Currently playing in theaters from Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios is Spider-Man: Far From Home, the 2019 sequel that takes Peter Parker out of New York for a European adventure in London after the global effects of Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.
Peter Parker returns in Spider-Man: Far From Home, the next chapter of the Spider-Man: Homecoming series! Our friendly neighborhood Super Hero decides to join his best friends Ned, MJ, and the rest of the gang on a European vacation. However, Peter’s plan to leave super heroics behind for a few weeks are quickly scrapped when he begrudgingly agrees to help Nick Fury uncover the mystery of several elemental creature attacks, creating havoc across the continent!
Directed by Jon Watts from a script written by Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, Tom Holland returns as your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, as well as Zendaya as MJ and Marisa Tomei as Aunt May.. Also coming back are Jacob Batalon, Tony Revolori, Angourie Rice, and Martin Starr. New additions include Jake Gyllenhaal as Mysterio, comedian J.B. Smoove, Remy Hii and Numan Acar. MCU veterans Samuel L. Jackson and Cobie Smulders are also onboard as Nick Fury and Maria Hill respectively.
For J.B. Smoove, the veteran comedian gets to work with Holland again after collaborating on the Audi commercial for Spider-Man: Homecoming, where Smoove played a Driver’s Ed instructor. In ‘Far From Home,’ Smoove plays Mr. Dell, a teacher at Midtown School of Science and Technology. Mr. Dell chaperones Peter Parker and his classmates’ trip to Europe
You had done the Audi commercial film with Holland for Spider-Man: Homecoming. How did you go from that to being in the feature film?
J.B. Smoove: That was my introduction into the Marvel Universe…somewhat. Having received that call from Audi and Marvel and Sony to work on the commercial for Spider-Man: Homecoming, the next thing I know I’m working with Tom Holland and Spider-Man. I got a chance to connect with Tom and Audi to do something amazing. I went to see the Homecoming film and I said to myself that I would love to be involved with the Marvel Universe and then I get a phone call from the studio to be in Far From Home. That’s crazy. I can’t put a finger on how it all works but I’ll take it.
Have you seen the Spider-Man films, from Tobey Maguire to Andrew Garfield and now with Tom Holland?
J.B. Smoove: Yes. I’ve attended all the Spider-Man movies and all the Marvel movies. I haven’t missed one Marvel movie yet. I’ve always been a big comic book fan. I used to take to train from Mount Vernon to Fordham Road in the Bronx to the comic book store and stay there for three hours, reading and looking for my favorite artists. We had different artists doing different comics and I would sit there and read them until they told me to stop reading them and buy them. I would go home with a stack of comics in my bag. I still have them saved in boxes. They are wrapped in plastic. Big fan of Spider-Man, X-Men, Avengers. You name it and I’m a fan.
What’s amazing is that this Spider-Man movie is the next movie after Avengers: Endgame. This is the film that carries over which is why you saw two different trailers for the movie, where in the second trailer, it tells you that it comes after Endgame without giving away any spoilers.
How much fun did you have on the set?
J.B. Smoove: It was a lot of fun. It was so cool to be part of this magnitude of the Marvel Universe. You get a chance to work with amazing actors and an amazing team. Shooting overseas was the main piece of this whole puzzle. Shooting in Prague, Venice and London. It’s one thing when you’re shooting a movie in the States, but when you are overseas and all the things that come along with it from the secrets and the spoilers, we couldn’t even read the whole script. If you happened to read the whole script, they put you in a trailer and then you give it back to them. They were very protective of the storyline for the film. There were times where some of the actors were only given one page of the script. For me, it was a chance to work on this movie. I didn’t get a chance to see Samuel L. Jackson although we were in the same scene. We just didn’t shoot it at the same time. Even Jake Gyllenhaal. There was a scene where we are looking at him in the green screen, but he wasn’t there. It was cool to work with these amazing actors but not work with them. It requires you to have a different reaction especially when working with green screen.
In playing Mr. Dell, is he a cool teacher or a strict teacher?
J.B. Smoove: He’s a cool teacher. He’ll let you go as long as he can, but he also has that button where he can say, “Enough is enough.” At the same time, I’m a science teacher and I want this trip to be about science. This is not a vacation trip. This is about going on this amazing trip to Europe and learning about science, and applying science to this trip. That’s my motive. To make sure that these kids get the science they need. As a teacher, that’s my goal.
From one comic book project to another. I see that you will be in the Harley Quinn animated series. Which character will you be voicing?
J.B. Smoove: Frank The Plant. That character is amazing. He’s actually a man-eating plant and very outspoken. It’s cool to lend your voice to animation but nothing is better than live action. When I got the call to be in Spider-Man: Far From Home, the first thing I asked them was, “What are my powers?” They said I would play a teacher. Ok. So, then I asked what are my powers as a teacher? We all wants powers in a superhero film, but I was happy to be a part of this. This is all going to lead to something bigger. At some point, I’m anticipating putting a cape on or something. I don’t know who, but someone is going to give a cape to put on.
When you are not working, what keeps you humble?
J.B. Smoove: I do one thing at a time. I just make sure that I put all my energy to one thing at a time. You can’t take everything that is offered to you. I really tried to be careful with the projects I can shine in. Some people take everything and I know things have come across my table and I know that there are people better in those projects than me. I like to make things make sense. But also I like I like to plant a seed. That Audi commercial was a see that was planted that allow me to transition into this Marvel movie. In the end, it’s supposed to make sense. To be in a movie like this, no matter how big or small the role is, millions of people see you and see your work. In the end, I want to have my own movie and my own TV show, and these quality steps help along the way. It’s about building a career. I still do things the old fashion way and I’m in the game 30 years surprisingly; and I’m just having fun.
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