Mark Wahlberg was perfectly ready to be nasty in "The Italian Job" when the director told him to play nice.
He'd planned to bring a low-key, bristling intensity to the role of Charlie Croker, the ringleader of a bunch of thieves aiming to avenge the murder of their mentor. Director F. Gary Gray had other ideas.
"I've played likable characters before," Wahlberg told New York Newsday, "but I've never been asked by a director to concentrate on being likable and being charming. It was a challenge to keep that in the back of my mind; I like playing things small, but this time I had to ham it up a little bit."
Wahlberg, 31, has played leading roles in many films, including "Boogie Nights," "Three Kings," "The Perfect Storm" and a remake of "Planet of the Apes." His relationship with Gray was cemented when the two collaborated on a music video back in Wahlberg's rapping days.
"I don't mind working with a director that's going to give you a line reading, because they know what they want," he said. "I'm not playing the movie star thing; I'm playing the actor who wants to deliver for the director."