In addition to being a Grammy-nominated rapper with global critical acclaim and a devout fanbase, the late DMX was also an accomplished actor who starred in a number of beloved action thriller films, such as Romeo Must Die and Cradle 2 the Grave. One of the last movies DMX starred in before his death was Beyond the Law, a crime thriller co-starring Johnny Messner, and Zack Ward, and Steven Seagal, who’d previously worked with DMX on 2001s Exit Wounds. The film’s director, James Cullen Bressack, recently sat down with PopCulture.com to reflect on working with DMX, calling the late star “a very talented actor.”
In addition to his skill for acting, Bressack calls DMX was an absolute “blast” to have on set and even chipped in when the director was starting to lose his voice. “He had such a good sense of humor,” he shared. “I remember, my voice was getting blown out because of being on set so long, and he has so much louder of a voice than me so he was like, ‘I’ll call action for you.’ So I kept going and he would yell, ‘Action.’”
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RIP DMX. They say dont meet your heros but sometimes your heros are better and kinder than you ever would have imagined. The world lost an artist, a genius and a kind soul. I lost a friend. You meant a lot to me. We had so much more to do. My love goes out to his people. Damn pic.twitter.com/KUaAhx3YEl
— James Cullen Bressack (@JamesCullenB) April 9, 2021
Recalling one very memorable take, Bressack replied, “I remember the very last shot of his thing, he literally turns to the camera and goes, ‘Action,’ into the camera and then drops into character for this emotional scene about how Johnny Messner’s character is hospitalized. I was like, ‘Wow. That’s awesome!’”
DMX once asked me what i wanted to do with my career. I told him i wanted to be the next Robert Rodriguez or Steven Spielberg. He smiled and said “Thats beautiful but how bout you just be the first you” I think about those words every day. Im praying for you X, Its not your time
— James Cullen Bressack (@JamesCullenB) April 3, 2021
Bressack and DMX grew to be more than just professional acquaintances, they were friends who, Bressack revealed, “had a lot more plans to do a lot more stuff.” He shared that he “was in contact with [DMX’s] team about doing something together literally four days before” the rapper’s hospitalization on April 2. DMX reportedly suffered a heart attack that left him unresponsive and on life support. Sadly, his condition never improved and he was eventually pronounced dead.
“It sucks, he’s gone too soon,” Bressack said solemnly. “He was just a genuine, beautiful human being.” The filmmaker added, “[DMX] was always trying to help people out. He was just genuinely a really nice person, who cared about others and found beautiful moments in everything, and the comedy in everything that went on in life. I’m going to miss him very much.”
