Jesse Eisenberg is a Stoner Superhero in ‘American Ultra’

Sandra Miska

Jesse Eisenberg, trained assassin?  This month the “Social Network” star will get the chance to show how handy he is in with a weapon in “American Ultra.”

Jesse Eisenberg is reteaming with his “Adventureland” co-star Kristen Stewart for this dark comedy about a young couple forced to go on the run after it is discovered that Eisenberg is the victim of a government mind control experiment.

Eisenberg plays Mike Howell, a mild-mannered stoner who works at a convenience store.  In his spare time, he works on a graphic novel about a superhero monkey.  Everything changes when he discovers that, without his knowledge, he has been trained as a dormant agent by the CIA.  Highly trained and extremely lethal, Mike is thrust into the middle of a deadly government operation.  It now takes all he has to save himself and his girlfriend Phoebe after he is marked as a liability and targeted for extermination.

Mike soon finds himself with the ability to take simple household objects such as spoons and turn them into deadly weapons.  A hot cup of noodles also proves to come handy at a crucial moment.

“American Ultra” was directed by Brit Nima Nourizadeh, the man behind “Project X.”  Nourizadeh admits that Eisenberg isn’t a conventional action hero, which is exactly why he casted him.

“For the idea to work for me, you needed to go into the movie and be surprised,” Nourizadeh explained to The New York Times. “I wanted it to be like a mate of yours who suddenly sprung into action. Jesse felt like the right guy, because you don’t see him playing roles like that.”

Eisenberg worked with stunt coordinator Robert Alonzo to bring out his inner fighter.  Other stuntmen were also on hand to offer him pointers and fill in for the most difficult stunts.

Although “American Ultra” takes place in a sparsely populated section of West Virginia, it was actually filmed in Louisiana two hours outside of New Orleans.

The cast of “American Ultra” also includes Topher Grace, John Leguizamo, Connie Britton and Bill Pullman.

“American Ultra” opens nationwide Aug. 21.