FREEMAN, DAMON STAR IN MANDELA STORY: 'Invictus' opens Friday. (Video)

Scroll down to watch the trailer for 'Invictus'

      *If you thought Academy Award winner Morgan Freeman was the ideal actor to take on the role of anti-apartheid activist and first black President of South Africa Nelson Mandela, you are not alone. In fact it was Mandela himself who mentioned Freeman’s name for such a role.

      Though Sidney Poitier and Dennis Haysbert (“24”, “The Unit”)have taken on the role as leads in previous film projects, it has found a home in the new film “Invictus,” starring Freeman as Mandela and also starring Academy Award winner Matt Damon, and helmed by Academy Award winning director Clint Eastwood.

      The film is based on the 2008 book by John Carlin titled “Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game the Made a Nation.” The story is built around South Africa’s 1995 Rugby World Cup win and the mission of Mandela, with the help of coach Francois Pienaar, to unite the apartheid-torn country.

      “This started out with Madiba [editor’s note: In South Africa Mandela is often known as Madiba, an honorary title of his clan] naming me as his heir apparent, so to speak,” Freeman told reporters. “When he was asked at the publication of his book ‘Long Walk to Freedom,’ ‘Mr. Mandela, if your book becomes a movie, who would you like to play you in a movie and he said, ‘Morgan Freeman.’ So from then on, so Morgan Freeman is going to be Mandela somewhere down the line.”

Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela and Matt Damon as Francois Pienaar star in 'Invictus'

      Freeman’s production company, Revelations Entertainment, was immediately at work trying to adapt Mandela’s book into a script, but the actor said that it just didn’t come together.

      “Then in ’06, we got this book proposal. It was perfect. We bought it. We got a script written,” he said. “This was the role to play to give the world an insight into who Mandela is and how he operates. It’s perfect.”

      “The film is telling a story that is a wonderful thing to remind everybody of in South Africa and all over the world,” Damon said. “It’s an incredibly uplifting movie. From the moment I read it, I was excited about being a part of the ensemble that told the story.”

      Damon stars as rugby captain Pienaar in the film. Though he was impressed with the story and the script, the 5’10” actor said he had one particular concern when he was first offered the role – about 6 inches.

      “The first thing I did when I read the script was to call Clint. I said, ‘I can’t believe this happened. I can’t believe this is true.’ Then I looked up Francois online. This guy is huge.”

      Damon said that he worked hard on perfecting Pienaar’s accent, worked out every day in order to tone up for the role and condition for the game play, and try to pull off the illusion of being the being as tall and broad as the real Pienaar.

     “I always I try to look at every possible pitfall,” he said of taking on the challenge. “I look at what could possibly blow this illusion? And then I think of ways to solve those before I get into it.”

      “When I got to South Africa,” he continued, “Francois invited me to his house. I rang the doorbell, he opened the door, and I looked up at him and the first thing I said was, ‘I look much bigger on film.’ He laughed.”

     From then on, Damon said he spoke with the rugby legend constantly, asking questions about details and about his philosophies.

      “He was incredibly helpful,” he said.

      Freeman, on the other hand, said there wasn’t too much of a challenge for him in perfecting his presentation of the world leader, particularly because he had been studying him for quite some time.

      “When he said that he would prefer that I be the one to play him, I had to start then preparing myself,” Freeman said. “I met him not long after that. I said, ‘I am going to have to have access to you.’ Over the years, that is what happened.”

      Freeman even said that when Mandela would find himself just a city away anywhere in the world, he would be contacted and visit with him.

      “The biggest challenge that I had was to sound like him,” Freeman added. “Everything else was pretty easy. I didn’t have any agenda in playing the role other than to bring it to reality as close as I could.”

      “Invictus” opens in theaters nationwide, Friday. For more on the film, visit www.invictusmovie.warnerbros.com.

Watch the trailer for 'Invictus':

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