Mark Wahlberg Is ‘Committed’ to Getting Patriots Day Right
Mark Wahlberg and Patriots Day director Peter Berg walked the “blue carpet” at the 3rd annual Boston Police Foundation Gala on Saturday night.
Held at the Westin Boston Waterfront Hotel, the event helped to raise funds for the Boston Police Department and honored officer John Moynihan, who was shot during a traffic stop in Roxbury last spring.
Wahlberg and Berg joined Commissioner William Evans on stage to present officer Moynihan with the Hero’s Award during the ceremony.
“A lot of people have been getting a bad rap and it takes a lot of courage for people to go out there and risk their lives to protect us,” Wahlberg told Boston magazine. “Anytime you get an opportunity to thank them—especially situations like this with Officer Moynihan, such a horrible tragedy to happen to him—to be able to thank him for his bravery and his courage is very important.”
Wahlberg and Berg have been spending a lot of time in Boston lately as production ramps up for Patriots Day, their upcoming film about the 2013 Marathon bombing.
While there have been a few concerns over the movie’s various shooting locations and end of the year release, Wahlberg stated that he’s confident in his director and that they are “committed” to getting the story right.
“He knows how important it is to get it right and we are committed to doing that,” Wahlberg said. “We won’t accept anything less.”
Berg, who previously worked with the Dorchester native on the 2013 drama Lone Survivor, admitted that getting to know the various officers and survivors who were affected by the bombing has been a humbling experience.
The director stated that, although it’s been a slow process, the cast and crew has formed genuine relationships with all of the law enforcement members they’ve been able to meet leading into production.
“I found that over the last couple of months we’ve been getting along really well and really honest, true friendships have been formed,” Berg said. “I hope that just gets better and stronger.”
The positive feelings appear to be mutual as Commissioner Evans playfully teased Wahlberg while talking about the movie and thanking the actor for supporting the gala.
“Mark’s a Dorchester kid, obviously I’m a Southie kid, I always thought Southie was better than Dorchester and I tease him about that,” Commissioner Evans said. “But now that the Mayor’s from Dorchester, I got to like Dorchester a lot better. But he’s a great kid and he doesn’t forget where he comes from.”
He added, “It’s nice to have someone from Hollywood come here and support their police.”