Kevin Hart Doesn’t Think He’s Going to Stop Playing Serious Roles Anytime Soon After ‘Lift’
Kevin Hart has proven himself to be a capable dramatic actor in his own right. And after Lift, Hart was even more eager to show audiences what he could do as a leading man.
What the future holds for Kevin Hart after ‘Lift’
Lift belongs in the category of some of Hart’s less comedic efforts. The actor plays the leader of a band of thieves in the Netflix feature, which was a role that kept the jokes to an absolute minimum. Speaking with Collider, Hart confided that playing a more grounded character was what attracted him to the project. It also fit the exciting new direction that the actor is trying to take his career in.
“I just think that I’m at a point in my career where it’s a lot of years and a lot of IP under my belt, and I just wanna start to explore and just have some fun of change, and find new levels of talent that I can put on display for my fan base that I have,” Hart said. “And for those that may not be aware, maybe this is a way for them to become aware. If you don’t find anew, then things can get redundant, and I think you can get bored. So, always finding a reason to get up and get excited has always been a priority.”
The Central Intelligence star also hinted that audiences can expect to see more of this side of him in the future.
“The more serious role, the leading man, the guy being the mastermind, putting the pieces together, and letting the team around feed of that energy, that was a new space to play in and it is a space I don’t think I‘m gonna stop playing in anytime soon,” Hart recently told Forbes. “I now have some more lead way to do more, so we will see what the world brings after, but I think Lift is definitely the start of what will be more.”
Kevin Hart’s ‘Lift’ co-star almost made him tell more jokes in the film
Hart assembled an all-star team of actors to work with in the action movie. But his co-star’s own comedic chops made Hart briefly want to add more of his trademark humor to his role. The comedian collaborated with Billy Magnussen, who already demonstrated his own humor in the comedy Game Night. Magnussen’s skills were once again on full display in Lift, which caught Hart’s attention.
“Watching Billy in this movie was a lot of fun,” Hart said. “He is an amazingly talented guy, extremely funny, very very funny. It‘s always on the back of my head, like ‘oh that was good, I wish I did that or that I could have ping pong out of that more‘. But in this case, you gotta hold it back, and really just stay on the lane of seriousness and leader, and let the other one score, as much as they possibly can. That’s what the movie requires and that’s what is gonna make the movie better.’’
What Kevin Hart might have planned for a ‘Lift’ part 2
It might be too early to tell if Lift will get a sequel. But if the film’s success paves the way for a follow-up, Hart gave a taste of what it would look like. The Jumanji actor hinted it might actually be a prequel film.
“I think that’s where part 2 turns into. Part 2 is not about the next one, it is about the first one,” Hart said. “It is the one that got them to this, that dives a little deeper, that tells you who they are, so you understand why the Feds were like ‘Ok, we wanna go to Cyrus’, what was the things they were close to catching, and the things that they didn’t catch.’ You go backwards.”
But the direction of Lift all depended on the audience.
‘’When you have those conversations, you’re having them based on what the level of engagement and reception is, from the fanbase, we wanna see people show up, fall in love with the characters and story, if done correctly, then you’re looking at a future where we’re talking about Lift 2. In success, I definitely think we will be seeing more [to] that but I don’t like to speak prematurely,” Hart said.
