JAPAN: Rihanna and the cast and director of mega-budget film "Battleship" get onboard US aircraft carrier George Washington at Yokosuka base to promote the film before its Japan premiere

Record ID: 466188

  • Title: JAPAN: Rihanna and the cast and director of mega-budget film "Battleship" get onboard US aircraft carrier George Washington at Yokosuka base to promote the film before its Japan premiere
  • Date: 2nd April 2012
  • Summary: YOKOSUKA, KANAGAWA PREFECTURE, JAPAN (APRIL 2, 2012) (REUTERS) U.S. AIRCRAFT CARRIER USS GEORGE WASHINGTON ANCHORED AT U.S. NAVY'S YOKOSUKA BASE SIGN READING "73" ON CONTROL TOWER RADARS ON TOP OF CONTROL TOWER
  • Embargoed: 17th April 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Japan, Japan
  • Country: Japan
  • Reuters ID: LVA2LXUPSTWHNO9DULDEFDY8UV69
  • Story Text: Global pop star Rihanna came onboard U.S. aircraft carrier George Washington anchored at Yokosuka base, near Tokyo, on Monday (April 2) to promote her Hollywood debut film "Battleship" before its world premiere on Tuesday (April 3).
    The tarmac of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier was the perfect place for the promotional news conference for the blockbuster where international naval fleets are forced into war against alien intruders.
    The five-time Grammy winner Rihanna acted a daredevil naval officer firing machine-gun in Battleship, but she said no heroes in the Science-fiction can substitute the real military heroes.
    "Thank you for being generous and welcoming us onboard the George Washington, your home, and I think it's really special, and we look up to you so much. You're such an inspiration to all of us. We can never ever fill your shoes and we don't take it for granted. So, thank you for even letting us come onboard and be a part of your world for even this short moment," Rihanna said.
    The Victoria's Secret model-turned-actress Brooklyn Decker who acted the female lead, said the film was to shed light on the military.
    "We hope that we can shine a light on the heroes in our military all around the world, and we're proud to bring it to the big screen, so thank you so much for your support," Decker said.
    Battleship, the $200 million feature based on the Hasbro board game, also starred Taylor Kitsch of Disney's John Carter and Alexander Skarsgard of the HBO series True Blood.
    Director Perter Berg said he focused on making the naval war film to make sense to the navy officers who live for it.
    "Knowing that we had such unique access to some of this beautiful assets of the navy and knowing that people like these men and women right here are going to come and see Battleship... and these were the people who I kept in my mind more than movie critics or journalists because I knew that when they saw it they would say quietly "No, that's not right," or they'd be like "Yeh, hell yeh. He got it right." And, it was very important to me to get it right for this guys," said Berg.
    It was nobody else but the Japanese actor Tadanobu Asano who blew a humour punch to the crew members of the George Washington.
    "When I visited Japanese ship... well, Japanese are very serious, and everything was very very clean. But when I went to the U.S. ship, I'd not say it was dirty or anything, but it wasn't as kept as the Japanese ship; I saw Coke cans around. So, that's what I thought the difference between the two. They are not that different, but just to be honest," Asano said.
    His comment was quickly opposed by the American director Berg, who said: "The U.S. ships are very very clean. It's just that the Japanese ships are really really really clean, so it's like clean and cleaner. I mean it's all good."
    Battleship, the naval war film cranked up in 2010, will hit theaters across the world on May 18, 2012.
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