'Monkey Man' Featurette - Dev Patel Brings His Acting Eye Behind the Camera [Exclusive]

Summary

Dev Patel's directorial debut Monkey Man, which brought bombastic Bollywood-adjacent action to theaters, is now available on DVD and Blu-ray.
Behind-the-scenes footage shows Patel's dedication to perfection as a director.
Co-written by Patel, Monkey Man follows Kid's journey to seek revenge against corrupt leaders with brutal action.

Oscar winner Dev Patel's directorial debut Monkey Man brought bombastic Bollywood-adjacent action to theaters earlier this year, and now it's officially hitting store shelves. The film can now be purchased on DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K Ultra HD for anyone looking to bring the film home for their collection. To commemorate the occasion, Collider has an exclusive behind-the-scenes featurette that pulls back the curtain to see how the Slumdog Millionaire star managed his first stint behind the camera. His co-stars also speak to the specific touch he brought as a director and how he made the experience as comfortable as possible for everyone.

Sikandar Kher opens the featurette by expressing his admiration for the passion Patel brought when filming. Behind-the-scenes footage shows Patel getting hands-on when directing his actors, ensuring every movement is perfect and explaining things based on his own acting experience. His vision, Ashwini Kalsekar adds, is very particular and he's shown making minuscule adjustments with everyone on-screen to fit exactly what he wants. That dedication to perfection is well-documented, as Patel even sacrificed the well-being of his body on occasion to keep himself in the middle of the action. Despite being, in his own words, "a real finicky, annoying person," he was a very comfortable director to deliver more takes for in Makarand Deshpande's eyes, thanks in part to the way he would brief his actors. In all, his long resume on-screen only made it easier to connect with and guide his co-stars to get the most out of everyone.

Patel also co-wrote Monkey Man and stars as Kid, a young man burned with childhood trauma after losing his mother and, in essence, his life to corrupt leaders. He spends night after night biding his time in an underground fighting ring, getting beaten bloody in a gorilla mask for cash. When he finally finds a way to infiltrate the world of the city's elite, however, he seizes the opportunity to unleash years of built-up anger and strike back against the man who ruined him and continues to oppress the poor and powerless. Filled with brutal and bloody action inspired by The Raid and John Wick, the film also honors Indian culture and history as Kid fights his way up the rungs of society.

Who Else Worked With Patel on 'Monkey Man'?

Paul Angunawela and John Collee helped pen the screenplay for Monkey Man with Sharlto Copley, Pitobash, Vipin Sharma, and Sobhita Dhulipala rounding out the cast and Jordan Peele attached as a producer through his Monkeypaw Productions banner. Without Peele, Patel's bombastic actioner likely wouldn't have reached the big screen since it was initially bound for Netflix. It was the Get Out and Nope director's ringing endorsement and support that carried it to theaters. The home release promises extra content that further shows how this team worked together to craft what has been hailed as one of 2024's best action films thus far.

Between its SXSW premiere and theatrical release, the film garnered a ton of buzz and an 88% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes. Collider's Perri Nemiroff was more mixed on Patel's directorial debut in her 6/10 review, albeit with high praise for the passion the star showed in bringing together an action flick that pays homage to India. She said, "The action is staggeringly impressive, both from a visual and storytelling standpoint, but the material in between runs the risk of deflating the experience via pacing problems and narrative confusion." Ultimately, the overall strong reviews and online chatter amounted to an underwhelming yet profitable $34.6 million at the global box office.

Monkey Man is now available to purchase on DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K Ultra HD. The film is also available to stream on Peacock. Check out our exclusive sneak peek above.