Columbia Pictures’ new, contemporary spy thriller Salt, starring Angelina Jolie, began life with an offhand comment Jolie made a few years ago.  “I was meeting with (Sony Pictures Co-Chairman) Amy Pascal when it came up in conversation that she was getting ready to make one of the new James Bond films,” Jolie remembers.  “I playfully said, ‘I want to be Bond!’  That was our little joke, and then she found this project.

Screenwriter Kurt Wimmer had originally conceived the role of Salt to be played by a male actor. His original spec script was developed with producer Sunil Perkash, who then brought it to producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Amy Pascal at Sony, who in turn brought on director Phillip Noyce.  Like all motion picture projects, the screenplay then went through several drafts, but the major change to the script occurred when the filmmakers envisioned Jolie, an Academy Award®-winning actress and one of the few women in the world who can carry an action picture, in the title role.  Very quickly, “Edwin Salt” became “Evelyn Salt.”  “We had a really smart script we all collectively loved with an intriguing and complex character, so the idea of Angelina doing this suddenly felt like a no brainer,” says Perkash.  “She’s an incredible actress who would bring such depth and realism to a very enigmatic character.  Having that realism in an otherwise fantastical story was very important, and we were beyond thrilled when she responded to the role.

“When we changed the gender of the main character, we began to question the dynamic of every scene,” explains producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura.  “We didn’t simply question whether a woman would make all the same choices, but also how the other characters would act or react differently, given that it’s a woman.  It was a huge change that rippled through the entire script.”

In the movie, Evelyn Salt must go on the run to prove her innocence when a defector alleges that she’s a mole, triggering Day X – the day when Russian sleeper spies awaken and begin the war against the United States.

Producer di Bonaventura says that the notion of sleeper spies is not fantasy.  “There’s no question that they exist,” he says.  “The CIA believes that they exist.  There’s something really mysterious and sexy about the notion that somebody could lie in wait – for decades, if necessary.”

For example, it has been contended that Soviet Union, and then Russia, deployed covert agents masquerading as citizens in Western countries in the 1980s and 1990s as part of a network of intelligence operatives who would live under assumed names for fifteen to twenty years, or longer.  When activated, these sleeper spies would then orchestrate “Day X,” a chain of sabotage and terrorist attacks within the United States , the beginning of a large-scale war with Russia .  Sleeper spies for Russia have been discovered in recent years in Estonia and Canada , and the 2006 poisoning death of former FSB officer Alexander Litvinenko in London remains a mystery.  Just recently, a group of people – assumed by their friends and neighbors to be living ordinary lives – were arrested by US federal prosecutors and accused of being part of a spy ring, living under false identities in deep cover in an effort to carry out assignments for Russia .

“I have no doubt that sleeper spies are out there,” says Phillip Noyce, director of the film.  “It’s been a part of spycraft since day one. Even before reading Kurt Wimmer’s script, I was fascinated by the question of what might happen if long at rest sleeper spies were suddenly called to action.”

Opening across the Philippines on July 28, Salt is distributed by Columbia Pictures, local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International. Visit www.Facebook.com/ColumbiaPicturesPH and like the fanpage to get the latest movie news, video clips and contests.

Celebrated actors Liev Schreiber (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) and Chiwetel Ejiofor (2012) join Angelina Jolie in Columbia Pictures’ spy thriller Salt as CIA officers who are at odds in dealing with Evelyn Salt’s (Jolie) explosive case.

As a CIA officer, Salt swore an oath to duty, honor and country. Her loyalty will be tested when a defector accuses her of being a Russian spy. Salt goes on the run, using all her skills and years of experience as a covert operative to elude capture. Salt’s efforts to prove her innocence only serve to cast doubt on her motives, as the hunt to uncover the truth behind her identity continues and the question remains: “Who Is Salt?”

Schreiber is an actor known for serious dramatic roles in such films as The Manchurian Candidate and Defiance , but he has also recently branched out into action with Wolverine.  “Liev is very politically aware and very thoughtful, so he’s great to work with,” says Jolie.  “He takes the role seriously, and still has fun with it.”

When Schreiber was first sent the script for Salt, he read it very quickly, he says.  “It was a page-turner,” he recalls.  “I zipped right through it.  It was a really fun read.”

Schreiber, who plays Ted Winter, Salt’s boss at the CIA, was also intrigued by the concept of the hunt for a sleeper spy, who has been living in deep cover with a new identity.  “I’ve heard so many stories about undercover cops who’ve gone into deep cover for years at a time and then kind of lost themselves in their roles,” he says.  “They had become really confused about their allegiance and needed serious deprogramming once they were pulled out.”  This is the question that Winter must grapple with as he’s torn between wanting to help Salt and wanting to catch her.  Can the person he knows so well really be someone else entirely?

Jolie describes Schreiber as “one of the actors that doesn’t sit back.  He puts a lot of work in, and we knew when he came in that he was going to make his character better and stronger.”

Similarly, the filmmakers sought a high-energy actor who could bring out the intensity in Peabody, the man whose job it is to track Salt and bring her back in.  As a product of the CIA’s counter-intelligence division, he is not an especially sympathetic character.   “They’re not the policy makers, they’re the guns,” Jolie explains.  Jolie was especially pleased when Olivier Award-winning British actor Chiwetel Ejiofor, who was seen in the films 2012 and American Gangster, was cast.  “He’s a strong man, Chiwetel, and he’s very tough. He’s such an amazing actor.”

