Spoiler alert! We’re discussing an important scene in the historical drama “Nuremberg” (in theaters now), so beware if you want to go in cold.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cNuremberg\u201d<\/a> star Leo Woodall felt the stakes were high portraying a real person<\/a> for the first time. And when he actually met relatives of Army translator Howard Triest, he felt even more responsibility.<\/p>\n Woodall was approached by the World War II veteran\u2019s granddaughter Katie Triest<\/a> in August in Telluride, Colorado, at a film festival, and the British actor invited Triest and her brother Jonathon to the \u201cNuremberg\u201d premiere at Toronto Film Festival<\/a> in September. \u201cIt suddenly all felt even more real to me,\u201d Woodall, 29, says. \u201cHaving them in the audience was powerful and moving to me.\u201d<\/p>\n He met with them after the screening, and \u201cthankfully, they didn’t nitpick it,\u201d Woodall adds with a laugh.<\/p>\n Join our Watch Party! <\/strong>Sign up to receive USA TODAY’s movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n Douglas (Rami Malek, left) shares an emotional moment with translator Howie (Leo Woodall) in the historical drama “Nuremberg.”<\/p>\n In director James Vanderbilt<\/a>\u2019s \u201cNuremberg,\u201d Howie Triest works with psychiatrist Douglas Kelley (Rami Malek) to assess the mental well-being of Nazi prisoners set to be tried for their war crimes, including German \u201cReichsmarschall\u201d Hermann G\u00f6ring (Russell Crowe), who had been Hitler\u2019s No. 2.<\/p>\n For much of the large ensemble drama, not a lot is known about Howie, other than that he wears a Detroit Tigers ballcap and is helpful to Kelley. But when the psychiatrist is booted from his assignment by the Army, after a newspaper article where Kelley casts doubt that prosecutor Robert Jackson (Michael Shannon) can convict the Nazis, Howie steps up. At the train station when Kelley is about to depart, Howie explains his backstory to keep Kelley from leaving.<\/p>\n The young soldier was born in Munich as part of a Jewish family, and as the Nazis came to power and invaded parts of Europe, they could only afford to send Howie to the United States. He wound up in Michigan, where he picked up English watching baseball, and returned to Europe as an American soldier on D-Day. Though his sister Margot ended up in Switzerland (and later came to America), their parents died at Auschwitz concentration camp.<\/p>\n It\u2019s the film\u2019s most moving scene, and a tear falls artfully down Woodall\u2019s face as the character speaks his truth.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was all about just being on that bench with Rami and telling the story and not trying to put too much onto it, to not over-egg it, to not disrespect the story by choosing the bits that were emotional or harder-hitting,\u201d Woodall says. \u201cBecause at the end of the day, the story is heartbreaking, so you just need to tell it.\u201d<\/p>\n Woodall did his due diligence researching the real Triest, the subject of the 2006 documentary \u201cJourney to Justice,\u201d and reading about the soldier\u2019s interactions<\/a> with Nazi prisoner Julius Streicher. (He thought Triest was from an Aryan family and once told him, \u201cI can smell a Jew from a mile away.\u201d<\/a>)<\/p>\n 1<\/span> of 20<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Cynthia Erivo takes flight again as the magical Elphaba in “Wicked: For Good.” Check out our exclusive peeks at the anticipated movie musical sequel and all the other new films you need to see this holiday season.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cI don’t often come at acting from a particularly academic point of view,\u201d Woodall says. \u201cBut it was important to learn as much as I [could and] pick and choose what I felt in my gut would be useful.<\/p>\n \u201cOne thing that was kind of interesting to learn from Katie Triest was that he probably would’ve hated being called Howie,\u201d he adds with a laugh.<\/p>\n Leo Woodall (right) plays a piano tuner also good at cracking safes opposite Dustin Hoffman in “Tuner.”<\/p>\n Howie is a \u201csingular role\u201d for Woodall as his star has ascended quickly in the past three years, with a breakhrough role in \u201cThe White Lotus\u201d Season 2 and lead parts in the limited series \u201cOne Day\u201d and rom-com \u201cBridget Jones: Mad About the Boy<\/a>.\u201d Next is the upcoming crime caper \u201cTuner\u201d<\/a> (expected in 2026), about a young piano tuner who also has a gift for cracking safes, that teams Woodall with Dustin Hoffman.<\/p>\n \u201cHe’s a magical performer and a really funny and gentle guy as well,\u201d he says of Hoffman. \u201cGetting to work with him was just one of those lifetime achievement things that I’ll always remember.\u201d<\/p>\n Starring alongside Oscar winners like Hoffman, Malek and Crowe has been \u201csurreal,\u201d Woodall allows. \u201cI choose my moments to rip my clothes off and go, \u2018Wow, this is crazy!\u2019 and I choose my moments to go, \u2018This is also just kind of silly, have a sense of humor, and you’ve got a job to do.\u2019 I try and do the best that I can with the luck and opportunity that I’m given.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/span><\/div>\n
From ‘Zootopia 2’ to ‘Running Man,’ exclusive peeks at the holiday season’s top movies<\/h2>\n
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