NEW YORK (AP) — Before Aaron Pierre wanted to act, he wanted to be the fastest man in the world.

Growing up in West Croydon, London, Pierre was interested in athletics and thought gold medalist sprinter Maurice Greene was the coolest man in the world. Pierre ran the 60 metres, the 100 metres and the second leg of the 4×100 metres relay.

“I was taught to stay calm in high-pressure situations – one of them is the second leg of the relay,” says Pierre, speaking via Zoom from his Los Angeles apartment. “When the whole school is outside and you get the baton, all you have to focus on is putting one foot in front of the other.”

How quickly Pierre can put one foot in front of the other is interesting, and not only because of the ever-accelerating pace of his career. (In December he will be the voice of Mufasa in “Mufasa: The Lion King” by Barry Jenkins. ) This is also because 30-year-old Pierre, although he can be really fast, has an amazing power in silence as an actor.

In Jeremy Saulnier’s “Rebel Ridge”, In this tense thriller, which premiered on Netflix on Friday, Pierre plays Terry Richmond, a former Marine who is stopped by the police while out on a bike ride and has a bag full of money – bail money for his cousin – confiscated. What follows is a tense and evolving conflict with the small town’s corrupt police force and its chief (a great Don Johnson). And until he does, Pierre’s Richmond is unflappably patient and feels no threat. He is a preternaturally calm martial arts expert. A low-key Rambo.

“I had to trick my brain a little bit,” says Pierre. “This character that Jerry Saulnier wrote and created is so badass. It’s understandably very tempting to do too much. I told Jeremy I had to do my best to normalize how cool Terry Richmond is.”

Rebel Ridge is one of those overwhelmingly clear cinematic experiences: Pierre is clearly a star in the making. From the moment he rides into town on a bicycle (“a modern horse,” says Saulnier), he commands the screen with a singular power. He has the body of a chiseled athlete, but the heavy, melancholy eyes and sonorous baritone (this man ends up taking on a role voiced by James Earl Jones) of a Shakespeare-trained actor.

Although Pierre has already appeared in numerous previous films and series (Jenkins’ “The Underground Railroad”, last year’s science fiction drama “Foe” ), “Rebel Ridge” is his first leading role.

“When I was on Zoom with Aaron, I had only seen a clip of “Underground Railway” and that convinced me,” says Saulnier. “I saw his skills. I saw his presence. I said: ‘That’s it. That’s my guy.'”

Saulnier, the writer-director of “Green Room” and “Blue Ruin,” is one of Hollywood’s most gifted genre artists. “Rebel Ridge” is his first film in seven years, but it’s a reminder of his ability to bring earthy authenticity and rich atmosphere to thrillers.

“I miss the texture,” says Saulnier. “Like seeing bumpers on cars and knowing you’re in a real vehicle even when you’re shooting a dialogue scene. That level of authenticity, I think, is being lost from filmmaking. If the top filmmakers with budgets of over $100 million can’t sell a dialogue sequence in a car, we should just go back to basics.”

Saulnier initially cast John Boyega in Rebel Ridge, but Boyega left the film just as production began. Saulnier describes this break as “old news.”

“John and I agree that it was the best way for both of us. There is no ill intention at all,” says Saulnier. “Whatever pressure was put on when we were looking to cast this role, in the end it was this unique experience. When I watch the film and how people are reacting to it now, I just can’t deny what a great actor Aaron Pierre is.”

Pierre grew up in a council flat in West Croydon. His father, he says, is an actor, teacher and life coach; his mother was, among other things, a project manager. He speaks enthusiastically about her and about his youth in London.

“West Croydon is my favourite place in the world. It really has contributed massively to becoming the man I am today,” says Pierre. “It has really taught me the importance of determination. It has also massively contributed to how I see my path, the path of my career. As much as I am passionate about what I do and wouldn’t want to do anything else, to me I am a son, a brother, a friend. I am many things before I am an actor.”

Pierre began acting as a teenager and eventually graduated from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. In the summer of 2018, he landed the role of Cassio in a production of “Othello” at the Globe Theatre, starring Andre Holland and Mark Rylance. Barry Jenkins happened to see the role and tweeted Pierre that same evening. “I was convinced someone was making fun of me,” laughs Pierre. That led to “The Underground Railroad.”

Through working with Jenkins, Pierre began to discover himself as a film actor. Jenkins, he says, taught him to value truth and honesty in performance above all else. On his first day on set, Jenkins approached him about an important scene that wasn’t working.

“Barry came to me and said, ‘Aaron, I love what you did in these first few takes, but we’re not getting to the truth right now. You need to get to the truth now, because the sun is going down,'” Pierre recalls with a laugh.

However, Rebel Ridge brought with it many new challenges, including being first on the shooting list. The road to production on the film was rocky, due to the pandemic and Boyega’s unexpected exit. But Saulnier remained determined to make the film the way he envisioned it.

“There were definitely forks in the road where I could have given up and it would have been fine,” Saulnier says. “I fought through it and made sure that the version we ended up with, if it wasn’t the best possible version, would have been better off on the shelf. The struggle was to maintain quality.”

Saulnier was inspired by real cases, civil seizure of assetswhen police can seize money on suspicion alone. Saulnier admits there are certain echoes of films like Mississippi Burning in Rebel Ridge, given how a black man becomes enmeshed in the racism of the South. But Pierre’s Richmond is a more modern character, encountering a prejudice that lies just beneath the surface, hidden behind the legal cloak.

“One of the many things that appealed to me about this character was his ability to control his emotions even in moments that are undeniably, obviously and intentionally unfair,” says Pierre. “He does this in a way that is so un-demonstrative and so un-bragging that even when he puts into words how patient he is with you, you still might not fully understand. He doesn’t pull out his extensive martial arts certifications or his resume. He’s just trying to let you know that you’re approaching a limit.”

For Saulnier, Rebel Ridge is the first film he has made that, while surrounded by an eerie, grim darkness, relies less on high levels of brutality. Instead, Rebel Ridge heats up slowly, which is made possible by Pierre’s simmering performance.

“This moment has been a long time coming,” says Pierre gratefully. “And I’m just doing my best to experience it.”