LaMonica Garrett may be 51, but when it comes to choosing roles, he’s still making decisions like the kid who grew up watching Predator and Rambo.
The actor stars in Man of War, a new action film that debuted on Digital and VOD on Friday, and says the project fits squarely into the kind of movie he always hoped to make. In it, Garrett plays Connor, a retired Navy SEAL and former CIA operative who is pulled back into action when his niece Riley (Rosmary Yaneva) is kidnapped by Russian warlord Koniev (Daniel Bernhardt) during the war in Ukraine.
For Garrett, who has built an impressive résumé with roles in 1883, Lioness, and The Terminal List, the film also marks a major milestone: his first leading role in a feature film.
But the decision to take it on came down to something surprisingly simple.
“I choose my roles based on what the younger version of me would think of that role in that movie,” Garrett said in a recent interview with UPI. “If he gives me the thumbs up, we’re doing it. Let’s go have fun.”
That mindset, he added, has followed him throughout his career — especially when it comes to action-heavy projects that reflect the movies he once idolized.
Inside Man of War, Connor is less of a traditional hero and more of a damaged operative driven by a single mission. Garrett said that complexity is part of what made the role appealing.
“Connor’s not real likeable,” Garrett said. “He just wants to save Riley. Through the course of the movie, you see how he gets his humanity back.”
Director William Kaufman, who has previously worked on military-focused films, said the story is less about the war itself and more about the people caught inside it.
“The war is the setting of the movie but the story is about the people,” Kaufman said. “Our story is really about the human side of this and the people caught in the middle.”
To prepare for the role, Garrett spent a week in a military boot camp with tactical advisor Max Kraus. Even with prior on-screen weapons experience, he said this production came with a learning curve.
“I’ve worked with a lot of assault rifles on film but I’ve never worked with an AK and it’s different,” Garrett said. “It’s night and day difference from loading the mags when you’re on the run.”
Though Man of War gives him a new kind of spotlight, Garrett said fans still regularly reach out about 1883, where he played Thomas, a Buffalo Soldier. The role, he noted, continues to spark conversations about overlooked history.
“There’s people that still ask me, ‘Did they really exist?’” Garrett said. “That’s why we told the story and that’s what these stories do. That’s why we make films. That’s why we make television, to show people stuff that they didn’t read in books.”
Now, with his first leading film role behind him, Garrett says he’s still guided by the same internal litmus test he’s always used — whether the younger version of himself would be all in.
Man of War was released on Digital and VOD on July 3, 2026, and is now available to rent or purchase on platforms including Apple TV and Prime Video.