‘Motor City’: Alan Ritchson on Challenging Action, Fake Teeth & His Wigs (Exclusive)

Alan Ritchson is dishing on his new action-crime thriller “Motor City.” 

Set in 1970s Detroit, Alan plays John Miller, who falls for a local gangster's girl and lands in prison for a crime he didn't commit. After his release, he launches a relentless mission for revenge.

He spoke to "Extra's" Terri Seymour about how the film has very limited dialogue, which Alan said he felt "made room for more emotion."

He said, “You’re left without this crutch that we normally rely on in dialogue, and without that form of verbal communication, you sort of sit in those emotions that can flood you.”

According to Ritchson, the cast "really enjoyed being pushed in that direction.”

As for what he thought when he first read the script, Alan recalled, "The second I closed it, my wife had walked by my office as I finished... and I was like, 'Masterpiece. It's a masterpiece. I have to make this movie.'"

He commented, “People don’t know the script itself has a really storied past in Hollywood. This has been passed through the hands of every leading man for the last 15 years.”

Alan said, "It's a difficult film because it really does intersect hard at this meeting point of art and commerce. It's an artistic, indie film but with like a really commercial pulse. I mean, the action side of it, that I really worked hard to make sure that we emphasized, because I feel like that's something every audience around the world can enjoy."

The movie features fight scenes that posed “unique challenges," and Alan shared how they pushed themselves with the action.

"We really want to just find a way to elevate the film with the action," he said. Alan explained, "We created some rules around a lot of these scenes that, you know, that would prevent people from feeling, like, fight fatigue, would keep people engaged, would surprise people... Some of those might be like, you know, not repeating ideas in fights."

He elaborated, "So a lot of times, you know, people start punching, and it's just a punch match... So we created this rule, like, you have to elevate everything. So if there's a punch, there's an elbow. If it's an elbow, it has to be a headbutt. If it's a headbutt, a kick. A kick, a stab. a stab, a shot... We found a way to just continue to challenge ourselves."

The movie also features a love triangle, which he said “creates this desperation and contempt and revenge."

Ritchson praised his co-star Shailene Woodley, saying, “It's really the heartbeat of the movie, is the story of Sophia and what Shailene brought to life with this woman, that is the object of desire for two very different men.”

Since the movie is set in the '70s, Alan had fake teeth made and wore several hair pieces.

He explained, "I had braces when I was in high school. I've used Crest White Strips. I feel like I've got kind of a more modern look... I always want to honor these characters I play in the realest, most complex way, no matter what it does to me. And so, I had a set of teeth made that just weren't so nice and weren't so white, and it like changed the whole shape of my face, I feel like."

Alan recalled, "I even had a studio executive call me after watching the movie for the first time, and was like, 'Amazing! I loved this movie so much! You're great in it. And what did you do to your face? Were you wearing a new nose?'"

He laughed, "I was not wearing a prosthetic nose, no, but I did have teeth in that changed the shape of the face."

As for the wigs, he said, “We had several pieces made, just wanted to show the transition of time and, you know, sort of use the changes in hair as like a, you know, just a transition in the mood and emotion and to sort of help tell you where this character is. So it did a lot of heavy lifting for sure."

He fessed up, "The one thing I took from set were the wigs," though he said his makeup artist has them. Alan joked, "She wouldn't let me hold onto these things, because I'll like wear it around every day and ruin it."