When the upcoming action thriller “G20” premieres on Prime Video on April 10, viewers will witness Academy Award winner Viola Davis as U.S. President Danielle Sutton fighting to protect her family, fellow world leaders, and global stability during a terrorist attack on the G20 Summit. Behind this high-stakes story lies an equally compelling tale of creative collaboration, technical innovation, and cultural significance.
In G20, Davis plays Danielle Sutton, a highly decorated hero of the war in Iraq. “
A Presidential Vision
Producer Andrew Lazar had long aspired to create an action film that would honor genre traditions while offering something fresh. “While I was researching a different project, I learned a great deal about some of the amazing women in American politics who came from military backgrounds,” Lazar explains. “I thought that putting a woman like that at the center of a do-or-die rescue operation would be compelling — and even more so if she were the President of the United States.“
Lazar teamed up with writers Noah and Logan Miller to develop a screenplay about a female combat veteran who becomes a national hero and rides a wave of popular support to the White House. “All three of us are huge fans of films like Die Hard and Air Force One,” says Noah Miller. “When Andrew mentioned this idea, we chewed on it for a while.“
The Miller brothers suggested setting the action at the G20 Summit. “We’ve been fascinated with the G20 Summit for many years,” Logan Miller notes. “The international geopolitical situation is acutely vulnerable because you place the world’s most powerful leaders in one location, oftentimes in the same room.”
With the script taking shape, Lazar knew exactly who should play President Sutton. “The role called for someone with the acting range that Viola Davis embodies,” he says. Davis and her husband Julius Tennon joined the project through their production company JuVee Productions.
“Julius and I met with them at our home and they pitched us right at our dining room table,” Davis recalls. “They said they were looking for a woman they felt could really kick ass, someone who projected strength and authority. At that point, I had never done an action film, but I had always wanted to.“
A Director with Global Vision
Patricia Riggen, the acclaimed Mexican-born director of “The 33,” was selected to helm the film. “We knew her work on the Jack Ryan series,” says Tennon. “The 33, a very different kind of movie, was just as strong. Talking to Patricia, it became clear she had the right vision for the movie.”
Riggen embraced the opportunity to direct an action-packed thriller with a female lead. “It’s a dream come true to direct an actor of the stature and talent of Viola Davis,” says Riggen. “I set out to make a hugely entertaining film, but also to deliver a character that would inspire women all over the world to think big.“
The director was committed to keeping the film grounded in reality. “It’s also a real world event, so no fantasy was allowed here. I did a lot of research around the G20 summit and went deep into the details by working with technical and military advisors. I wanted to know exactly how an international event like the G20 was safeguarded, and how it could be taken over!“
Cape Town Transformed
“G20” was filmed in Cape Town, South Africa, a location known for its versatile scenery and experienced film crews. Riggen was captivated by the city’s beauty and wanted to showcase its natural, modern African feel, incorporating authentic cultural elements like performances by local children’s choir and marimba players.
The filmmakers faced a creative challenge: they needed a stunning hotel on Signal Hill overlooking Cape Town, but no such location existed. Production designers Nigel Phelps and Sebastian Krawinkel, visual effects supervisor Sean Farrow, and cinematographer Checco Varese collaborated on an ingenious solution—they would create one digitally.
“It was a matter of balancing our narrative requirements, our spectacle and the amount of realism we needed to achieve,” explains Farrow. “We did many surveys of the hill and stitched together various locations into one iconic international hotel we call the Grand Diamont.“
Lazar jokes, “I’m sure the tourism board is going to be inundated with calls about where the Grand Diamont is. But a magnificent hotel positioned on the top of Signal Hill doesn’t exist. It’s all done by the wonderful artistry of our production and visual effects teams.“
Action Sequences and Presidential Training
To prepare for her role, Davis reunited with the team that trained her for “The Woman King,” including personal trainer Gabriela Mclain and stunt coordinator Grant Powell. “I didn’t want to be a size-zero woman taking down 300 men,” Davis says. “No one would believe that. Training with Gabriela we built muscle including a lot of arm work.“
Powell points out that the action in “G20” required different skills than Davis’s previous project. “We worked on Viola’s self-defense technique and her fight choreography,” he says. “We took her military background into consideration. One of the biggest differences was that the president would not be carrying a weapon, so until she manages to take one from an attacker, she has to improvise constantly.“
The film features several spectacular set pieces, including sequences with “the Beast”—the armored presidential limousine. When creating a replica proved prohibitively expensive, Davis and Tennon reached out to Tyler Perry, who had commissioned two Beast replicas for his series “The Oval.”
“Tyler was gracious enough to loan us those cars,” says Tennon. “He put them on a cargo ship and sent them to South Africa. And it was much, much more cost effective.“
One of the film’s most thrilling sequences involves a helicopter fight scene. “Viola, Antony and Marsai have a hair-raising fight staged in a helicopter that is attempting to take off from the hotel rooftop,” says Riggen. “Thankfully Marsai and Viola both enjoy extreme theme park rides. They got in the helicopter, we started spinning it and they were like, more, more, more!“
A Global Cast
The filmmakers assembled an international ensemble to portray the diverse G20 delegates. British actor Douglas Hodge plays Prime Minister Oliver Everett, Elizabeth Marvel portrays U.S. Treasury Secretary Joanna Worth, Italian actress Sabrina Impacciatore plays the IMF President, and Korean American actress MeeWha Alana Lee appears as the First Lady of South Korea.
“Together all our actors create a very beautiful mosaic. Everyone brings their own magic to it,” Riggen says.
Antony Starr, who plays the antagonist Rutledge, found working with Davis inspiring. “Viola is an iconic member of the entertainment industry. She created a safe space for people to be creative and collaborative. Her presence kept me on my toes and made the production feel alive.“
A New Action Icon
For Davis, “G20” represents another milestone in her storied career. “I’m very thankful to MRC and Amazon MGM Studios for their bravery in creating a movie that represents the broad spectrum of humanity and is still just great fun.“
Tennon adds, “Audiences can look forward to a well-told, exciting and fun popcorn movie. It’s a very positive picture of a woman in a position of tremendous power.“
As Riggen puts it, “It is the kind of movie that I like to see and the kind of movie that I always wanted to make“—a film that adds Viola Davis’s name to the pantheon of iconic action heroes.
“G20” premieres globally on Prime Video April 10, 2024.
