'30 Minutes or Less' Premiere: 5 Things Seen and Heard on the Red Carpet

The Hollywood Reporter spoke to the stars of the Columbia Pictures’ comedy 30 Minutes or Less at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood on Monday, Aug. 8.

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30 Minutes or Less: Film Review

Ruben Fleischer (Zombieland) directs the comedy film about a troublesome duo (Nick Swardson and Danny McBride) who kidnap a pizzaboy (Jesse Eisenberg) and force him to rob a bank, or be blown up. 30 Minutes or Less premieres Friday, Aug, 12.

Nick Swardson found a new best friend
Nick Swardson, who plays Travis, said he had an instant bond with co-star Danny McBride. “I didn’t know Danny from before the movie so we became almost just like instant best friends,” he told THR. “Danny is like a brother to me now. We have the same sensibility, we’re both filthy and childish, you know?” McBride plays Travis’s partner in crime, and the duo kidnap a pizza boy and force him to rob a bank. “We would just be really inappropriate all the time, it was really fun,” said Swardson of his new friend, McBride.

Jesse Eisenberg is not on a Facebook binge
Jesse Eisenberg, who starred as Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg in The Social Network, mentions Facebook again in this film, saying his character, Nick, doesn’t have an account. The actor told THR that it’s not something he does on purpose. “I think like talking about Facebook in a movie now is like talking about a telephone in a movie 15 years ago,” he said. “It’s just the way people are communicating so it was not a special effort to make fun of another website.” Eisenberg does not have a Facebook account in real life.

REVIEW: 30 Minutes or Less

Aziz Ansari’s stuntman is Hawaiian
Comedian Aziz Ansari, who stars on NBC’s Parks and Recreation, plays the best friend of Jesse Eisenberg’s character Nick. Aziz shared that, while there weren’t a lot of intense stunts in the film, he did have a stunt double. “[He] was Hawaiian and his name was Neto, that has similar skin tone and then he grew a beard, to look like me.” Ansari also mentioned that there was a good amount of improving in the film, including the song at the end of the trailer.

Flame Throwing 101 was taught for the film
30 Minutes or Less features bombs, explosives and car chases, but it turns out flame throwing was one of the most important lessons for Swardson and McBride. “I had to have extensive flame thrower training, which is true,” Swardson said. “I had to meet with these guys, I had to do these classes and know what to do if something goes wrong, yeah it was pretty intense.” Swardson said he was not hurt while learning to use the flamethower. “They had to coat my face with like this liquid ice and it was crazy.”

Ben Still Prefers Directing
Ben Stiller, whose company Red Hour Films produced 30 Minutes or Less, has taken on the role of actor, producer and director throughout his career. Stiller, who directed Zoolander and Tropic Thunder, says it’s the role he prefers. “I actually really prefer directing more than anything else. And producing or executive producing is great because you don’t have to be on the set everyday, that’s really the best part and then you get to show up to the premiere,” he told The Hollywood Reporter.