Gal Gadot says becoming a mother helped her tap into the more “vulnerable” sides of her The Runner character.
The 41-year-old actress has four children, and credits her brood for giving her on-screen alter egos more depth.
Speaking about upcoming film The Runner, which sees her play a mother whose son has been kidnapped, told Modern Luxury magazine: “I think the moment you become a mother, you also become a lioness.
“Nothing matters more than your children. No matter where we come from or what we believe, I think every parent shares the same instinct: to keep their children safe.
“And the greatest fear any mother carries is the thought of not being able to protect them. That’s the fear Maia lives with throughout this story.”
Gal added that motherhood is “the deepest emotional well I have”, explaining: “It gives me access to emotions that are impossible to imagine intellectually; you simply feel them.”
Her character Maia in The Runner doesn’t hold back when it comes to showing her fear, but Gal thinks it makes her all the more relatable.
She said: “Maia isn’t a superhero. She doesn’t have all the answers. She makes mistakes, she doubts herself, she gets scared, and yet she keeps moving forward.
“I think that’s the kind of courage I find most inspiring. Real courage isn’t the absence of fear; it’s choosing to keep going despite it.
“Some of the smartest, strongest people I know are also deeply vulnerable because they have so much to lose.
“Maia is brilliant, analytical, and capable, but when her family is threatened, every decision becomes emotional. To me, vulnerability doesn’t weaken intelligence. It gives it stakes.”
As the title suggests, The Runner is Olivia’s most physical role to date, and she trained with Olympian Malachi Davis ahead of the shoot.
She previously told DuJour magazine of the training: “I’m very athletic and I grew up doing all types of sports, but if there’s one thing I’ve tried to avoid, it’s running. If there’s one way for me to learn to do it properly, this is it.”
And now she’s learned how to run properly, she’s started to enjoy it.
She added: “It’s not like suffering. I enjoy the challenge. There’s a whole science behind how to do it right. To be honest, I’m just so grateful. I get to do what I love, and I get to learn a new skill by the best of the best.”
