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Halle Berry and Mike Colter
Phillip Faraone/Getty ImagesMike Colter had a “great” time on set The Union with costar Halle Berry – including when she convinced the cast and crew to pull an epic prank on him while filming in London.
“There was a moment where Halle got me, she was joking with me,” Colter, 47, shared exclusively in the latest issue of We weekly. “I probably got to the set about five minutes late. [Halle] was already on set and there was a scene where our characters meet outside a cafe. I had to shoot early in the morning. So I got there and got on set and everyone was staring at me. I’m like, ‘What’s going on?’ And Halle looks like she’s just really, really annoyed, really upset.
Colter said Berry, 57, started insulting him for being late. “This is not acceptable,” he recalled the Oscar winner telling him. “She just starts staring at me and I’m like, ‘What’s going on?’ I was completely stunned.”
‘I look around for the first one [assistant director]and he gives me nothing. He just looks at me, and he’s a good actor. He really plays it straight,” he continued. “And I look around and no one is breaking. So I’m thinking, ‘Oh, am I too late? Oh, okay. I’m all sorry. My apologies for wasting your time. I had no idea.’ I mean, I literally sat in the makeup chair and let the makeup person do their work!
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After a few – very intense – minutes, Colter said Berry finally couldn’t keep a straight face and “broke,” but not before convincing Colter that he had really messed up.
“It was a good moment because I really didn’t expect that,” he said. “I’m literally in the van three minutes later [everyone else] and suddenly they’re just standing there. I’m the one holding back production. It was pretty good. It was a good joke. She got me right.”
The Unionwhich hits Netflix on Friday, August 16, follows Berry as Roxy, a woman who ties up her high school sweetheart – a down-on-his-luck construction worker, played by Mark Wahlberg – in a high-stakes espionage mission. Colter in turn plays Nick Faraday, Roxy’s mysterious colleague who has a few surprises in store.
The action comedy was shot abroad in London, Slovenia, Italy and Croatia. While Colter joined the cast later in the filming process, he immediately felt at ease thanks to Berry’s warm reception.
“[Halle] is really fun to work with,” Colter said of his costar, whom he called a “great” actress. “I had a nice time and she was immediately very hospitable. … She greeted me, was very welcoming and connected with me right away. It put me at ease.”
Colter said Wahlberg, 53, was also “very welcoming” on set, noting that the actor has a “natural humor” about him. “He’s a naturally funny guy,” Colter said Us. “I think you see his comedic qualities in films like Ted, and I’m a big fan of Boogie Nights. His character isn’t necessarily always in on the joke, though [he’s] be funny.”
Both Wahlberg and Berry, Colter said, created the kind of environment necessary for their fellow cast members to feel comfortable once they became directors Julian Farino called ‘action’.
“I think it helps to get that from your leads because it gives the other characters a chance to come in and do what they need to do,” he explained. ‘Often [playing these] scenes with people who are veterans, and they have a lot of skills. You want to be able to compete against them and not have to worry about stepping on their toes because it’s really mono mono in those scenes.
Colter is no stranger to directing a set himself. He starred in Netflix Luke Cage as the titular character for two seasons from 2016 to 2018, and he was cast as Catholic priest David Acosta in the Paramount+ series in 2019 Evilwhich is currently airing its fourth and final season. Colter told Us that he “always has a good time” in his roles, and has the ability to find “fun” in whatever project he is currently involved in.
“We are so lucky [as actors]we’re actually just having fun because we’re playing a kid’s game at a very high level,” Colter explained and shared The Union was particularly enjoyable thanks to Farino. “He was so much fun. He was such an easy guy to work with and he was in charge of such a big production.”
Having fun is of course easier if you are in a beautiful location. Colter admitted that even things like fitness were put on the back burner as he enjoyed the amenities afforded him abroad.
“It’s like, ‘Why don’t I just go for a walk on the beach? Why don’t you just lie by the pool? Why not make another spa visit? I mean, these European spas are ordinary, bar none,” he said. “I mean, you have to take advantage of that when you’re there. Exercise is great, but I think sometimes you need to relax too. It’s really important to get your blood pressure down and just relax, get a massage, a mani-pedi, facial, whatever. Just enjoy it.”
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While much of Colter’s role in The Union remains a secret – no spoilers here, sorry – finding time to relax and enjoy is something that would probably support the character. Colter noted that the chance to play someone with “charisma” and “charm” was an attractive factor in casting for the project, as was the film’s 007-esque feel.
“It looks like the kind of movies I watched as a kid,” he said Us. ‘They’re watching [James] Bond flickers along Roger Moore or Sean Connery or Pierce Brosnanwhere you see them in a different location. They drive these expensive cars, there’s a chase, they shoot [people] … It feels like it’s a little more global, a little more European.”
To learn more about Colter’s latest role, read the latest issue of We weekly – on newsstands now.
The Union releases on Netflix on Friday, August 16.