Some actors may be prepared to go the extra mile when working with movie directors, but how many would help a director find their missing thumb after it had been chopped off by a dodgy industrial fan?
Enter Slumdog Millionaire‘s Dev Patel, who did just that for Australian director Anthony Maras during filming in India when the digit traditionally used to give the “okay” signal was definitely… not okay.
Dev Patel as Arjun in Hotel Mumbai; (inset) director Anthony Maras, clearly not giving a thumbs up.
In a candid new interview with Empire, the stars of Hotel Mumbai Dev Patel and Armie Hammer open up about the realities of shooting traumatic scenes, filming in Adelaide and how Dev found director Anthony Maras’ bloodied thumb on the floor of a Mumbai restaurant after a dodgy industrial fan lopped it clean off!
Watch the Hotel Mumbai trailer below, story continues after video…
“We were at a party for the crew at this dodgy Indian restaurant and there was this industrial fan that I don’t think passed safety standards,” Patel explains.
“I don’t think they have safety standards!” chimes in co-star Armie Hammer.
Cue Maras trying to turn the fan around, getting his thumb stuck in it and “FRING-DING-DING-DING!” – the sound the thumb made bouncing around inside the fan, according to Hammer.
Armie Hammer as US tourist David in Hotel Mumbai.
“I saw this seven foot Greek Australian guy just disappear at lightening speed, and I ran out and he said to me ‘dude this is bad, this is bad,” Patel explained.
“I looked at his thumb and lo and behold, a lot of it was missing.”
Dev then ran back inside for backup to find the missing thumb.
“He was a trooper though,” Dev said of his director.
Watch the full candid interview in the player at the top!
Hotel Mumbai is in cinemas now.
