‘Eddie the Eagle’ stars Jackman, Egerton land in Fort Worth
Eddie the Eagle has been grounded.
Leave it to the 301st Fighter Wing, based at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, to clip the iconic Olympian’s wings.
Mind you, this isn’t the real Eddie. This is the “reel” Eddie, actor Taron Egerton, who plays the title role in Eddie the Eagle, a feel-good movie about Britain’s lovable last-place ski jumper, an unlikely fan favorite from the 1988 Calgary Winter Games. The film opens Friday.
Egerton came to North Texas last week — along with co-star Hugh Jackman and director Dexter Fletcher — for two days of pre-release screenings that included a red-carpet event in Plano.
On this day in Fort Worth, it’s Jackman, not the movie’s lesser-known leading man, who experiences the adventure of a lifetime.
Egerton is an earthbound spectator while Jackman flight-suits up and takes to the skies in the rear seat of an F-16 Fighting Falcon.
Members of the 301st even stencil the call sign of “Wolverine” onto the side of the fuselage. With this gesture (which references the actor’s “X-Men” fame), the Air Force Reserve officially claims Jackman as one of their own.
“Having this opportunity is a dream come true,” Jackman says in a pre-flight interview. “I’m fully aware how lucky I am.”
Flying over Fort Worth
It’s a beautiful blue-sky mid-70s Friday afternoon when Jackman’s aircraft, piloted by Lt. Col. David Efferson, 457th Fighter Squadron commander, zips across North Texas, more than 8,000 feet high.
They are just a blip on a radar screen as Egerton and Fletcher observe from the base air traffic control tower.
If Egerton, an up-and-coming movie star in his own right, is jealous, he doesn’t show it. “I spent enough time in the air as Eddie the Eagle,” he says. “Today I’m keeping my feet on the ground.”
That said, Egerton adds that he wouldn’t mind if Jackman “yacks in the cockpit” so he can tease him throughout the rest of the publicity tour.
Alas — and fortunately — Jackman proves to have a cast-iron stomach.
Eventually, Egerton (who’s best known for 2014’s Kingsman: The Secret Service) gets his moment to shine, donning a headset to issue radio flight instructions from the control tower.
“Hello, Wolf Cub. This is Eagle Nine,” he begins. Then he pads his role with some ad-libbed gibberish: “Alpha Tango Bravo Delta Charlie Oscar. … Thank you very much, Hugh. Have a safe flight.”
Hours later, back on Earth, Jackman is still soaring.
“That was about the most incredible one hour of my life,” he declares.
Then Jackman, Egerton and Fletcher host a special screening in the base’s movie theater for a packed house of active and reserve sailors, soldiers, airmen and Marines.
Before the night is over, the Eddie the Eagle trio turn their backs to the audience so they can include everyone in a 400-person selfie.
Bo Derek connection
The movie is a resounding hit with this crowd. But that’s hardly a surprise. Michael “Eddie” Edwards, the man who inspired the film, always had a knack for winning people over with his never-say-quit attitude.
After narrowly failing to make the British Olympic team in downhill skiing, he switched to ski jumping, an event in which Britain had no athletes competing. At first Eddie was dismissed as a novelty act, much like the 1988 Jamaican bobsled team, but ultimately he won everyone’s hearts, then their admiration.
The best sports movies are often about something deeper than just winning the championship — and that’s definitely the case with Eddie the Eagle.
“Spoiler alert: He doesn’t win,” says Jackman, who plays Eddie’s coach. “As a matter of fact, he comes in last. Yet you cheer and you pull for him and fall in love with him in the movie just like everyone did in the 1988 Olympics.
“He was a folk hero, because he’s an example that you don’t have to win to be a winner in life.”
The shaggy-dog story of the Jamaican bobsledders quickly became a movie (1993’s Cool Runnings), but it took more than 25 years for Eddie to rate the same treatment.
Jackman, Egerton and Fletcher choose not to question why no one jumped on the story before now.
“We wouldn’t have been in it if someone made it 25 years ago,” Jackman says. “Taron wasn’t even born yet when Eddie was competing.”
“Every movie has its time,” Fletcher adds.
And speaking of time, this is when we’re told we’ve got just 30 seconds left for our interview.
It’s not enough time for another question and answer, so instead everyone takes a moment to daydream about fantasy woman Bo Derek. The actress doesn’t appear in this movie — but, boy, oh, boy, Jackman’s character memorably sings her praises during a most unconventional coaching session.
“I did a lot of research watching the movie 10,” Jackman jokes.
“That movie is seared into my memory,” Fletcher says.
The Eddie the Eagle trio can say the same now about their visit to Fort Worth — that the city is seared into their memories, albeit for different reasons.
This was one adventure they’re not going to forget.
This story was originally published February 22, 2016 at 12:35 PM with the headline "‘Eddie the Eagle’ stars Jackman, Egerton land in Fort Worth."