Ridley Scott's Alien Was A Major Part Of Creating Adam Driver's 65 Character
Adam Driver is in full-blown solider mode in "65." The new prehistoric sci-fi thriller, which was written and directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods (the co-writers of "A Quiet Place" and the directors of "Haunt"), poses the question of what would happen if, essentially, a human armed with futuristic weaponry did battle with dinosaurs from Earth's distant past. In her review for /Film, Sarah Milner wrote that "65" delivers when it comes to scares and action, but feels a little derivative of other sci-fi tentpoles — especially (and unsurprisingly) "Jurassic Park," although there are also shades of "The Last of Us" and the "Alien" franchise.
In "65," Driver's workmanlike character, Mills, discovers a young girl named Koa (Ariana Greenblatt) after his ship crash-lands on a mysterious planet. Mills and Koa are the only two survivors of the wreck as they fight to stay alive in incredibly hostile conditions. Driver is more than capable in the role, leaning on his previous combat experience as a Marine to convincingly pull off the film's extensive combat sequences.
The relationship between Mills and Koa is definitely similar to Joel and Ellie's dynamic in "The Last of Us" and Driver has said that "Aliens" was also a big influence. In the Director's Cut of "Aliens," Ellen Ripley learns that her daughter (who is not mentioned in the theatrical version) has passed away during the 57 years she was floating out in space. Knowing that Ripley was already a mother makes her connection with Newt — the young traumatized girl she rescues on LV-426 — that much more powerful. In an interview with Paste Magazine, Driver acknowledged that his character Mills has the same parental instinct towards Koa. There's another character in "Alien," however, that he referenced as well that may surprise you.
The working man in space
When asked about the similarities between his character Mills in "65" and Sigourney Weaver's Ellen Ripley, Adam Driver replied:
"'Alien' was a big part of it. And we did talk about Harry Dean Stanton in 'Alien' specifically, which is a weird connection, I know. But just the idea that being a pilot in this society is a job. I'm sure you gotta go to school and there is training involved, but it's on par with operating a forklift or driving a truck. So, not approach it with any kind of preciousness. There's a formality that we tried to get rid of."
The character of Brett played by Harry Dean Stanton in "Alien" didn't just exist for his incredibly memorable death scene at the hands of the Xenomorph. His instincts, along with his buddy Parker (Yaphet Kotto), are absolutely correct because he is essentially a blue collar worker aboard the Nostromo. The other professionals on board disregard Brett and Parker and never take their advice seriously. Their suggestions early on would have saved a lot of lives if they hadn't been pushed aside. There's a key power dynamic going on in "Alien" and Brett and Parker are right in the middle of it.
Driver definitely taps into that same blue collar mentality, giving Mills a lot more humanity and relatability. That's important in a high-concept premise like "65" where there isn't a lot of dialogue or much happening plot-wise aside from killer dino-action. Describing Mills as more of an everyman battling insurmountable odds makes the movie seem a lot deeper than it actually is. Beck and Woods were lucky to get Driver for "65" and the actor continues to elevate lesser material (I'm looking at you "Rise of Skywalker").
"65" is now in playing in theaters.