flip side to it.
So I’m very happy to be a part of it and I’m very happy that he was able to put a different spin on the typical conversations that we have about this kind of thing.
One of the points you touched on was being able to show American Samoa to more people. What was it like showing off a side of the culture? Although the focus is on sports, there are a lot of sides shown throughout the movie that I wasn’t particularly aware of. Makes me want to do more research.
Yes, it was very big. It was huge. That means a lot.
If you add up all the Samoans in the world, including the population of Samoa, New Zealand, Australia, America and, of course, the original Samos, where we all live, we still only have about 700,000 people. Spring from. So the fact that we got to this point with Disney’s help, and even the fact that I had the opportunity to do press and talk to you guys and talk about other aspects of this experience, was huge. That was amazing.
Because normally I can’t remember the last kind of Polynesian movie. Can you think of one?Gary Cooper did it [in 1953.]. It was beautiful, Return to Paradise.And then there was Rapa Nui starring Jason Scott Lee and Esai Morales [in 1994,] A work set on Easter Island. But that doesn’t happen often. So it was cool to do a modern story like this.
You’re very funny throughout the movie, but let me ask you something: There are several scenes where you have boobs drawn on your face. Were you embarrassed or did it disappear because you couldn’t see it?
Honestly, bro, I know Taika designed the boobs. He drew it on full SCA paper and gave it to the makeup artist. Then she applied it very patiently every morning. And it was about a week that I had to put my boobs in my face.
To be honest, I forgot they were there. But throughout the day I was walking around, always getting weird smiles and weird looks, and I completely forgot about it. But now they’re there forever, and Taika, all I can say is thank you. But as long as it serves a purpose and adds to the entertainment value, I think that’s fine.
You deliver a lot of laughs, but it’s also one of the best moments in the movie. You give Michael Fassbender’s character this great speech during halftime. It’s a real turning point emotionally for this movie. What was it like filming that scene?
Well, thank you, Tyler. I’m glad you understand that.
Photographed in 2019. It was the last film shot before that. It was three years before transportation became possible due to the coronavirus pandemic. And that scene was one of the new scenes. Taika had taken some other shots, but I think he was probably still trying to find that moment. [The moment] Everything this particular genre of film is about, you described it as an emotional turning point. And that was one of them.
And, well, I have to say, I think we got there the night before. I enjoyed LA so much that I didn’t feel well the next day. It seemed a little suspicious. I actually threw up right before I did a scene in the morning and I don’t think I was in the best mood. It wasn’t my best time.
[So] This scene was happening and I was like, “Oh my god, what the hell is going on?” And I felt so terrible because Taika was finding out and finding out and trying to get us to change things,<笑>. And he improvised and came up with it and turned it around and said, “Try this.”
That’s why it wasn’t in the script. That’s what he found after working in the field for hours. [He knew] He had a moment of need, and it was a key moment. But yeah, I look at it too and think, “Yeah, I was really hungover that day, but I’m glad it ended okay.” So it worked!