"Be nice." That's the rule of being a bouncer that both Jake Gyllenhaal and Patrick Swayze's version of bouncer Dalton live by – whether it's Swayze's explaining to the other muscle why they should always be cordial while escorting troublemakers outside, or Gyllenhaal's driving the guys he's just beaten bloody to the hospital to get patched up.
Naturally, though, the fight scenes in Road House are anything but nice. With UFC professional Conor McGregor making his acting debut as a gleefully sadistic bad guy, and the titular Road House breaking out into full-on brawls practically every night, the fists are flying to brutal effect.
"It was definitely a challenge to do something that physical," Lukas Gage, who plays barman Billy in the new movie, tells us. "I'm usually getting beat up in things, so to finally beat somebody up was really fun."
Gage comes to blows with McGregor's terrifying Knox, too – though the reality of shooting together was anything but scary. "I actually felt more safe with Conor McGregor beating me up than any other person on this film," Gage says. "He knows how to throw a punch and how to not hit you."
"He was a gracious scene partner, he was curious," adds Billy Magnussen, who plays big bad Ben Brandt in the movie. "He was excited to show up every day. You always hope to work with actors like that: sometimes in this industry, you don't. So it was nice and refreshing to work with someone that was excited and hungry to learn."
Road House is available on Prime Video from 21 March. For more, check out the cast on reinterpreting their characters from the original film – or see what Magnussen had to say about starring in the upcoming live-action Lilo & Stitch remake. You can also hear more soon on the Inside Total Film podcast.
