Adapted by Anthony Horowitz from his best-selling novel, STORMBREAKER follows 14 year old Alex Rider (Alex Pettyfer), trained all his life butwithout his knowledge to become a spy. Once his uncle, Ian Rider (Ewan McGregor) is killed under mysterious circumstances young Alex iscontacted by Britain’s secret intelligence service MI6.  Billionaire Darrius Sayle (Mickey Rourke) is going to donate a free Stormbreaker mega computer to every school in the country. Full of action and adventure STORMBREAKER keeps you on the edge of your seat while Alex used nothing but brains, bravery and his training to defeat the deadly Sayle. There is much more to this movie, but to be honest I really do not want to ruin it for you!

There are many people behind the scenes of STORMBREAKER, the ones who put this huge film together. One in particular is Peter Samuelson, who I have been conversing back and forth with for some time now. Samuelson has made many such movies as “Revenge Of The Nerds”, “Turk 182”, “Arlington Road and “The Gathering.” Head on over to IMDB.com for a list of others that I am sure you will be impressed with as well! Peter Samuelson is one of he lead producers of  “STORMBREAKER” and has given me permission to allow the fans a chance to get to know him and his work. I know Mr. Samuelson is a very busy man and for him to take the time out of his schedule for me to do this is a treat.

TA: I want to say first of all thank you for letting me have this opportunity.

PS:  Thank you, Tammy, for inviting me.

TA: I have been reading a little bit about what you do and where you studied. It looks like you have been in the business for a long time now. If one was to consider getting into the profession you are in, what do you recommend?

PS:  This business, like so many others, is really about the long haul.  I’d recommend building relationships with people you trust, forging a network of professionals who aren’t out for the fastest buck rather are interested in a twenty, thirty, forty-year plan of continuing to do what it is that they love doing for a living.  This is a risky business and you have to identify people’s strengths and play to them and hope they do the same for you. 

TA: Could I possibly talk you into maybe taking us a little way into “Stormbreaker” and what it was like working on the set?

PS:  It was an amazing experience to be on the set of Stormbreaker.  My brother Marc Samuelson and I have not made a picture quite like this before.  The stunts in particular were amazing.  One day on the way to the set, Anthony Horowitz (the author of the books and script writer) and I stopped by the Second Unit on a hillside.  They had two black military helicopters flying around a BMW that was zooming its way over the windy roads of the Isle of Man.  Out of one of the helicopters, traveling about 60 miles per hour was our Stunt Coordinator, Lee Sheward, hanging by his feet, upside down a few feet away from the side of the car.  The slightest error and the loss could have been terrible.  Totally in control.  Totally professional.  There were many, many other days that were amazing but I think I’ll remember that one for the rest of my life.

TA: Do you feel that this movie has somewhat of a message for the youth of today? Or is it something the kids will find to be just another teenage action adventure type persona?

PS:  I think Alex Rider as a character in the books and now in the movie who has a strong message for kids.  Alex has a sense of humor and a sense of his own power in the situations that he always being forced into.  Alex finds the courage inside himself to stand up to grown ups and he uses his wits to get out of dangerous situations rather than guns and brute force.  He’s a symbol of a smart, courageous young person who is not afraid to fight for those who cannot fight for themselves but he does so with his head and often not with brute force. 

TA: The movie has managed to bring forth an impressive cast of actors/actresses. We are curious however about one in particular actor we’ve not seen before, Alex Pettyfer. From what I can tell he seems to pull off the character rather well, just curious on your views with this young man and do you think that we will see more of him in the future?

PA:  We think Alex Pettyfer did an amazing job playing Alex Rider.  Obviously he is a very talented and handsome young man.  I think he’s going to go far in Hollywood.  We looked at hundreds of boys for this role and Alex was our first choice.

TA: One thing I was impressed with while researching you stood out. You work a lot with your brother Marc. I am curious however if the two of you ever have any sort of sibling rivalry while on the set?  

PA:  My brother and I have a strong bond and a strong work ethic and we both love the entertainment business.  In fact the Samuelson family has been in this industry for almost as long as it has existed.  We now have sent five generations into film.  Marc and I sometimes disagree on things but like any other partnership we work things out.  I don’t think it’s a question of sibling rivalry and if it is perhaps the ocean that is between us dampens any real tension. 

TA: Was there any one particular movie, which stood out for you while filming it, other than “Stormbreaker?” If so, why?

PA:  That’s the great thing about this business really is that there are so many outstanding things on each and every project.  Each one is an experience and a learning opportunity.  Arlington Road is a great example of that.  The script was written by a young writer, Nichol Fellowship winner, Ehren Kruger and directed by Mark Pellington who did a fantastic job of creating that ‘is-it-me’ or ‘is-it-my-neighbor’ feeling throughout the film.  Mark and I have remained friends ever since we made Arlington Road and that’s something I cherish.

TA: The website I run was created as a tribute to an actor that I admire. As you have already noticed from emailing back and forth with me, this actor just happens to be Mickey Rourke. Do you think that maybe you could tell us a little bit about what he was like on the set?

PA:  I got to know both Mickey and Loki, his Chihuahua well.  Mickey was always friendly and despite a reputation for being a bad guy, cordial to those around him.  I think having Mickey Rourke in our film gave the menacing character of Darrius Sayle real credibility.  Mickey has built a career convincing the public he’s the bad guy and he brought that with him to Stormbreaker.  There’s one moment in the film when Mickey is chasing Alex up some stairs where I really believed that he was going to kill him!  Tremendously well done.

Now that I have managed to take you on a short journey into Stormbreaker and one of the people behind it, it’s your turn to hit the theaters, grab your Dew and Duds or whatever treat you enjoy and just set back for an interesting ride! See you there! Thank you again Mr. Samuelson!

Written by: Tammy Austin

Mickeyfan.net and The Mickeyfan Newsline