The secret of the franchise’s success

SEOUL — For the lead actors of the Maze Runner trilogy, this film franchise is unforgettable in so many ways.

Maze Runner’s overwhelming success at the box-office will forever be a feather in the caps of Dylan O’Brien, Ki Hong Lee and Thomas Brodie-Sangster as they walk on the trail of their Hollywood future but more than that, these young guns are proud to say that they have charted a friendship among themselves that is deep and meaningful and hope it will last them a lifetime.

This time around, the three were together promoting the Maze Runner: The Death Cure, the third and last installment, now showing in cinemas. It is the much-awaited follow-up to the second franchise film Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials released last September, 2015. The first movie The Maze Runner was released in 2014. All three movies were culled from the best-selling books of the same title by author James Dashner.

During our interview with them here last week, the three were an epitome of  camaraderie, fun and closeness that is blatant proof why the franchise reached its heights of success. In the film, they were strangers who became family, looking out for one another in the face of all kinds of danger, even death. The intimacy of their friendship obviously went beyond the limits of the cameras. Up-close and personal, the same can be gleaned from their easy familiarity around each other.

The following is an excerpt of our round-table interview with them at the Conrad Hotel. See for yourself how easy going and funny it is to be in their company.

There is no doubt that the success of Maze Runner has paved the way for a brighter Hollywood career for you all. How does it make you feel that the franchise has reached its conclusion?

Dylan: We have been talking about it a lot. The franchise really meant a lot to us. It was an incredible experience and we are really sad to see it go. In fact, it is tremendously emotional for most of us. But it’s also a good thing because we were a part of something that we can be proud of. We are happy to be part of something so great and special.

Thomas: The five years that we have journeyed on Maze Runner is a great experience. We worked with great actors, directors and filmmakers. We are sad that it is ending but we are happy that we can take with us everything we learned here and look to the future with great expectations. It’s been great, really.

What sets this movie apart from the first two series?

Dylan: A lot of things. There’s the community, the family aspect to it. The heart. And the world I think is so interesting and specific. You’re thrown into such mystery through the eyes of these characters. It’s almost like going on a ride that the characters go on. The perspective also sets us apart, too. No one ever talks about how subjective the first film was. You are with a person from the beginning as he is thrust into this situation and you are right there with him. And you start figuring out the world, finding out what’s going on and it’s a fun ride to be in. Down to the look to the aesthetic of the film, I think we are very different, each chapter has its own distinct feel and all still Maze Runner. The music is such a wonderful part of our movie and it talks a lot about. We have wonderful composers who have composed classical scores throughout the trilogy and created a theme for us in such specific aspects. We are really proud of it.

One of the things that the audience will surely love about this film are the many breathtaking action scenes in it. Can you tell us which among those are your favorites?

Ki Hong:  I was shooting this scene where I threw a kick on a guy into the glass wall and there was a lot of dangerous glass on the floor. And in this scene I was barefoot. So I didn’t want to cut up my feet. That was very dangerous for me. Luckily, I didn’t end up with injuries. I walked away unscathed.

Dylan: I tried to eat some of the glasses because they’re sugar candy glasses so technically you can, but you shouldn’t. But kidding aside, it’s real glass.

Thomas: During the train sequence we got lifted up. We did that couple of times. And the train would literally have a real crate and we will be on it and lifted us up 100 feet, 50 feet. It was scary. We had doubles except for specific shots that you need to see our faces. We had a time where we all went up to do the last shot of the opening scene. And yes, it’s kinda crazy. And there’s so many drones around trying to get shots of you while you’re wired up there. And you’re harnessed up to a crane that’s holding all those wires so that if the train car would fall, we will all just be hanging in our harnesses attached to it. It is kinda scary.

In what ways are your real selves similar to the character you played in the movie?

Dylan: Yeah, there are things I can pick that are similar to my character. I feel like these characters are a different mold of you in a way. Because you are everything that influences your acting. I’d say I’m a very loyal person. Friends, to me, are family and I feel that I love and want to protect them.

