It’s not often that you see an action movie which could also work as a stage play; the two mediums seem downright antithetical. Mel Gibson (with a script from Jared Rosenberg) was up to the challenge, though. His new film, a return to the director’s chair after nearly a decade, isFlight Risk, which is almost entirely set inside a small Cessna Grand Caravan plane during its Alaskan flight. While we hear some voices, there are only three actors on-screen throughout nearly the whole film — Topher Grace, Mark Wahlberg, andMichelle Dockery.
Dockery plays a U.S. Marshal transporting an arrested fugitive, and her pilot is played by Mark Wahlberg.Dockery spoke with MovieWebabout the tight filming space and Gibson’s direction. “It feeling like a play was the way it read for me, actually, when I first read the script. It was quite unique to anything I’d ever read before for screen, in that it’s three characters on the page for the entire movie. And the idea of filming something in such a confined space like that was really exciting, something I’d never done before,” explained Dockery.
That claustrophobia certainly works in the film’s favor, and Gibson (with cinematographer Johnny Derango) captures the tight space very effectively. Dockery added:
“Mel is an incredible filmmaker, as we all know, and he is so seasoned in this genre, of course. I knew that he would bring something really special to something like this, and his attention to detail in every single moment within the film was just incredible to watch and be part of. And for all of us, it was challenging at times because of the confined space that we were in, and particularly for the crew, the camera crew had to kind of contort themselves into various positions in order to get the shot. But it was a real team effort to make the film as compelling and as authentic looking as it is.”
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Mel Gibson, Zen Master?
Gibson is certainly synonymous with action, either behind the camera (Braveheart, Apocalypto) or especially in front of it (theMad MaxandLethal Weaponfilms,The Patriot). That’s why it’s particularly interesting to hear Dockery describe the director as practically Zen on set, a kind of calming presence. “Mel sort of has this very — and I think it comes from just his wealth of experience — but he has a very sort of relaxed calmness on set, which is very different to the action that is being played out.”
“But I found that really helpful as I was playing the scenes out, because he sort of gives you the room to really explore those moments and the emotional moments, aside from the action,” added Dockery. “So it was a type of film where I could explore both the physical action sequences, which was a challenge, you know, being in such a small plane, but then also those very still moments where Madeleine reflects on her past and reflects on her story, and those lovely moments between her and Winston.” Dockery concluded by saying:
“It was so enjoyable to experience both with someone like Mel, because he’s so great at choreographing those really intense action scenes. But then he’s a very sensitive director and an actor, of course, so he’s an actor’s director, which are always the best to work with, because there’s a real understanding about how you explore those moments. So it was a great experience, the whole thing.”
You can experience it for yourself whenFlight Riskcomes to theaters on Jun 23, 2025, from Lionsgate.
