Daveed Diggs Was Focused On Not "Chopping Heads Off" During Nickel Boys' Unique POV Filming

Nickel Boys follows two Black teens, Elwood Curtis and Turner, as they endure the brutal conditions of Nickel Academy, a reformatory for boys. Their friendship offers a glimmer of hope through a backdrop of systemic racism and violence.

Daveed Diggs portrays adult Elwood in the film, which tells this story in a very unique way that captures various points of view (literally). Diggs is a seasoned actor, well known for his roles in Hamilton and Snowpiercer, just to name a few. Nickel Boys is now playing in New York theaters and opens in Los Angeles on December 20.

Related Nickel Boys Review: Clearly One Of 2024’s Strongest Movies Nickel Boys is thoughtful, and gave me a lot to think about. But I have reservations that make me wonder if reading the book first was a mistake.

ScreenRant interviewed David Diggs about Nickel Boys, which is based on a book that is inspired by a true story. He discusses what it was about this project that made him want to be a part of it, as well as the challenges he faced because of the point-of-view style of filming. Diggs also details what he hopes viewers take away from the movie and comments on whether or not he would come back to his Hamilton roles should a proper movie be made.

Daveed Diggs Was Trying To Be "An Effective Cameraman" Filming Nickel Boys

"I wanted to make sure I wasn't chopping their heads off."

Image courtesy of Amazon Prime Video.

ScreenRant: This is such a unique way of filming, so how do you approach performing when your face and a lot of your physicality is not going to be on camera?

Daveed Diggs: Yeah, for me, I was just trying to be an effective cameraman, which I've never had to do before. So yeah, for me, it was just experimenting a lot with the rig and a monitor and trying to have some sort of basic understanding of how it was going to move and how posture wise, what I could get away with. How much story could I tell that doesn't look totally unnatural? It was pretty technical on my end and mostly wanting to do justice to my various scene partners who were giving these incredible performances, and I wanted to make sure I wasn't chopping their heads off.

The Point-of-View Shooting Was The Final Thing That Drew Daveed Diggs To Nickel Boys

"If I hear something that I don't understand, that's what I want to do."

ScreenRant: What was it about Nickel Boys that made you want to be a part of it?

Daveed Diggs: Everything. I was a fan of the novel. Then I was sent the script and the script, I thought that it did such a beautiful job of adapting it and making it into a real film. That novel actually feels almost more documentary than the movie does in a lot of ways to me. And so for the script to be something that was so beautiful and affecting, I thought was really, the script did an incredible job. And then I spoke to RaMell [Ross] about how he planned on shooting it, and I had no idea what he was talking about, so that was the final thing for me. If I hear something that I don't understand, that's what I want to do.

Daveed Diggs Praises The Performances By The Young Actors In Nickel Boys

"I just was trying not to mess it up."

ScreenRant: What was your reaction when you first discovered that Turner takes on Elwood's identity, and how did that shape your performance?

Daveed Diggs: It's an incredible moment. It works in so many different ways. It's really sad on the one hand, to feel like everything before that point in your life is not of value, and then it's also such a beautiful tribute to your friend, you know? So yeah, it's a really incredible moment. Performance-wise, I was just trying, I don't know, I'd been being sent dailies of the stuff they were shooting before I got there. So by the time I was there, I was just so enamored with the performance of all of the young actors in this film that I just was trying not to mess it up. It was really, for me, just get in and get out, don't mess up all of the beautiful work that they're doing.

ScreenRant: What do you hope that people take away from Nickel Boys?

Daveed Diggs: I think one of the beautiful things about the way it is filmed we're not given the chance to separate ourselves from it. And so I hope that because of that, it forces us a little bit to examine the ways that it's still going on today. Yeah, it's a pretty necessary film right now, unfortunately.

Daveed Diggs Hopes He Is Not Asked To Do A Hamilton Movie

"If we're going to do a movie of that, you should cast it age-appropriate."

ScreenRant: With the success of Wicked, should Hamilton ever be made into a proper movie, would you come back and reprise your roles?

​​​​​​​Daveed Diggs: I don't think so. I hope they don't ask me. You know what I'm saying? The thing about a movie is those guys are kids. They're kids. Lafayette is 19 years old when he's fighting in the revolution. Jefferson's the old dude at 30. So, really, if we're going to do a movie of that, you should cast it age appropriate.

More About Nickel Boys (2024)

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Elwood Curtis's college dream shatters alongside a two-lane Florida highway. Bearing the brunt of an innocent misstep, he's sentenced to the netherworld of Nickel Academy, a brutal reformatory sunk deep in the Jim Crow South. He encounters another ward, the seen-it-all Turner. The two Black teens strike up an alliance: Turner dispensing fundamental tips for survival, Elwood, clinging to his optimistic worldview. Backdropped by the burgeoning Civil Rights Movement, Elwood and Turner’s existence appear worlds away from Rev. Martin Luther King's burnished oratory. Despite Nickel's brutality, Elwood strives to hold onto his humanity, awakening a new vision for Turner.

Check out our other Nickel Boys interviews here:

Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor

Ethan Herisse & Brandon Wilson

RaMell Ross

Nickel Boys is now playing in New York theaters and opens in Los Angeles on December 20.

Source: Screen Rant Plus