As the counter-intelligence officer on the case, it is Peabody ’s job to determine whether the defector is lying about Salt or telling the truth.  “It starts as kind of a dual pursuit of her – to physically get her back into custody, and also to work out whether there is a mole, and whether she is that mole,” says Ejiofor.  “And that becomes the cat and mouse of the film.”

“ Peabody ’s attitude is that he is going to catch Salt, no matter what it takes,” says producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura. “There’s an intensity to Chiwetel’s performance that is so graceful.  I think people are going to fear for Evelyn Salt as he’s chasing her.”

Since he plays the antagonist, having a good working relationship with Ejiofor was important to Jolie.  “I think it’s important to get along very, very well with the person who’s your enemy in the movie, because you end up being a little bolder in your fights,” she says.  “He and I had a good time.”

Opening soon across the Philippines , Salt is distributed by Columbia Pictures, local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International.  Visit www.Facebook.com/ColumbiaPicturesPH and like the fanpage to get the latest movie news, video clips and contests.

As a CIA officer, Evelyn Salt (Jolie) swore an oath to duty, honor and country. Her loyalty will be tested when a defector accuses her of being a Russian spy. Salt goes on the run, using all her skills and years of experience as a covert operative to elude capture. Salt’s efforts to prove her innocence only serve to cast doubt on her motives, as the hunt to uncover the truth behind her identity continues and the question remains: “Who Is Salt?”

“Salt” began life with an offhand comment Jolie made a few years ago.  “I was meeting with (Sony Pictures Co-Chairman) Amy Pascal when it came up in conversation that she was getting ready to make one of the new James Bond films,” Jolie remembers.  “I playfully said, ‘I want to be Bond!’  That was our little joke, and then she found this project.”

“`Salt’ has a lot of elements in it,” producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura explains.  “It’s a thriller, it’s an action movie, it’s a spy movie, it’s a dramatic love story, and it has some kick-ass action.”

In the movie, Evelyn Salt must go on the run to prove her innocence when a defector alleges that she’s a mole, triggering Day X – the day when Russian sleeper spies awaken and begin the war against the United States .  “Day X is still a controversial topic inside the CIA,” says Jolie. “Some think it’s absolute nonsense and others believe that not only is it real, but sleeper agents have already been activated for certain cases. When we first approached the idea, we thought it was a bit of a fantasy, but as we found out more information, we discovered it was more real than we could have guessed.  Truth really is stranger than fiction.”

Jolie describes her character as having had an “understandable reluctance to get close to anybody, and especially to get married, understanding that she was kind of putting him in the line of fire.” However, Evelyn Salt is married to a man who is fully aware of and accepts the risks of being married to a CIA operative.

Jolie says that it’s not unusual for a CIA operative to be married, but it’s a job that can put a lot of strain on a relationship.  “I talked to one woman, a former operative, who said it was such a relief when she left the agency – after years of not being able to communicate anything that she did or where she was going, her whole relationship with her husband changed.  She didn’t realize how much it had kept them apart, how difficult it had been, until she had a new life.”

To prepare for her role, Jolie did her research.  “We talked to a lot of the women in the CIA,” says Jolie.  “One after the other, they are just these lovely, sweet women that you can’t imagine being put in a dangerous situation, but they really are.”

Through these interactions with former spies, Noyce says, Jolie learned what an operative would do if she were really accused of being a sleeper spy.  “She learned how spies live on the edge, what they do if they are unmasked, how they evade detection,” says the director.

In casting Jolie, the filmmakers felt they could push the throttle on the action quotient.  “Salt fights aggressively, in face-to-face combat,” she notes.  “In some movies I’ve done, there’s been a temptation – because I’m female – to make the action nice” – and nice, she says, is not how a trained operative accused of being a sleeper mole for the enemy would fight.

“Angelina’s the consummate pro,” adds producer di Bonaventura.  “Whether it’s a dramatic scene, whether it’s a funny scene, whether it’s an action scene, she’s going for it.  It’s great to work with somebody who really wants to push the boundaries.”

Opening soon across the Philippines , “Salt” is distributed by Columbia Pictures, local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International.  Visitwww.Facebook.com/ColumbiaPicturesPH and like the fanpage to get the latest movie news, video clips and contests.

In the film, Jolie stars as Evelyn Salt, a CIA officer who swore an oath to duty, honor, and country. When she is accused by a defector of being a Russian sleeper spy, Salt goes on the run to clear her name and ultimately prove she is a patriot. Using all her skills and years of experience as a covert operative, she must elude capture and protect her husband or the world’s most powerful forces will erase any trace of her existence.

For Jolie, playing an ambiguous character who might not be who she claims to be was a whole lot of fun. She loved the fact that the audience will be on the edge of their seats wondering if Salt is a loyal CIA agent or, in fact, she could really be a mole, deep under cover for the enemy.

“I think you go through the film, if we have done our job right, not being sure of who she is and when you think you are sure of who she is maybe even that is different than you thought it was,” Jolie says.

“Salt” is directed by Phillip Noyce (“The Bone Collector”) from a screenplay by Brian Helgeland (“Green Zone”) and Kurt Wimmer (“Equilibrium”)

The film also stars Liev Schreiber (“The Manchurian Candidate”) as Winter, Salt’s boss and friend on the Russian desk at the CIA, and Chiwetel Ejiofor (“2012”) plays Peabody, a CIA counter-intelligence officer.

Opening soon across the Philippines , “Salt” is distributed by Columbia Pictures, local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International.  Visitwww.sonypictures.com.ph to see the latest trailers, get free downloads and play free movie games.