Trio's pride at movie roles
Steven Gerrard, Jamie Carragher and Kenny Dalglish have revealed their pride at being a part of the Istanbul-themed movie Will - but are unanimously in agreement that they won't be pursuing a career in acting once their football days are over.
Will, which is released nationwide on Friday, is the heartwarming tale of an 11-year-old boy who defies all the odds to embark upon an arduous journey to the 2005 Champions League final in Istanbul.
Dalglish, Gerrard and Carragher got involved in the project after the filmmakers contacted Liverpool's Managing Director Ian Ayre via Paul McGrattan, a close friend of the Reds trio who also has a part in the movie.
"The film was first mentioned to me through the football club and we got excited when we heard about the script and went from there really," said Gerrard.
"It (acting) was difficult for me because I'm out of my comfort zone. It's not natural to me but the more I do I gain a bit more confidence. Directors help too with tips and encouragement.
"We are just so proud of that night in Istanbul. It gives a great message out to kids to never give up even if you're being beaten by a load of goals or anything that life throws at you, you can turn it round if you keep trying."
Carragher added: "The game was a very special game and I'm sure in years to come there'll be things popping up about that match. It is a small bit of the film but I still feel it will do well.
"A lot of football films are hard to re-create when you watch them on film and I think it's good that this film is about the journey and how they got there, we all know what happened in the game.
"I think everyone's seen it a million times so I think we all know now so it's good to have a little bit of it in the film."
Dalglish admits to being somewhat taken aback by the workload involved, but the King is delighted with the end product.
He doesn't, however, anticipate a future career in Hollywood.
Dalglish joked: "It's my first and last film, might as well get them both in at one time!
"The cast and crew have been patient with me because it's not something I feel too confident with, having to learn lines and speak lines but the good thing is they allow you to have a bit of licence yourself and use words I am more accustomed to using than what is in the script but that mean the same thing."
So how did the King of the Kop end up adorning the big screen?
He explained: "I got a phone call from Paul McGrattan who said that Steven and Jamie were doing a bit and did I want to come in on it.
"He explained a little bit about it and said obviously it's coming back to Istanbul for a young lad who couldn't get a ticket and could I help out so I said it's not a problem I'll have a go.
"Actually I don't think I did my homework, I didn't anticipate what I was letting myself in for, I got sent a script and I never read it and then I got sent an e-mail and I never read it so it was my fault really! I didn't know there were so many words to come out of my mouth for the movie. But, as I say it's really interesting to see how a movie is made.
"It's about a little boy who hasn't had the best life and he comes out to see a little bit of excitement from football. It's not really about football, it's about life and I'm sure a lot of people can relate to the story themselves."