Alexander Ludwig recalls life-changing phone call while on set with 'hero' Will Smith to star in cult-classic Earth Abides

EXCLUSIVE: Actor Alexander Ludwig was living a dream when he got another call of a lifetime.The 32-year-old actor, known for his roles in The Hunger Games and Vikings, was shooting Bad Boys: Ride or Die with his "heroes" Will Smith and Martin Lawrence when a studio executive called.They wanted him to star as Ish, the lead in Stan's post-apocalyptic drama Earth Abides.Catch the heart-racing trailer in the video above.Based on George R. Stewart's 1949 cult classic sci-fi novel of the same name, the gripping thriller follows Ish, who learns that a plague of unprecedented virulence had swept the globe, the human race is all but wiped out."With Bad Boys, I got to work with my heroes and I got to be a part of a franchise that I grew up loving," the actor told 9Entertainment.Earth Abides will premiere December 2 2024, the same day as the U.S., only on Stan."That's just one of those pinch yourself moments. And then I got to headline a show that I feel like the actors that made me want to be an actor, would have done."READ MORE: Everything you need to know about chilling new sci-fi thriller Earth Abides starring Alexander Ludwig on Stan After receiving that life-changing phone call, Ludwig immersed himself in the story of Ish and knew it was another incredibly opportunity."I was incredibly honored. I read the scripts, I read the books, I absolutely have to do this. I love challenges, and I've never done anything like this before," he admitted. This included playing a character who for the majority of the first episode is entirely alone. Obviously, this gave Ludwig a lot to do – which was both a thrilling and daunting challenge."When you read a story about some guy who's solitary in the world, the first thing that passed me was that I would be solitary in my filming environment. So much so that by the time I actually got to work with another actor who, in this case was a dog, I was almost in tears!" he said."Going into it like I just knew that this would be the hardest thing I ever did, and I welcomed it with open arms."EXCLUSIVE: Luke Wilson admits he was 'nervous' alongside Sam Worthington filming epic new flickAs the story progresses, and despite Ish's instincts to further isolate, he leads the charge to build a new life with Emma, his love interest and sole companion played by Ozark's Jessica Frances Dukes.Ludwig said he could see some of his own relationship with wife Lauren in their fast-moving love story."I experienced this in real life with my life. We got married within nine months of meeting, because that [COVID] pandemic – it was like a seven year relationship," he explained."That's the beauty of Ish and Emma. I cannot believe George R Stewart wrote this in 1949. Ish and Emma in a supermarket would have probably just passed each other and not even giving each other a second look."They have an age difference, they come from two totally different worlds, but it's because of the specific set of circumstances that not only are they thrown together, not only did they decide to fight together, but through that, they fall in love with each other's hearts. And to me, that's, that's the most beautiful thing about it."Nine Entertainment Co (the publisher of this website) owns and operates the streaming service Stan.Earth Abides will premiere December 2 2024, the same day as the U.S., only on Stan.