Kelvin Harrison Jr. Channels Angelina Jolie and Lenny Kravitz in New Sci-Fi Musical!

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Have you ever found yourself, as children, gazing at rock bands or icons on stage and envisioning yourself standing there someday? And if your abilities didn’t quite measure up to the extraordinary talent of these musical legends, perhaps you would imagine yourself performing for a crowd of passionate fans. If you had a background in theater, maybe you even got a taste of being a rock god. That’s the impressive feat achieved by up-and-coming actor Kelvin Harrison Jr. (Waves) in his latest project, a sci-fi musical titled O’Dessa, directed by Geremy Jasper. In this movie, he portrays a fictional musical icon named Euri who often performs in a post-apocalyptic society, alongside Sadie Sink (Stranger Things).

In an interview with MovieWeb, Harrison mentioned his inspirations while portraying the scene-stealing character Euri. For the stage performances, he often looked to Lenny Kravitz, finding a balance of masculinity he wanted to emphasize in Euri. However, he felt Prince was too obvious a reference. Lenny’s persona provided a good blend of masculinity that Harrison aimed to bring out more in Euri, as Euri can be quite effeminate at times. Additionally, for Euri’s look and style, Harrison drew inspiration from Edie Sedgwick.

Additionally, I often found myself considering his desired image or persona as a means of self-protection, reminiscent of Angelina Jolie’s character in “Girl, Interrupted.” This aspect was particularly significant for me. Consequently, we explored these aspects thoroughly, combined them, heated things up, and voila!

I thought about how he wanted to present himself as a way to protect himself, similar to Angelina Jolie’s character in “Girl, Interrupted.” This was very important for me. So we looked at these aspects closely, mixed them together, heated things up, and there you have it!

Tapping Into the “Rock Thing”

Audience members who follow Harrison’s work are aware that he has a rich history of films centered on music, spanning from “Chevalier” (2022) to “Elvis” (2022) and extending to “Mufasa: The Lion King” (2024). In an exclusive interview with us, the BAFTA-nominated artist shared insights about why O’Dessa is unique among his other projects.

In a different wording: “The sound was distinctly unusual. You see, when I’m working on a musical production, one question that constantly intrigues me is whether I can catch some of the music. After all, it makes up half of the movie! So, I asked if I could listen to a sample, and he obliged. Upon hearing it, I realized that sound was incredibly unique and specifically tied to Geremy’s vision of Satellite City. This was an area I hadn’t delved into before, and I admit, I felt a bit apprehensive about it.

Additionally, Harrison recounted an engaging tale from his collaboration with director Jasper on the film O’Dessa. He explained how he discovered his hidden rock-inspired spirit: “I recall entering the studio with Geremy, and the initial track he had… I didn’t quite grasp its full potential for Euri. So he told me, ‘Go ahead and hum a bit to this backing track I made.’ And that’s what I did,” said Harrison. “He then suggested, ‘Take some time off and return later.’ Upon my return, there were fresh lyrics, a new rhythm, a revamped sound. It felt like we were shaping Euri right before our eyes. And the hidden rock vibe within me… it was thrilling! So I enthusiastically agreed, saying, ‘Absolutely, let’s go for it!’

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2025-03-19 06:31