LOS ANGELES, Oct. 23 (UPI) -- Director Justin Lin says he wanted to make a film about John Allen Chau, the missionary who died approaching North Sentinel Island in 2018, to find Chau's humanity without judgment. His film, Last Days, in theaters Friday, depicts events leading up to Chau's death.
In a recent Zoom interview with UPI, Lin explained how it was important for him not to place any judgment on Chau's actions. Chau was a Christian missionary who violated international laws forbidding approach to North Sentinel, which were established to protect the indigenous tribes Chau was attempting to reach.
"My reason for wanting to make this film is to see if I can connect with his humanity," Lin said. "He is going to have a very different worldview than me but also in that journey, he's going to meet a lot of people with very different perspectives."
Sky Yang plays John, who pursues missionary work instead of medical school. Lin said he designed Last Days to reflect journals Chau published online, which drew on Lin's skills making five Fast and the Furious entries and Star Trek Beyond.
"John's writing was so influenced by adventure novels and Hollywood films that it had to feel big," Lin said. " It had to have certain elements that we're all used to."
