Christian Bale had a slew of important reasons to join the cast of The Promise, but none was more powerful than being a part of one of the first Hollywood movies to explore the horrors that is the Armenian genocide.
With current headlines from Syria and other places showing that little has changed in our world, Bale was moved by the script he was reading and the human atrocities that dominated the evening news. “These correlations are uncanny,” Bale said in our exclusive video interview.
The actor reported that the story about a love triangle, set to the backdrop of some of the worst that humans can do to other humans, was one that haunted his soul. “I couldn’t stop thinking about it.”
The film chronicles the Armenian genocide through the eyes of various characters and how the terror of those years would affect all those involved. Bale plays an American journalist seeking to find the truth and is just the tip of the stellar cast iceberg that includes Oscar Isaac (Star Wars: The Last Jedi), Charlotte Le Bon, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Angela Sarafyan and James Cromwell.
The film is also putting its money where its mouth is and all proceeds from the film will be donated to raising awareness about this historical evil that sadly too few know about.
Don’t miss what Bale had to say about that and also he shares an interesting (and yes, hilarious) story as to why his director, Terry George, was all-too perfect to bring this important moment in human history to the big screen. Hint: It involves George being a guest of the Irish government in a notorious prison because of his work with the IRA and a certain daring escape that didn’t go so well.
The Promise is in theaters April 21. Don’t miss our exclusive video interviews with the entire cast and George all this week.