Clint Eastwood interview: The 15:17 to Paris director sits down with the real-life heroes he cast in his film

The film tells the story of the three friends who thwarted a terror attack on 21 August, 2015 on a high-speed Thalys train from Amsterdam to Paris

Clint Eastwood's career has focused in on the pursuit of bringing American heroism to screen – from Sully to Flags of Our Fathers.

His latest, however, makes an unusual move: instead of roping in stalwart talents like Tom Hanks or Bradley Cooper to recreate these thrilling histories, he looked to real-life heroes.

The 15:17 to Paris tells the story of the three young American friends – Spencer Stone, Alek Skarlatos, and Anthony Sadler – who thwarted a terror attack on 21 August, 2015 on a high-speed Thalys train from Amsterdam to Paris.

The three men, alongside others who helped subdue the attacker, were made Knights of the Legion of Honour; they also received various military medals and made a visit to the White House.

Stone, Skarlatos, and Sadler now appear as themselves in Eastwood’s film; the four of them sat down for an exclusive roundtable to discuss the director’s attraction to stories of heroism, his decision to cast the real participants in the events, and what it was like for the men to recreate their experiences.

“It’s not an intellectual art form, it’s an emotional art form,” Eastwood says of returning his cast to the real places these events occurred. “And the reason that they did well was they were back in the same locations, with the same feel.”

The 15:17 to Paris hits UK cinemas 9 February.

Follow Independent Culture on Facebook for all the latest on Film, TV, Music, and more.