Ki Hong: Definitely, I am not as athletic as Minho but I’m just as intense as he is. I’m pretty serious when it comes to my work. I don’t like to mess around and stuff. I like to plan ahead.

Thomas: Like what Dylan said, you always are similar to your character. Just because you’re playing a version of you that’s why there will always be similarities even if the character is vastly different from who you really are. I think Newt is a no-nonsense kind of guy. He is fairly genuine. He doesn’t bother with nonsense.

What was your first impression of each other, especially the first time you saw and met each other?

Ki Hong: I first met Dylan when we were shooting the first movie and I was very serious because it was my first big movie. I was on my way to the production office.

Dylan: We met in the kitchen.

Ki Hong: And we met in the kitchen. He stopped me.

Dylan: And I was eating an apple.

Ki Hong: He was eating an apple. I was very nervous meeting him because I was anxious and excited to get to work with him and the rest of the cast. I was very nervous because it was my first opportunity. My first big project. So I want to make a good impression so I was very serious with him, I thought I was gonna make a good impression by doing that. But he thought I was just too intense. And Thomas, I was so excited to see him and he was very like cool and calm. I was like, “Hey man, I’m so excited to meet you.” And then Thomas was like, “Okay man, nice to see you.”  So I thought he didn’t like me for a long time.

Thomas: I thought you didn’t like me! Oh well, you don’t. Seriously, I was excited to meet everyone. I was nervous, too. I didn’t know anyone. And I know this movie is only gonna be good if everyone else is cool and good. To meet everyone is really a test to see how fun and good everyone is gonna be with each other. Since it is a trilogy, for sure it’s going to be a horrible time to be part of if we didn’t get along.

Dylan: I remember when we first did the tilbury, we remember how seeing the movie was perfectly casted. Everyone is so good.

Thomas: Yes, yes. It was fun exciting time. I met Dylan when he was doing some stunts, rolling or something like that. I was on my way to the toilet. I saw him but he caught me and ran over and said hello. It was nice. I really wanted to talk but I really must go to the toilet. And I didn’t tell him because I didn’t want him to feel that he kept me from going to the toilet all those time.

Ki Hong: (addressing Thomas) Why were you being so nice to Dylan and very standoffish to me?

How would you describe your relationship right now?

Dylan: I love these two to death. They are the two best friends I’ll ever have. I feel so close to both of them. I love who they are as people genuinely. I learn so much from both of them. I look up to both of them in so many ways and they’re family to me in the most genuine way you can feel that. I love it whenever I get to see them. It makes me so happy.

What’s the most memorable thing that a fan has done for you?

Thomas: Yesterday, it was fun for me. There was a fan at the red carpet. I was signing autograph so I had my head down a little bit. And I signed this big poster. She said something like, “Look at me! Look at me! I did this for you!” And so I obviously looked up and she was covered in Zombie make-up. It was really scary. I was terrified. But she couldn’t keep it like that for a while because she started to sweat so the make-up was starting to run. She was really, genuinely very scary.

Dylan: I had a couple of fans yesterday at the red carpet saying “go Mets” to me.  And I thought that was the coolest thing ever. It is the baseball team that I love and the fact that halfway around the world, here in South Korea, these fans have started supporting the team that I like. That is so cool to me. It cracks me up.

Ki Hong: A fan got me terrified, too. She asked me to have a selfie with her. That’s obviously terrifying. (Laughs)

With the great success of Maze Runner franchise, how do you see your future, respectively?

Dylan: All downhill from here. (Laughs)

Thomas: I don’t know. I hope to just continue what I have been doing, working with wonderful people and meeting wonderful people. And exploring myself through acting and get to travel the world. This is great! I just hope this continues and I continue to find it fascinating which I do. If it gets down, then we’ll find something else to be fascinated about. I don’t know if that day will ever come or when.

Maze Runner: The Death Cure is also available on IMAX screens. It is a 20th Century Fox feature film distributed by Warner Bros.