Kenneth Branagh stars as a former KGB agent in the Apple TV action comedy Esquire.
Stepping Into Action Comedy With Mayday
In Mayday, Branagh plays Nikolai Ustinov, a Russian mountain man and former KGB agent who relies on unconventional methods—including a pen as a lethal weapon—to eliminate adversaries. According to reporting from Agence France-Presse (AFP) at the Toronto International Film Festival, Ustinov encounters and rescues a downed American surveillance pilot named Troy “Assassin” Kelly, played by Ryan Reynolds, whose plane crashes in Soviet territory during the heightened tensions of the late 1980s Cold War.
Directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daly, previously known for Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, helmed the project. Branagh told Branagh committed to an extensive physical regimen. He told AFP that he practiced yoga for hours and trained methodically to master combat choreographies for the screen. “I tried to do it the best and the fastest possible, without hurting myself and without hurting anyone,” Branagh stated, describing the production as a solid opportunity to improve his personal fitness.
The narrative follows the two characters on a journey toward Moscow, during which they challenge mutual cultural assumptions. Branagh’s character, fascinated by American cinema including the film Top Gun, demonstrates that Soviet citizens do not fit the cold stereotypes pushed by Washington officials, while Reynolds’s character tests the notion of unblemished American heroism.
Off-screen, the rapport between the two leads developed quickly. Branagh noted to AFP that their interactions remained natural from their very first meeting, with conversations frequently turning to football during promotional events and on set.
A Career Across Genres
At the time of the film’s press rollout, Branagh was performing eight times a week in Chekhov’s More on this