Podtalk: Director Ric Roman Waugh Takes Us to ‘Kandahar’

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CHICAGO – Ric Roman Waugh is a man of action, as this stuntman-turned-director is approaching his tenth film, several of which involving his actor partner Gerard Butler. The duo takes on the Afghanistan War from the CIA undercover operative angle with the new film “Kandahar,” opening in theaters on May 26th.

Tom Harris (Gerard Butler), is undercover for the Agency, stuck deep within hostile territory during the America’s war in Afghanistan. When an intelligence leak exposes his identity and mission, he must fight his way out. At his side is his translator (Navid Negahban), and together they must reach an extraction point in the Afghan city of Kandahar, all while avoiding the elite special forces unit tasked with hunting them down.

Director Ric Roman Waugh with Gerard Butler on the Set of ‘Kandahar’
Photo credit: Open Road Films

Ric Roman Waugh is a director, writer, producer, actor and former stuntman. His acknowledged directorial debut was “In the Shadows” in 2001, and from there was notable for his action and thriller films in different genres, including “Felon” (2008), “Snitch” (2013), “Shot Caller” (2017) and “Angel Has Fallen” (2019), the third of the “Has Fallen” series and first film with Gerard Butler. “Kandahar” is his third film with Butler, and the first film shot in Saudi Arabia since “Lawrence of Arabia.” Butler will be also be working with Waugh in the upcoming “Greenland: Migration” (a sequel to 2020’s “Greenland”) and “Night Has Fallen.”

In a Podtalk with Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com, director Ric Roman Waugh of “Kandahar” talks the depth of the film and his relationship with Gerard Butler …

In a tribute from one stuntman-turned-director to another, Ric remembers 1970s/80s icon Hal Needham …

Trailer for “Kandahar” …

By PATRICK McDONALD Editor and Film Critic/Writer HollywoodChicago.com pat@hollywoodchicago.com