The fact that a film stars a bunch of LEGO figurines doesn't necessarily mean that it can't hit emotional peaks. The LEGO Movie proved that in 2014, and The LEGO Batman Movie doubled down on that idea earlier this year. With The LEGO Ninjago Movie set to debut this September, it now looks as if this franchise may even hit a level of emotion that we have never seen before. In fact, Dave Franco recently opened up during an appearance on Conan and admitted that he might have taken some of his Lego Ninjago Movie scenes with Justin Theroux a little too far, saying:
The first time Justin and I got into the recording booth, we were doing this very intimate father/ son scene, and I found myself crying, crying uncontrollably. Kind of like crying harder than I do in a movie where I play a recovering heroin addict. And then we finished the scene, and I kinda took a step back and evaluated the room and it was an interesting energy. I realized I was playing a green Lego ninja piece and I needed to reel it in a bit.
There's a time for intense emotion as an actor, but portraying an offbeat LEGO character might not be the right time to put those skills on full display. The LEGO Ninjago Movie really seems to have shot for a fast-paced and self-aware sensibility (not unlike Phil Lord and Chris Miller's work on The LEGO Movie), so going for a full-blown crying scene might not work for that specific style. It's a good thing that Dave Franco eventually figured that out, because going for "recovering heroin addict" probably wouldn't feel right alongside the rest of the film's characters -- as impressive as that performance might have been.
Dave Franco's comments on Conan don't shock us when we look at the recent trajectory of his career. Over the course of the last few years, he has made a surprisingly effective transition into leading man territory, and he has taken on several non-comedic roles that have proven his ability to deliver legitimately compelling performances. Between his recent foray into the realm of action in (the underrated) Nerve and his upcoming performance as Greg Sestero in his brother's upcoming Tommy Wiseau-focused film, The Disaster Artist, he may simply have a hard time turning off his knack for high drama and going back to comedy. That said, we're not complaining.
The LEGO Ninjago Movie centers on Dave Franco's Lloyd and his relationship with his estranged father, the evil Garmadon (Justin Theroux). When Garmadon arrives on Lloyd's home island of Ninjago and threatens to destroy his very way of life, the young LEGO ninja assembles his five friends to do battle with the dark warlord and save everything that they have ever loved. The film has put together an all star cast that also includes Abbi Jacobson, Zach Woods, Olivia Munn, Michael Pena, Jackie Chan, Fred Armisen, and Kumail Nanjiani.
Make sure to check out Dave Franco's performance as Lloyd when The LEGO Ninjago Movie debuts in theaters on September 22. For more up to date information on the rest of the films set to hit theaters this year, take a look at our 2017 movie premiere guide!
