Mark Wahlberg Says Navy SEALs Had ‘Free Reign’ On The ‘Lone Survivor’ Set

Mark Wahlberg recently opened up about director Peter Berg’s attempt to make the real-life action flick Lone Survivor as real as possible.

In order to give moviegoers an insider look at how missions operate, Berg allowed several Navy SEALs to call the shots on the set. According to Indiewire, this meant the soldiers could essentially stop filming whenever something didn’t feel quite right.

Marcus Luttrell, who wrote the novel Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10, was among the Navy SEALs who were on the set during filming.

“Marcus being there was a huge help, but also a huge amount of pressure. We also had a number of other SEALs there training us, leading up to the film, and also during the entire course of the shoot. And they had free reign. Normally when you have a consultant, you have somebody who you want to keep at arms length then,” Wahlberg explained.

He continued, “When you want to ask a question or you need a bit of information, you bring them in. Unfortunately that’s usually how they treat writers on a film, right? You bring them in when you need them and kick them out, keep them as far from the director as possible.”

The Inquisitr previously reported that Peter Berg made his actors undergo a two-and-a-half month boot camp to prepare for their roles in Lone Survivor. In addition to Mark Wahlberg, stars Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch, and Ben Foster had to get in shape for the flick.

“They learned as best as they could in two months how to operate like Navy SEALs, how to use the weapons, use of the communications equipment, how to move, how to fight. They were all in extraordinary shape. They were thrilled to be able to spend that kind of time with a bunch of SEALs in that kind of environment,” Berg explained to MTV News.

Of course, this isn’t the only motion picture Mark Wahlberg is ready to unleash on his fans in the coming months. The action star also appears in director Michael Bay’s big-budget sequel Transformers 4 next summer. Do you still need more? Then keep your fingers crossed that Ted 2 finds its way into theaters some point very soon.

Are you a fan of Mark Wahlberg? Do you plan to catch director Peter Berg’s Lone Survivor when it hits thaters on December 27?

[Image via Universal Pictures]