The Bikeriders: Tom Hardy Reveals What He Hopes Audiences Will Take Away From Film

Watch Tom Hardy's thoughtful answer about The Bikeriders' appeal, and how the film is about "community."

By Jamie Jirak

The Bikeriders is hitting theaters this weekend, and the new Jeff Nichols film is currently up on Rotten Tomatoes with an 85% critics score after 67 reviews. The movie is based on Danny Lyon's photography book about a motorcycle club in the 1960s, and stars Austin Butler (Dune: Part Two), Tom Hardy (Venom: The Last Dance), Jodie Comer (Killing Eve), Michael Shannon (Midnight Special), Mike Faist (Challengers), Norman Reedus (The Walking Dead), and Boyd Holbrook (Logan). ComicBook recently had the chance to chat with Hardy who spoke about his character, and shared what he hopes audiences to take away from the film. 

"I mean, I'm not hoping anything really," Hardy began. "I just hope people enjoy the film. It's a really cool film and it's got lots to talk about in it. If you enjoy films, and I think one thing that's really interesting is, when we judge a book by its covers, oftentimes bikers can be seen as a certain thing in the same way that people who have cauliflowers and broken noses and do jiujitsu can be seen as something."

"But what you don't see is the community and the heart and the vulnerability and the softness and the generosity and the community of spirit of those who have a shared experience of endurance and resilience and looking out for themselves and in ways that aren't necessarily traditional or necessarily orthodox or considered whatever normal is," Hardy continued.

"You often find, I think, that which looks like something that you don't want to be a part of, turns out to be exactly where you might belong and you might pass it over if you didn't look a little closer," he added. "Then there's the criminal element, too. Maybe that's not for you or me, but there are elements to this which are for all of us ... Sometimes we can pass over something because of what it looks like and you're not really tapping the surface." 

You can watch our interview with Hardy at the top of the page.

Related:

What Is The Bikeriders About?

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(Photo:

Austin Butler in The Bikeriders. 

- Focus Features)

You can read the official synopsis of The Bikeriders here:  "THE BIKERIDERS captures a rebellious time in America when the culture and people were changing. After a chance encounter at a local bar, strong-willed Kathy (Jodie Comer) is inextricably drawn to Benny (Austin Butler), the newest member of Midwestern motorcycle club, the Vandals led by the enigmatic Johnny (Tom Hardy). Much like the country around it, the club begins to evolve, transforming from a gathering place for local outsiders into a dangerous underworld of violence, forcing Benny to choose between Kathy and his loyalty to the club."

The Bikeriders is heading to theaters on June 21.

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