Halle Berry flips the script in Netflix’s MMA action drama ‘Bruised’

There were many reasons for Halle Berry to star in “Bruised” — but making her directing debut wasn’t among them.

“Of course, I loved the story, with this great female antagonist,” Berry, 55, said of ex-MMA fighter Jackie Justice during a Zoom press conference.

“She’s in the world of MMA — I’ve seen a lot of boxing but not MMA. And it’s the fight game, which is always winning. I’ve always loved the underdog story of the fighter’s journey.

“But this was written for a 21- to 25-year-old white, Irish Catholic woman. So right away I had to reimagine this story if it could actually be for me.”

Jackie became “a Black woman, middle-aged, in a community that I understood better. We haven’t seen this film,” she noted. “For me that’s the only reason to tell another story in the genre. To somehow make it something really different.”

This was all before “Bruised” had a director.

“With all the training that I would have to do, just acting that role was going to be largely enough,” Berry figured.

“With MMA, it’s more than boxing. It’s all these other disciplines, like jujitsu, Taekwondo, wrestling and kickboxing. I knew as an actor, I would have a really long journey. Full plate.”

Only when it came time to choose a director, Berry realized everyone she talked to “didn’t quite see what I saw. It was hard for me to get from my mind out into the world without having it on paper.

“After I looked for a couple of months, I thought this is going to sound crazy but I said to my producers, ‘I think I should direct.’ To my surprise, they said yes.

“I’m so glad they said yes. Because watching Jackie’s journey through this story, so much of it is internal.”

She began filming the climactic boxing sequence, a five-day shoot. On the second day she broke two ribs — and kept it secret until the fight was finished. “I knew they’d shut us down and we’d never be back up if I revealed what happened.”

Berry was able to “create a world that I knew 100% to be true. I lived many parts of this. Many of these characters are based on people I really know. I understand the brokenness of human beings.

“I understand us all fighting for other chances, making mistakes, looking for redemption. I certainly understand what it is to be a mother and a woman. And I feel like I’ve been a fighter my whole life.”

“Bruised” streams on Netflix Nov. 24