Gal Gadot is having a moment. Between headlining Prime Video's pulse-pounding new thriller The Runner, prepping her next collaboration with Doug Liman, and fielding questions about the fate of the Fast & Furious franchise, the actress is keeping busy. In a recent interview, she opened up about all three — and revealed some surprising behind-the-scenes details.
Why the Final Fast & Furious Is Taking Its Sweet Time
Fans have been waiting years for the eleventh and supposedly final installment of the high-octane saga that made Vin Diesel a household name and turned Gadot's Gisele into a fan favorite. When asked about the long delay, Gadot was candid: it's all about getting the script right.
“I think part of the reason why it's taking so long is to make sure that the script is being completely figured out in a perfect way,” she explained. “I know there's so many people involved who love this franchise — I'm one of them — and I hope we will finish on a very, very high, great note.”
When a suggestion was made that the finale should circle back to Los Angeles, where the original film began, Gadot enthusiastically agreed. “That's a great idea,” she said. “You see. Why are you asking me? You have all the answers.”
The Runner: A Love-Hate Relationship with Running
In The Runner, directed by Kevin Macdonald, Gadot plays Maia, a London attorney whose morning jog turns into a nightmare when she receives a call that her son has been kidnapped. The anonymous caller forces her to race across the city, following a series of instructions to save her child.
The role required months of physical preparation, and Gadot admitted that running wasn't exactly her favorite activity before the film. “I have a love-hate relationship with running, but it's better because before I simply hated running,” she said. “It's like eating broccoli: I know it's good for me, it's not my favorite, but after I choose to eat broccoli, I know I've made the right decision.”
She also revealed that she drew inspiration from an unlikely source: Tom Cruise. “Tom Cruise was the one person I kept thinking about whenever it got really, really difficult,” Gadot shared. “I was like, ‘You can do it. Tom Cruise does it. You can try and do it as well.’”
The shoot was as challenging as it sounds. The production couldn't shut down all of London, so the camera operator often had to skateboard or rollerblade alongside Gadot while she ran through real crowds. “It was like everything about making this film was challenging, and I like it,” she said. “I like the idea of one overcoming a challenge.”
Despite the grueling schedule, Gadot found the experience oddly rewarding. She trained for nine months before filming, and she's proud of the result. “We have a great movie,” she said.
One of the more surreal moments came when she had to film a scene in the London Underground with just a small crew. “I had this, like, bloody cut on my forehead, and I was so worried that people would come, worried about me,” she recalled. “Actually people didn't mind it too much. It was a social experiment that was very interesting to do.”
When asked if she'd ever do a sequel — say, The Runner 2 set on a treadmill — Gadot laughed and suggested a different direction. “I told him that I think the sequence, if we had The Runner, the next one should be The Foodie,” she joked. “The one after it should be The Spa.”
What's Next: Doug Liman's Bitcoin
Gadot also teased her upcoming project with Doug Liman, the director behind Edge of Tomorrow. The film, titled Bitcoin, stars Casey Affleck and Pete Davidson, and Gadot is clearly excited about it. While she didn't reveal much about the plot, she hinted that it's a departure from her usual action fare.
For now, fans can catch Gadot in The Runner, which is streaming on Prime Video. And for those eagerly awaiting the next chapter in the Fast & Furious saga, Gadot's words offer a glimmer of hope that the finale will be worth the wait.
