I wondered first, because obviously, I mean, this film is many things.
But I guess, you know, if you kind of look on on the IMDB,
the little kind of strap line, it would be,
it's called a kind of zombie movie in some ways, in some way, shape or form.
So what would you think it is about us audiences?
We just can't seem to get enough of zombies on screen.
What would you think it is about The Living Dead
that we just find so compelling constantly?
I think that there's like a definite, like
as humans, there's an innate need to know things that we don't know.
And I think the thing always with death and zombies
is that so much about death, we don't know.
So I think creators in this genre can really have fun and not feel
restricted or judged to any decisions they make as much because no one can
no one can tell you that that zombie is not realistic
because you don't know what one is.
So I think I think there's like a freedom to it that it's like
kind of like really nice for a creative person.
Yeah.
I knew I was going to ask you this because it's very stylistic piece.
It's very colorful,
watching it, very unique,
the whole kind of look in the visual experience of this movie.
Was the set up like that?
Did it feel like you were stepping foot into the weird fantasy world?
100%. 100%.
I think the the the set design team did such a good job
on doing exactly that and making sure that the environment was like
is obviously this is, is a period set in
the 1880s, isn't it?
And it's like the color palettes from costume through to set
that were very conscious decisions
for everyone to have their own color palette and like,
yeah everything about it immediately kind of put you in this new world.
Even the stuff on on sets that were,
you know, very small in the middle of a soundstage.
As soon as you did step one, you felt immersed because it is such a
clearly different kind of world.
This is not normal.
And I think that really does help with performance as well. Yeah.
But because obviously other people always say, you know, that kind of I'm
having a kind of the kind of meticulous detail
on a set can impact and help an actor's performance.
But I was wondering for you, because you've got some quite,
quite sort of layered, quite deep scenes at times.
You have to find quite a kind of
you're really tapping your like, emotional compass.
I wondered if being on a set that's this kind of heightened,
can that make it more of a challenge sometimes to find a humanity in a scene
when you're in a kind of unfamiliar surroundings, I suppose?
Yeah, I think I was very aware of that.
And and again my in my mind not people might you something different
but I made it very clear decision that the world of this film,
the whole world of this film is all of his imagination.
So everything is that I believe that's why everything is so vivid.
And my my job was literally to not see here I was a dead person.
But just see here, I mean, even I'm in this world react to the truth in those
moments always and allow the other people to do that work creatively. And
so lots of the stuff that was going on inside
me was just coming from a place of truth
and just allowing space for everyone else to have that that time and do the work.
I think, you know,
you know, listen, in the end, when you're in an actual graveyard
and you're speaking to a, you know, a gravestone, it's going to draw out
all sorts of memories of people you've loved and lost.
And I think that and in those moments, I think that that image
you're talking about, where we're we're finding a tad more nuance and
there's a tad more trees in heart coming to it.
Whereas, you know, the gap, the garish pink in the house is
that there's less stuff in the house that I feel
is going
to trick me up a little bit, because that's
not where the reality is for me.
Were you able to take anything from set?
I mean, was it take Lent at a borrowed? I don't know.
I don't know. Sort of make out So... did I steal anything?
Anything that, you know, I did want to steal
and I really wanted to steal all of this jacket, but I didn't get to steal it.
So if anyone's listening and they want to send me the jacket, I love it.
I actually I don't think I stole anything from this time around.
Or maybe I did.
I'm not sure.
I think come back to it. He definitely did.
He's just so smart. Keep it secret. He's just played.
The most flawless performance of someone is definitely going for something.
I wanted to say that there's a Grateful Dead jumper that Mitch wears,
and I'm pretty sure it's off to Oliver Reed dresses him out of the suit.
He puts on a Grateful Dead, which is ironic and funny in itself.
And the costume was full of little jokes like that.
I want this
costume was I'd love to have this. And there were already
there were four backups and they were all already debased.
Everyone had already he does.
So I didn't get to take one.
I want to ask as well.
I'm here. I'll come to you on this one.
I love I love Martin Owen's style as a filmmaker.
I've seen a few of his movies now - very high concept stuff.
But what was he like as a kind of collaborator?
Was he strikes me as something of an ambitious mind.
Yeah.
Do you know what I can't stress enough how much.
And it might be just because I'm lucky to have similar interests
and I'm similar to him and we'd get on regardless. But.
Martin it just feels like I almost get too comfortable around him
and forget that he's kind of like the boss.
He is so collaborative and just, like, brings everyone down on the same level
or up on the same level or however you want to phrase it.
But like, he'll be like, we'll finish the scene or we'll finish
one kind of alternate take that we might have tried,
and he'll turn around and ask everyone's opinion.
And not everyone is really, really.
I know
we're all collaborating always, but like it really does feel like such a level
playing field where everyone's opinion is valued just as highly as each other.
And I think that might be one of his
strongest kind of assets as a director is just making sure everyone knows
that they're all all of their opinions about it,
because Max's films are never forgettable.
And it's one thing I wanted to ask you about.
It's the dinner scene of Ben
Ben Miller, which I'm sure you know, it was talking about.
How was that to shoot that day?
Honestly and honestly hilarious.
And it was really tough because we were all
we were all we all knew what was coming with the whole cheese thing.
And and Ben is like so full out.
