"Green Zone" - J AC Senior NCO Stars as Body Double/Technical Advisor to New Matt Damon Movie

  • Published
  • By Peter G. Park, Commander's Action Group
  • JIOCEUR Analytic Center
ROYAL AIR FORCE MOLESWORTH, England --  ''Green Zone' is an upcoming thriller film written and directed by Paul Greengrass, based on the 2006 book Imperial Life in the Emerald City by journalist Rajiv Chandrasekaran.

The actor Matt Damon plays Army Chief Warrant Officer Roy Miller who helps a senior CIA officer in the search for weapons of mass destruction, and in several scenes his body double is JAC member Sergeant First Class Christopher C. Slaughter.

Since the time of an actor is prohibitively expensive, studios use a body double who closely resembles the actor for shots where the full face of the actor is not required - For example when you see the back of the head of the actor in a vehicle or when the actor is seen from a distance. These scenes are blended with footage of the actor's face and voice.

With approval of the JAC Commander, Sgt. First Class Slaughter spent five weeks during the shooting of the movie in Sale, near Rabat, Morocco. He was later recalled to Morocco a second time and also performed during shooting of scenes in London.

How did Sgt. First Class Slaughter become a technical advisor? One day while working as an extra, the sergeant observed a scene of officers and soldiers processing through a checkpoint in Baghdad. After checking ID's, the "soldier" saluted the officer. Knowing that an officer would never be saluted at a checkpoint in a combat area, he noted this discrepancy to one of the directors. So impressed were they, that later in the day they contacted him and asked his advice on some other issues to make sure the film was as authentic as possible. There are sites on the web where people note errors, inaccuracies, and bloopers in movies and the directors want to avoid this kind of thing which would surely be noted by military veterans at the theater.

No stranger to combat, the sergeant wears the Army Combat Action Badge and has served a total of 29 months in Iraq and been recognized with two Bronze Star medals - one which includes the "V" for Valor device for leading a counter ambush action. Later in the filming he was given twenty actors and he scripted and choreographed a scene where troops were moving to contact. Scenes such as this one can take four to eight hours of shooting and will probably result on one or two minutes on screen.

"Working on the 'Green Zone' was an amazing opportunity," said Sgt. First Class Slaughter. "It really opened my eyes to an industry I am very interested in. Since working on this film, I have spent a lot of time considering my future opportunities. Film production is definitely an interest of mine and is something that I may consider pursuing. For now I feel that the U. S. Army, and the opportunities it provides, is the path for me."

Speaking of Sgt. First Class Slaughter's role in "Green Zone" JAC Commander, Marine Corps Col. Peter H. Devlin said: "Sgt. First Class Slaughter did his research and had a great plan for this adventure - I couldn't thus deny him a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It was exciting for him as well as he entire command."

Other JAC members had roles as extras during filming in London and Morocco. Air Force Major Eric Nyerges spent two and a half weeks in Both Morocco and London in several background artist roles and even had one speaking line. Mr. Robert Blair performed as an extra including one shot as an 'operations room commander.' Navy Petty Officer First Class Amaury Ponciano, and Army Sergeant First Class Robert Buckley also had roles as extras during filming in London.

The film is slated for a Spring 2009 release