Elliott Dufford, the washed-up trainer in Torsten Ruethers boxing drama Uppercut, has little in common with Pulp Fiction crime boss Marsellus Wallace or IMF Agent Luther Stickell of Mission: Impossible fame. But they are the same height. And the resemblance is uncanny.

To play Dufford in the new drama from director Torsten Ruether, M:I and Pulp Fiction star Ving Rhames shed his ultra-cool studio persona and reconnected with his indie film roots. The low-budget feature Reuters adaptation of his own 2021 German-language dramaLeberhaken follows a promising young female boxer, played by German newcomer Luise Gromann, who tries to persuade a disillusioned trainer (Rhames) to take her on and train her. Gromann, a former professional pole vaulter-turned-actress, reprises her role from the original film. Joanna Cassidy and Jordan E. Cooper co-star. Uppercut was made for a fraction of a Mission: Impossiblebudget all of Rhames scenes were done over a nine-day shoot in L.A. but the actor found the experience much more intimate and intense than many a studio shoot.

When you dont have as much money; you cant do as many things, but you can do more creative things, you can find ways of making things work, says Rhames. This movie brought me back to why I got into making films.

Lionsgates Grindstone Entertainment picked up all rights in North America forUppercut following its world premiere at the Oldenburg Film Festival and bowing the film theatrically in the U.S. on Friday, Feb. 28.

Ahead of the release, Rhames and Uppercut co-star Luise Gromann spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about boxing, their instant chemistry on set, and the freedom low-budget filmmaking provides.

What was it about this role, or the pitch that Torsten Ruether made you, that got you interested, that made you want to embody this role of Elliot?

Ving Rhames: I read the script, and just got really attached to this story. And then meeting Luise, we had a very good natural chemistry, so it made it very easy. Throwing Torsten in with her made it an easy choice for me.

Luise, what was that first meeting like? Because I just checked you werent even born when Pulp Fiction came out. What was your first encounter with Ving like?

Luise Gromann: Of course, I was super excited and I knew he was so experienced. Having worked for so many years in this industry with so many experienced people, so I was very respectful. And a bit scared. But he made it so easy for me. There was none of this: Ive done all this, and youve done nothing feel. From that very first meeting, he was so open-armed. Like Ving said, we had this natural connection, and I think also this curiosity about each other. We are coming from such different worlds.

Rhames: She wasnt afraid, which is what I really liked. She just jumped in, so it made it very easy and natural for me.

Ving Rhames and Luise Gromann in Uppercut Hello-Moment-Grindstone Ving, can you talk a bit about the actual production? Compared to the Mission: Impossible movies, Uppercut was made for nothing.

Rhames: When you dont have as much money, you cant do as many things, but you can do more creative things you can find ways of making things work. Thats what I had with this experience. With Mission: Impossible, we just did one for over $200 million. So you have the money to do whatever you want. Tom Cruise got $75 million you can make two or three films for that much. This movie brought me back to why I got into making films. Even seeing the love from Luise as a young filmmaker and from Torsten really drew me into the project. Im very proud of it.

Ving Rhames in Uppercut Courtesy of Lionsgate And is there a moment in the making of it that really stands out for you?

Rhames: The rehearsal period. Because in most films, you dont have a rehearsal period. In this one, we had a couple of weeks, and that was very useful for me. I got the chance to really learn the character, and explore him the things that you dont normally do in films in America.

Gromann: What was also special about the shoot was that we had a lot of lines and a lot less time to do them than youd have in a big studio production. But we had time to rehearse and talk about every scene upfront. Torsten concentrated on our acting and the chemistry between us, thats what made it special.

Luise, what was the most challenging aspect of this film for you?

Gromann: For me personally, it was keeping the balance between the physicality I still had to do some physical work in the movie, training, boxing and the acting. We had a lot of lines every day, and I had to figure out how to manage that balance. But I think we had a great atmosphere on set, and everyone was really supportive. It was just us two, so we had each other, and that was really helpful.

Rhames: And she let me ad-lib a lot. She played along, so that made it easy.

Gromann: Yeah, we did improvise a bit. These were the most honest and small scenes I love so much because they just became real.

Luise Gromann in Uppercut Was it a challenge for you, language-wise? Obviously, your English is phenomenal, but acting in another language is another leap. How difficult was that for you, especially when improvising?

Gromann: I think the good thing is that I play a German living in New York, so I wasnt trying to pretend I was American. I didnt have to worry about getting a perfect accent. I think the real challenge comes when you have to act while consciously suppressing an accent. But in this case, I could have this little accent, and it was fine.

Rhames: And now I have a question for you: Watching the film, did you know Luise was German?

Im the wrong person to ask. I saw the original German version of this film, and I met Luise in Oldenburg a couple of years ago, so I knew her before seeing Uppercut.

Rhames: Because meeting her, I couldnt tell. I didnt notice any accent, so it made it easy for me.

There are a lot of intense scenes in the film, but Uppercut doesnt feel like a typical boxing movie.

Rhames: For me, that was the thing learning that this is not a boxing movie. It is set against the background of boxing. But is it about boxing? I dont think so. Its about two strangers from two different worlds getting to know each other in a boxing arena.