Opening in theaters this Friday, Four is an intense drama that follows two couples meeting up in a suburban town on the Fourth of July. Find my review of the film HERE.

Wendell Pierce, who stars as a married man hooking up with a white teenage boy in the film, spoke with me earlier this year at the Los Angeles Film Festival, where the film premiered, about his about his role, the potential criticism from it, and a few of his upcoming projects.

S&A: How did you get involved in this project, and what made you choose the role?

WP: When I got the call from the producers and the director, I actually knew about the piece already because I’d seen the play. It’s a character-driven piece and I really liked the way it pulled you into the characters to try to figure out what their journey is – sort of peeling away the layers of an onion, not only the people themselves but also the plot. And then the challenge that it presented me as an actor. Drama is always about conflict and the personal conflict within [Joe] is something that I thought would be a challenge for me. I thought I was the last person you would think to play this role, at least this is something that I’ve never been asked to do.

S&A: You play a complex character whose actions are pretty objectionable. What do you make of the larger themes that can be drawn from him, particularly with sexuality and race, and how people might respond to them?

WP: For me, the conclusions people will draw from this film will be influenced by the dearth of diversity in portrayals that we have. I expect people to say, “Why did Wendell participate in the emasculating of a black man?” The real question is, Why do you feel as though that’s emasculating? A man can’t have a conflict? When you try to do art, it’s how it lands on people, and hopefully some people will see it the way that I saw it, which is all of these awful choices come from the place of a man who’s damaged. We always see abhorrent behavior and say why, but then we get mad when somebody tries to answer. Just to answer the question why does not say I’m validating behavior. I’m just saying, if we’re going to be a student of human behavior, be a true student.

And I understand that we should never lose our right to be offended, so I accept it.  But for me it was always a study of human behavior because if we just demonize it, it becomes unreal. “He’s just evil. He’s evil incarnate.” No, actually he’s human, and human beings actually think this way, behave this way, and do these things. And for you not to accept that – you’re in a state of denial, and then you make people susceptible to the choices that people like this make.

S&A: So it’s fair to say that you expect a lot of criticism?

WP: I expect some people have a reaction to the character. And people have the right to do that. The opposite of liking something isn’t hating it. The opposite is actually indifference. That would be worse to me, to say, “How did you feel about this man and the fact that he’s a black man being portrayed this way?” If they said, “I don’t care,” that would upset me more. I want people to be impassioned, whether they like it or they don’t like it. That is impactful.

Someone said, “Are you worried that people are going to be upset with you?” And I said, “People should be a little upset, a little uncomfortable, in this movie.” You shouldn’t be comfortable with all the choices that these people make. Because you have to live an authentic life. That’s the lesson we learn from Four. Be your true self. Because if you’re not, there are consequences to be paid.  

S&A: The film doesn’t seem to pass judgment on its characters, to the point that its viewpoint isn’t always clear. What did you make of its perspective and what we should receive from it?

WP: I think the film has a viewpoint – that your actions are not in a vacuum. They impact other people. It may be in a way that’s less obvious than in mainstream movies, but it comes to an understanding of who those people are. It also leaves it open to interpretation. And that’s what art is, a form in which people can reflect on who we are as human beings and come to some understanding of this journey we are on. So it’s kind of serving the purpose of what art should be, what a film should be, which is a forum in which we reflect on the behavior of mankind – character, choices, situation, and the impact of an event.

S&A: What can you share about your upcoming projects following Four?

WP: I’m about to go shoot a film in Belgium and Luxembourg called Modius, with Jean Dujardin, who just won the Oscar. It’s a French independent film but I’m actually an American in it. And I’m excited about winning [the Tony for] Clybourne Park. I’ve already started discussions with Ron Simons, who is an African-American producer who won for Porgy and Bess, and Tamara Tunie who won a couple years ago for Spring Awakening and we were partnered on Radio Golf. We just started talking about, what if three African American producers – Tony award winners on Broadway – came together and did a piece. So we’re in discussions about trying to find a piece to produce together.

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AMC Theatres is partnering with newcomer, 306 Releasing, to bring the Independent Spirit Award-nominated drama to a theater near you, starting this Friday, September 13.

The film was produced by Christine Giorgio and Pierce, with Allen Frame and Neil LaBute executive producing.

VOD and DVD distribution of the film will be handled by Wolfe Releasing.