NEW TOUR OF DUTY

Brandon T. Jackson of Tropic Thunder

At 24, Brandon T. Jackson is a comedy veteran. His stand-up comedy act has taken him to Showtime at the Apollo in New York City and BET’s Comic View, and he’s worked alongside such comedians as Wayne Brady and Chris Tucker. Jackson’s efforts extend beyond performing; he is also the creator and host of the Teens of Comedy tour.

Having previously appeared in several movies, Jackson tackles what is arguably his biggest role yet in Ben Stiller’s action comedy Tropic Thunder as Alpa Chino, a gangsta rapper looking to become a serious actor. The story involves actors filming a Vietnam War movie who end up battling criminals in the jungles of Southeast Asia. Besides Stiller, Jackson’s costars include Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., Matthew McConaughey, Nick Nolte and Tom Cruise. We recently talked with Jackson about making the movie, learning his character and why he’d drink something called Booty Sweat.

Why did you want to be in Tropic Thunder?

Because the script was amazing. You look at the script, and it’s something that’s never been done like this before. The script was just so unique I had to be in it. And it was fun making fun of my colleagues, my rapper friends.

Describe Ben Stiller’s directing style.

Very intense.

How so?

You’ve got to stay in the zone with him. And if you’re not funny, he’ll just get quiet on you and move on to the next joke, and it will get cut out of the movie.

What is the zone?

The zone is… I can’t even explain it. When you’re in it, you know. You just feel like the comedy’s coming out of you ‘cause you just be around all these guys and you’re seeing every different approach. It’s almost like the Matrix of jokes and comedy.

Really?

Yeah. It’s crazy. You like can just see every approach. These guys really, really, really brought it man. He’s great, very intense.

What do you think of Paramount Pictures producing and marketing Booty Sweat, the energy drink Alpa Chino endorses in the movie?

It’s hilarious. I think it’s funny. I get to make fun of my rapper friends. This comedy I think is funny because of the social commentary. People might get offended, but this is the perfect time for it. Everything is so ridiculous right now that we might as well have fun and make fun of ourselves. So – Booty Sweat, baby.

Do you plan to actually drink some when it comes out?

I did. It’s pretty good. It tastes really frickin’ like Red Bull or whatever.

Having a background in stand-up comedy, was it hard to mesh your comedy style with Stiller, Black, Downey, who come from a different tradition?

At first it really was, ‘cause I was playing the punchlines instead of the character at first. And as I played the character it got funnier. When I was playing the punchlines it was funny, but it was like it don’t match the scene. So we would have to play the, you know, think about what’s in your character, what would your character do in a situation? Develop your character, and that’s what Ben kept telling me: develop my character, develop my character, develop my character.