The Dead Don't Hurt: Viggo Mortensen on rewriting the western

How would you respond if you opened your front door to Viggo Mortensen — renowned star of The Lord of the Rings movies — asking to borrow not a cup of sugar, but your horse?

For the locals in Mexico's mountainous north-western state of Durango, standing in for Civil War era US in his new movie The Dead Don't Hurt, the aura of stardom counted for very little.

"I'd found a few horses, but we still had to find more, plus train the riders," the actor-turned-filmmaker recalls of shooting his second feature as writer-director.

"I was driving around the countryside, stopping at farms and knocking on the door, asking, 'Could I ride your horse?' And they're like, 'Why? Who are you?'"

The horse-loving Mortensen was worried they wouldn't have enough time to recruit enough riders for his modest-budget epic. He needed a helping hand.

"Rex Peterson is the best there is," he says of the Hollywood horse wrangler he worked with on the 2004 film Hidalgo.

Petersen has steered equine performances on everything from classic TV shows The Waltons and Little House on the Prairie to big screen adventures, including the Nicole Kidman and Tom-Cruise-led Far and Away.

The only issue? Petersen had retired.

"I asked Rex if he would come and help for a couple of weeks," a denim-shirted Mortensen says between drags of his rollie, looking for all the world like a real-deal cowboy.

"He said, 'You've got your hands full. I'm gonna stay the whole shoot' — which he did."

Wearing many hats

As in his 2020 directorial debut — fraught father-son drama Falling with Lance Henriksen and Laura Linney — Mortensen is also the star in The Dead Don't Hurt, playing Dutch immigrant and carpenter Holger Olsen.

Mortensen doesn't see multitasking as a big deal.

"I ended up playing Lance's son for economic reasons, and what I found was that, actually, I'm more efficient as an actor when I'm also directing, because I don't have time to be as self-conscious," Mortensen says.

"I'm paying attention to the other actor and everything that's in the shot, doing what an actor should always do, which is be completely available to the circumstances of the scene without thinking, 'Oh, did I sound good?'"

In The Dead Don't Hurt, a western with a romantic heart, Mortensen plays opposite the magnificent Vicky Krieps of Phantom Thread fame. She depicts Vivienne Le Coudy, a French-Canadian woman captivated by Joan of Arc's story.

"I wanted to write a story about an independent woman on the western frontier in the mid-19th century who has a strong sense of herself," Mortensen says. "And how hard that would be in a place that was more or less lawless, dominated by a few powerful, corrupt and often violent men."

Men like Scottish actor Solly McLeod's snarling Weston Jeffries.

"[McLeod] was a great discovery," Mortensen says.

"He was only 21 years old when I cast him, younger than what I was thinking for the character, but there was just something about him. He nailed the accent and the horse-work and I think he's gonna have a great career."

After first spotting her in Paul Thomas Anderson's Phantom Thread, Mortensen knew Krieps was also the right person for the film.

"I needed someone who was really expressive, who can act without words as well," Mortensen says. "She reminded me of first seeing Meryl Streep years ago — that kind of intensity, power and presence."

It wasn't part of Mortensen's original plan to play Holger in this intriguing twist on the frontier myth, but a younger, unnamed actor pulled out late in the game.

Thankfully, Mortensen and Krieps have fantastic screen chemistry; the film has an almost rom-com energy.

"Holger feels a really strong connection the morning after, and you can feel that she's thinking, 'This guy's an idiot. How quickly can I get rid of him?' But he has a stick-to-it intuitiveness that she's also impressed by," Mortensen says.

Scoring the scene

Mortensen has again brought his musical talents along for the ride, composing the film's score (as he did with Falling).

He first brought music to film for the coronation of Aragorn in The Return of the King, after suggesting the idea to director Peter Jackson.

"In the book, Aragorn sings this song of his forefathers, and I thought it would be fitting," he says. "I enjoyed that a lot."

Music aids his directorial process. "Going into this one, I had a very clear idea of what the instruments and melodies should be, based on historical references including Celtic influences, classical music that would be listened to in saloons and that Appalachian mix," Mortensen says.

"I could play it through for cinematographer Marcel Zyskind, knowing the tempo and rhythm of certain scenes."

And though it's only been a few years, he's pretty comfortable in the director's chair, now.

"When I did Falling, I was already 60 years old, so I had waited a long time," Mortensen says.

"I'd wanted to try it for many years but hadn't found the financing. It's one thing to be an actor that people know, more or less, but then to trust that actor to direct a movie is a whole different thing. So you're starting a little bit from scratch."

Thankfully, he's learned from some of the best in the business.

"I already knew from working with excellent directors, whether it be Jane Campion or David Cronenberg, that the best ones prepare meticulously and are good listeners.

"They're always available to any suggestions or ideas from the crew or the cast and don't take it as an affront or a challenge to their authority. It's a team effort [to] make the best story we can."

The Dead Don't Hurt is in Australian cinemas from December 5.