Kristanna Loken On Bringing “Heart” To ‘Darkness Of Man’ Role

Kristanna Loken (“Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines,” “BloodRayne”) has starred in her share of action driven projects, and on the surface “Darkness of Man” is another addition to that genre. Headlined by Jean-Claude Van Damme, “Darkness of Man” is a noirish crime drama mainly set in Los Angeles’ Koreatown district. Loken talked about her latest project is not a typical action film and she also elaborated on her goals as a producer.

“Darkness of Man” centers on Russell (Jean-Claude Van Damme), an ex-Interpol operative who keeps a watchful eye over Jayden (Emerson Min), the teenager of a slain informant. When Jayden gets caught up in his family’s criminal undertakings, Russell steps in to keep Jayden from trouble, risking his very life in the process. Kristanna Loken is Claire, a woman who finds herself drawn to Russell even though he comes with a ton of baggage.

“I spoke with (‘Darkness of Man’ director James Cullen Bressack), I read the script, and then we really worked together to flesh out the role of Claire,” said Loken. “I really wanted to bring a lot of heart into that aspect of her and her relationship with Russell Hatch, Van Damme’s character. He’s just great to work with and very communicative.”

There are action moments in “Darkness of Man,” but the film does have an interesting family drama element in the narrative. “You see a softer, more vulnerable side of Jean-Claude Van Damme that perhaps we haven’t seen since JCVD,” said Loken. “You see this kind of familial aspect between this unlikely pairing of him and the jaded character, the teenage boy he’s entrusted with taking care of, and then also my character. And that’s more of a different background and setup than you have for your typical action film. So you get that. And then, of course, you get the backdrop of LA and the noir style and some really great action as well.”

Full interview with Kristanna Loken is below (along with timestamps):

0:14 – Kristanna Loken on the film noir aspects of “Darkness of Man”
0:49 – Working with “Darkness of Man” director James Cullen Bressack
1:52 – What Kristanna liked about “Darkness of Men”
3:16 – The family film “Beethoven” inspired her as a child
4:50 – Reflects on “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines”
5:50 – What she appreciates the most about her career
7:36 – Kristanna on working with Bruce Dern
9:46 – Kristanna on her production company – and she talks about Vice & Virtue
11:44 – On producing and what makes it a difficult process
13:00 – Loken on what movies from her resume that she would recommend – “Attack on Darfur,” “Fighting for Freedom”
15:03 – Is she surprised about being a producer?

Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!

Darkness of Man hits Digital on May 21. Rent/buy Darkness of Man on Amazon (we receive a slight commission).