The Last Champion is an utter delight (check out our review) and is just the movie people need in this dumpster fire year that is 2020. One of the film’s stars, Hallie Todd, sat down for an exclusive video interview where she talked about the joys of making the film in Eastern Washington—as well as the secret to portraying a character that is not the nicest in the world.
Todd co-wrote The Last Champion with her husband, director Glenn Withrow, and daughter Ivy Withrow. It stars Cole Hauser as John Wright, a disgraced wrestler who has returned to his unforgiving hometown to handle his mother’s affairs after she dies.
See, Wright was a hometown hero who won top honors in his sport at every level he competed, including winning a Gold Medal at the Olympics. When it was revealed that he was using steroids, he was stripped of his medal. That pride that his community wore on its collective sleeve over his success, they also firmly felt in his disgrace.
Now, The Last Champion is a redemption story and how that is achieved is a stroke of moviemaking genius and will stay with you long after those credits roll.
Todd portrays a local woman who is an alcoholic and has put her partying above parenting continually. That becomes Wright’s problem when her lifestyle hinders her son, a star on the local wrestling team. She’s not the easiest character to embrace, but Todd dishes in our interview above how to thread that difficult needle.
The Last Champion is out On Demand and is one of the don’t-miss movies of the year.