John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein wanted Mayday’s aerial action to feel physically believable, even when visual effects were needed to finish the illusion. The filmmakers explain how real pilots, practical cockpit rigs, footage of French jets over the Mediterranean, and volume technology helped ground Ryan Reynolds’ Cold War adventure.
In this Collider interview, Daley and Goldstein break down the making of Mayday, starring Ryan Reynolds and Kenneth Branagh, including an ejection sequence that transitioned to a stunt performer dropping 150 feet down a tree. They also reveal the logistical challenge of shooting the movie’s climactic Moscow parade sequence in Budapest with roughly 1,000 extras, a dozen Soviet tanks, and an ICBM launch vehicle.
The directors also discuss building full-size train cars for an ambitious chase, finding room for Reynolds and Branagh to improvise within their carefully honed script, and why the actors’ contrasting styles made them such an appealing pairing. Plus, they explain the movie’s “ugly beautiful” East Bloc aesthetic and how lessons from Game Night and Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves shaped their approach to balancing comedy, action, scares, and heart.
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