Like, he was just eating.
He was eating and eating and eating when he probably could not.
Ben But he's like, was enjoying himself so much and obviously like react
like reactionary.
We all just went absolutely wetting ourselves.
But like some of us have had to be a little bit more like I had to kind of be
a little bit more measured in my reaction because it couldn't be,
you know, it would have to be shocked rather than this is jokes like
and even like Hero, I think I don't know if this is true hero,
but I think I remember this.
Tell me if I'm wrong.
But in the same hero's character and offered like some food and he says,
oh, no thanks, I'm.
You say something like, I'm
not feeling too good. I'm not.
If that was actually in the script or here, I just didn't want to eat it
very cleverly was like,
Oh, yeah, actually, I'm, I'm so sorry.
I thought, I can't remember myself.
Actually, we did.
We had lots of like improv improvization
moments, the things that we got, but we're safe on it.
And I've got about a stories.
I remember that the, the,
the prosthetics team rigged up like a kind of a brake that would,
that would projectile vomit.
And obviously, naturally, when you're pressed for time,
sometimes everything gets a bit difficult to do.
And it wasn't kind of spewing as far as they wanted it to.
So you can kind of catch in the film that not to get that effect.
I'm kind of like leaning into the projectile.
It's just a good fun.
But you can see me kind of just let go and make a note and watch.
And Ben is always just like watching a comedy in itself.
He's amazing. Yeah.
When I said, Did you take any souvenirs? You just got a little bucket, a set, just
here.
I was going to ask you about the you mentioned about prosthetics.
I don't know.
What did they do to create your look of your torso?
Yeah, the torso is literally like just like a body piece.
Like, it's obviously, like, quite thin, but then
the ribs are like, squishy and soft, but they look really convincing.
And it takes about probably the torso is like 2 hours.
This you just lie there like this and then they just they stick it
on with whatever their magical potions and stuff.
They stick it down and they use the airbrush
and they hand paint the veins and everything and blend old
says about two and a half hours
and afterwards you really do sit there and you're looking at your your rib cage.
You go to that touch your brain has a weird, laggy
kind of thing where you really you anticipate feeling your own rib
like you expect to feel yourself touching it.
So in terms of transforming yourself
as an actor and really feeling that the character,
the prosthetics are so convincing, they eventually trick me
into thinking that I am they are part of me.
So yeah, it was, it was.
It takes a while, but I'd do it again a million times.
It's so fun wearing all that stuff
I might want to come to you next about because I wanted to ask
about this kind of last couple of years here.
Has it been a bit because of a whirlwind?
Because obviously the Jamie film, which is great and I remember we were
I was at the the the Grand in Clapham
when we get some of the behind the scenes press stuff that day.
And I know that was kind of obviously a bit of a kind of first big experience
for you doing that.
But now it's been a couple of movies out your kind of, you know, careers
kind of slowly sort of progressing and sort of blossoming.
And how does it feel to have expected
how how are you feeling about the last couple years?
Has it been quite weird living through that kind of rise?
Yeah. During a middle of a pandemic.
Yeah, it's been. It's been
I've been so grateful and lucky to I've worked with some, you know,
some really amazing creative teams, producers, actors
and and, you know,
and Jamie was an amazing gift overall, as is all of our and
and as an actor, I'm excited by things that challenge me
and things that are different.
And I think and, and maybe I've had this on myself,
but I think a lot of people didn't expect something like this to come from me next.
So soon after my first film.
And, and we spoke to a few people that, you know, interviewed me back
then, Jamie, and they were like, Oh, it's so different
and we've fallen in love with you in this space, in this new role.
And that's always great to see
because I don't, I don't I don't I'm not just one thing.
So it's been exciting to really go through this,
this period of time feeling very held by the people around me.
So more and more to come, hopefully
I hear talking of exciting roles here.
Of course, we spoke about just before the interview started,
but great role and performance in The Woman King Have you had the chance
yet to go and see it on on the big screen with friends and family and stuff?
Thank you so much.
I, I have I've seen it three times now.
I saw it the first time just with Shayna West, who plays one of the girls in it.
And then second time in Toronto at TIFF.
It's my first time and then third time at the London
premiere, and I got to bring like six of my mates
and that was really nice to watch it.
I mean, I've obviously seen it twice, so I was kind of like
this as opposed to watching the film.
But I think I'm going to do an undercover go of about friends one more time.
It's just so nice, you know, on it.
Like the ritzy and like my local, my local cinema, see, and the woman
king up there is yeah, I'm really proud of it
and I definitely want to go see it again with some friends.
It carries a bit of a nasty past.
I just feel like apologizing to people on the way out.
You know what?
That's the only thing I should.
I should.
I should watch it when I'm
when I'm leaving
that my friends are cheering too loud when I when my character steps on screen.
But, you know, weirdly, as a as an actor, it's an honor to play a role
where people hate you and if you succeed and people people you know,
so in their reactions that they dislike your character, then you've done your job.
So yeah. Yeah.
Sign of good performance
anyway, I bet that's all we got time for today,
but thank you so much for speaking to me today.
Always been a real pleasure. I really enjoyed the film.
It's just
I haven't seen anything like that for quite a while
and I think that's always a good thing cause I watch a lot of films
stuff and it's such a pleasure.