Tetris is an iconic video game that has captivated players for four decades. Originally the product of one man in Soviet Russia, the game became a global sensation when bundled with the Nintendo GameBoy in 1989. While there have been countless iterations of the game over the years, few know the real story of how the puzzle game broke through the Iron Curtain. Despite books and documentaries on the subject, the new AppleTV+ film Tetris tells the story many never knew.
Starring Taron Egerton as Henk Rogers, Tetris takes us through the tumultuous rights negotiations between British company Mirrorsoft, run by Robert Maxwell, and Dutch-American Rogers. While navigating the tricky Soviet political machine, Rogers befriends the creator of Tetris, Alexey Pajitnov, and the duo embarks on a risky venture to bring the game to the world. Playing out like a spy thriller, Tetris is an exciting look at the Cold War era world and how two men changed video games forever (read our review here).
I got to discuss Tetris with three of the talent behind the camera. Director Jon S. Baird discussed the challenges of making Scotland look like Soviet-era Russia. Baird also discussed the fascinating story and how the addition of music and animation really brought the story together. I also spoke with the real men behind Tetris, Henk Rogers and Alexey Pajitnov. Henk talked about how close the story was to reality as well as what it was like having Taron Egerton portray him on screen. Alexey discussed the film’s reality and his favorite moments from the movie. Check out the full interviews in the embed above.
Tetris premieres on March 31st on AppleTV+.
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