Meet the man behind ‘Godzilla: King of the Monsters’ T.J. Storm

NerdAlertNews got the chance to chat with T.J. Storm the motion capture actor for Godzilla in “Godzilla: King of the Monsters.” Motion capture actors bring characters such as Godzilla and Ghidorah to life by wearing a suit that is marked up while filming. While wearing this suit, they are filmed acting out their scenes as the monster they portray and the markings on the suits allows for the computer artists to build the monster over them.

Storm is no stranger to playing the man behind the mask. He is known for Iron Man, Darth Vader, and The Predator. plays the iconic Godzilla and was amazing carrying on the 65-year-old tradition started by Haruo Nakajima. The actor shares his experience playing a “400 foot tall 90,000 metric ton radioactive Kaiju/Titan.

Jadeen Mercado: “Godzilla: King of the Monsters” is the movie of the summer. It must have been amazing being the motion capture actor for Godzilla. Can you tell us a story from the set?

T.J. Storm: I can tell you that it was a blast! It just happened to be my birthday while we shot the Godzilla stuff, so the crew got me a great cake with my name on it. Since my name was on it, I felt secure in not sharing any of it (just joking…mostly.). For some of the shots, I wore a Godzilla tail that moved with very nice articulation! A company named Fonco made it (They fabricate all kinds of awesome move fx stuff) for the shoot and it really helped inform some of the movements!

JM: Were the fight sequences with King Ghidorah done with all four of you together?

T.J: Yes, we all shot at the same time and faced off over and over with different situations, including running them into buildings, etc. I think they acted as if they were stuck to a building (many cardboard boxes stacked high) as I charged at them. I thought that was such a cool shot.

JM: How much did other Godzilla performances influence your translation of him?

T.J: Godzilla exists because of the incredible artists and performers before me. The master, Haruo Nakajima played him for nearly 20 years like Katsumi Tezuka, Yu Sekida and others have performed and shaped the legacy of Godzilla carrying the tradition for 65 years now. I am happy to continue the beautiful work that they action actors have begun. And they are not alone in this. The suit makers, the directors, the writers…they are often unsung heroes because of their hard work, we get to do what we do.

Even in this new digital age, there are small armies of talented techs and gifted digital artists that work very, very hard to make the scenery, the monsters, the buildings, even the sky looks just right. They are rarely thought of but absolutely crucial to making all of this magic happen. So to answer your question, yes, but I am not alone, it takes a village.

JM: What was unique about playing Godzilla compared to your other MoCap work?

TJ: Good question. First off, you can’t take such massive cultural icons lightly. I’ve been allowed to step into some pretty famous shoes, and each time I understand that when I’ve played Darth Vader, The Predator, Iron Man, etc, they have a great history that came well before me, and that history of movement, story and action needs to be respected. Godzilla is older than all of them. A Cultural icon, Godzilla has a history of great actors that have portrayed him in a particular way. That said, I was one of the first non-Japanese actors to portray him, as well as one of the first to use motion capture technology to perform the movements of Godzilla.

The actors before me all wore Godzilla suits. Haruo Nakajima’s suit weighed 200 pounds and didn’t breathe. He passed out from working in that suit.  I had a unique experience in that I was free to perform without the suit hindering my vision, movement or endurance. And playing a 400 foot tall 90,000 metric ton radioactive Kaiju/Titan is a unique experience unto itself, wouldn’t you say?

I run a performance capture school called the Mind’s Eye Tribe: Action Actors Academy here in Los Angeles, and one of the first things many of our students want to do is enroll in one of our classes called Beast Mode, a creature movement performance class. They learn first hand how difficult it can be to not only move like a creature but how to create that experience from a realistic place and allow it to translate itself through the performance; not easy, but fun and you learn so much about yourself!

JM: What is something an audience member should know about the making of Godzilla, especially your performance when they sit down to watch the movie?

T.J: That director Michael Dougherty was the perfect choice for this movie because of his passion, knowledge and hard work. Furthermore, Michael Dougherty was THE first director to see that we got credited with our work in the film. I’ve done performance capture in many, many films–this is the first time I got any credit for it. Huge kudos and thanks to Michael Dougherty for taking that step towards what should be absolutely standard in our industry. That we had a BLAST making it! That we were like kids playing monsters in the backyard. That no actual lizards or dragons were harmed in the filming of “Godzilla.”

JM: Do you have any other cool projects in the works that you’re allowed to tell us about?

T.J: I am proud to appear as Darth Vader in the new Vader Immortal on the Oculus Quest system! This is exciting because it’s my first time working in the amazing “Star Wars” universe. I am honored and proud. And there are wonderful things on the horizon, I guess you’ll just have to check back in with me so I can share them then!

Thank you so much T.J. Storm for sharing your time with us, check him out on Instagram to stay up to date with his work! Stay tuned for more Godzilla content on NerdAlertNews!

Written by Jadeen Mercado