Mamoudou Athie on Entering Yorgos Lanthimos’ ‘Risky’ World in ‘Kinds of Kindness’: ‘I Love When Something Feels Fresh and Innovative’

variety.com:

Angelique Jackson Mamoudou Athie can practically taste the lobster rolls from the Carlton hotel. He smiles wistfully as he taps into that sense memory of his first trip to the Cannes Film Festival.

In 2023, Athie voiced the lead role in Disney-Pixar’s “Elemental,” which closed the fest. And he’s returning this week as part of the first-rate ensemble of Yorgos Lanthimos’ offbeat movie “Kinds of Kindness.” Discussion of the crustacean-filled dish might seem irrelevant, but it’s perhaps not incidental.

Athie begins our conversation by revealing that his first encounter with Lanthimos’ unique sensibilities was 2015’s “The Lobster.” The Mauritanian American actor, who was studying at Yale School of Drama at the time, was captivated by the originality of the material and the conviction the filmmaker brought to his craft. “I love something that feels fresh and innovative and risky,” Athie says,sitting down with Variety in late April and eagerly anticipating the film’s world premiere at the Palais on May 17. “All of Yorgos’ work feels very risky — and not for risky’s sake.

It’s nice when people back themselves.” So Athie was surprised — and thrilled — when, seven years later, the filmmaker reached out to talk about a role in his next movie.