Original-Cin Chat: From Boba Fett to Buccaneer, The Bluff's Temuera Morrison Follows a Code

By John Kirk

Be he Buccaneer or Bounty Hunter, whatever the role, Temuera Morrison plays men of honour – or at least a code.

Original-Cin sat down with Temuera to chat about his role as Quartermaster Lee, the first officer and right-hand man to Pirate Captain Francisco Connor (Karl Urban) in Prime Video’s epic pirate film, The Bluff.

As Lee, Morrison joins the notorious buccaneer in his revenge-filled pursuit of Ercell Bodden (Priyanka Chopra Jonas). A former pirate who has renounced her criminal ways, Ercell betrayed her former captain.

Quartermaster Lee is a no-nonsense first mate who lives by both common sense and the conventions of the sea. He is the perfect calm to the hotheaded Connor.

One of the hallmarks about Morrison’s roles is that he always seems to pick characters who are guided by some sort of code – fatherhood, the code of the bounty hunter, etc. (The Book of Boba Fett, Occupation, Aquaman). In this case, it’s the Pirate’s Code. We asked him about how important this was to him.

“I think I brought a sense of loyalty to Lee – a sense of loyalty that he had towards his captain and they had been bonded together for some years. I like to use my imagination. I like to think I was playing one of my Maori ancestors, of which there were a number! There were whalers, schooners and I think it would have been quite easy for me to have wound up on a sailing vessel and ended up with Karl Urban!”

Speaking of bonding, both Urban and Morrison are from New Zealand. We had to ask what it was like working with his fellow countryman.

“Karl needs to always get out of my shot!” Temuera laughed, talking jokingly about their on-screen relationship.

“No, I think that loyalty that I talked about comes from an honest source. We are both Kiwis, and that loyalty and friendship comes from that Kiwi root connection. It’s funny that you managed to pick up on those subtleties there!”

Lee is clearly resourceful, knows his job and is obedient. But it’s the devotion to his friend and his director that he credits as the inspiration.

“I met the director (Frank E. Flowers) and I wasn’t quite sure that I was going to jump on board thiswaka, this canoe, this vessel but after having a wonderful conversation with our friend, Frank, I said to myself that I’m going to have to do this film. I love this guy so much. I think that also comes out in the performance: the loyalty to my captain, the loyalty to my director.”

Of course, there are other values that come out in the film as well, namely those of fatherhood. Not many are aware but Temuera and Karl both got to be dads on set. He shared with us.

“Frank allowed my son to play the waterboy! I don’t want to reveal too much, but having that connection on screen was invaluable. I was grateful for that. Karl had his son as the other waterboy as well! So, that was a special arrangement that meant a lot.”

Other values like Morrison’s respect for his Maori heritage emerge in the film as we hear Lee speak in Maori to the waterboy, showcasing those family and heritage values.

“It’s great that you picked up on those nuances too! Yeah, Frank liked the sound of my language. To hear the commands shouted out in my native language of Maori sounded more authoritative and real.

This would have been the language spoken on the fishing boats of the company in New Zealand called Talleys. My brother worked on those ships and he was a hard man. If you didn’t work hard, he’d throw you off the ship! So, I took some of that and used it too!”

There’s no doubt that Morrison is perfect for the role of the “hard man”. We’ve seen him in other roles (Boba Fett from Star Wars: The Book of Boba Fett, The Mandalorian, and as Arthur Curry’s father Tom, the lighthouse Keeper in Aquaman) play these characters with gusto and vigour.

Being a buccaneer though? How did he govern that?

“It’s being tenacious, I think. Sailing in the unknown and feeling wild and challenging. I think we wanted an edge. The buccaneers were a ferocious mob. There was a bit of that tenacity – a ferocious warrior spirit that the director wanted us to have. So, it’s living up to that, I suppose. We weren’t Pirates of the Caribbean!”

We had to ask what it was like matching the physicality of Karl and Priyanka in their fiercely combative roles in this action-packed adventure.

“I was very impressed with Priyanka. She came on board guns blasting! I thought that we had to treat her kindly, because she was the leading role, but she was not afraid to get her hands dirty! She got physical in the fight scenes and even gave me a glimmer of recognition! When she looks at you, her eyes? She had an X-Factor – feelings. When they give you that look! There’s feeling and power coming straight at you!”

And Karl?

“With Karl, it was more friendly. I had a lot of fun with him. I wanted to be on the same level, so he and I kept a close eye on each other. We had an arrangement with each other!”

What about the demands on him?

“I really enjoy the physical side of acting. I try to get stuck into it. But now I’m in my sixties, I have to ask more, where’s the (stunt) double?” he says with a laugh. “But, John, the problem is: they can’t find a stuntman that’s good -looking enough so I have to do my own stunts! I’m just glad I’ve had training in another galaxy! I’m really grateful for Boba Fett’s physical regime!”

Finally, we asked about last impressions on the film and what will last with the audience.

“There’s a lot of drama, action and history in this film.  The characters, the action and recreating that kind of Caribbean feel in Australia.”

But what will last for him?

“I really liked working with Frank as well. Our secret word for it was: sauce. Frank would always say: bring the sauce! If you think about a movie like a meal, the performances, the lighting the direction and everything else is like the spices, the ingredients? Then you bring the sauce to the acting? That way, the meal is complete!”

Be it a code, values or even a recipe, what’s clear with Temuera Morrison, is that there’s a code that guides his performance and is a definite hallmark of his style that adds to the enjoyment of his audience.

CLICK HERE to read my review of The Bluff.

The Bluff streams on Prime Video Canada starting Wednesday, February 25.