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How Brooklyn Nine Nine's Stephanie Beatriz Almost Beheaded Anthony Mackie On Twisted Metal
The Brooklyn Nine-Nine alum almost took out her new co-star on the wild Peacock series.
Turns out throwing axes with deadly accuracy is much harder than it looks.
Stephanie Beatriz learned this the hard way on the set of Peacock's Twisted Metal series (all 10 episodes are now streaming) while shooting a scene that required her character, a hardened car thief named Quiet, to chuck an axe in close proximity to fellow co-star and post-apocalyptic road warrior, Anthony Mackie (John Doe). While the blade was hopefully made out of rubber, or a similarly non-lethal material, Beatriz swears it almost caused some serious damage to the MCU's Captain America.
Stephanie Beatriz Nearly Killed Anthony Mackie on Twisted Metal set
"There was a day where I almost took off Anthony’s head as we were both running toward camera and I threw an axe and it whizzed by his ear," the Brooklyn Nine-Nine alumnus recalled during a Zoom interview with NBC Insider conducted before the SAG-AFTRA strike took effect this month. "I was like, ‘Oh my God, I almost killed Anthony Mackie!’ But [my throwing skills] are getting better. They look great on camera, which is all you really need."
Thankfully, Mackie's head remained firmly on his shoulders and filming could move on unhindered. One of the things Beatriz loved most about the shoot, is that it allowed her to indulge the uncouth, Mr. Hyde-like alter ego lurking within all of us.
"I certainly brought all the stuff that I’m too polite to say out loud most of the time," she confessed. "I think we all have these thoughts in our heads of like, ‘I would say that, but I’m an an adult.’ What is that line [from] George Constanza? ‘We’re living in a society!’ You can’t be an a—hole, but I think for me, Quiet was definitely a chance to just let it loose and that’s really fun to me."
Quiet's abrasive exterior is nothing more than an emotionally protective shell, hardened over the years by a combination of loss and pain. She's survived the end of the world by trusting no one (other than her own brother, of course) and adopting a kill or be killed mentality. Her unlikely partnership with John challenges that cynical worldview, though it takes a few episodes of head-butting and snarky quips before the characters warm up to one another. This narrative arrangement worked just fine for Beatriz and Mackie, who apparently liked to playfully rib each other when the cameras weren't rolling.
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"We both really enjoy getting each other’s goat," Beatriz said. "That’s for sure in real life, but I think we brought it and focused it and narrowed it down into the relationship between these two very two antagonistic characters that are forced to team up inside this post-apocalyptic, chaotic, ridiculous world. And so, I guess I brought some of myself [to the role]. I’m not nearly as badass as Quiet is. [laughs] I don’t know about that part of it. The goofiness, yes, though."
All 10 episodes of Twisted Metal are now streaming on Peacock alongside all eight seasons of Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Want more original Peacock content? Be sure to check out Bel-Air, Killing It, A Friend of the Family, Poker Face, Joe vs. Carole, Mrs. Davis, MacGruber, and Based on a True Story.
**This interview was conducted before the actors' strike.**
