RISING STAR Eddie Redmayne Actor
Interview | Sophy Grimshaw He Has Already Acted Opposite Robert De Niro And Angelina Jolie. Now The Young British Actor Tells Voyager About Playing Julianne Moore’s Troubled Son In New Movie Savage Grace You and Julianne Moore play a dysfunctional mother and son in Savage Grace, which tells the true story of the wealthy American [...]
Interview | Sophy Grimshaw
He Has Already Acted Opposite Robert De Niro And Angelina Jolie. Now The Young British Actor
Tells Voyager About Playing Julianne Moore’s Troubled Son In New Movie Savage Grace
alt="As Tony Baekeland, the heir to a fortune whose life turned to tragedy">
You and Julianne Moore play a dysfunctional mother
and son in Savage Grace, which tells the true story of
the wealthy American Baekeland family. Was it a
challenging movie to make, given the incestuous angle?
Given her status, it was brave of Julianne to take the role,
whereas for me it was an incredible opportunity. It’s such
an extraordinary story; I was desperate to be a part of the
telling of it. When I read the script there was no question
that I wanted the job. The real challenge was persuading
the director and producers, over a long period of time, to
give me the part.
Angelina Jolie has also played your mother – in
The Good Shepherd…
Having large lips helped me to get the part of Angelina
Jolie’s son in The Good Shepherd and my pale colouring
helped me to get the role of Julianne Moore’s son in
Savage Grace – two physical features have never been so
helpful. Julianne remarked at my audition that I looked like
her. Both women are formidable actresses; two of the
most instinctive actresses I have worked with. The problem
with Angelina is that there are some parts she is almost
too beautiful for.
What’s it like to get to act alongside such big names?
alt="Pale and interesting: Eddie with Julianne Moore in Savage Grace, set in the 1960s and early 1970s">
I’m seriously lucky, especially as I didn’t go to drama
school. Your whole acting career is an apprenticeship and
I’ve been learning from the best; what to do and also
what not to do. You see some people with extreme status
in the industry who handle it with astounding poise –
and some who don’t. Robert De Niro [who also starred
alongside Redmayne in The Good Shepherd] is one of the
best examples of someone who is extremely kindhearted
and a really good guy.
Have you had any run-ins with the paparazzi?
I’m as voyeuristic and intrigued as the next person as to
how celebrities live. When I was shooting The Other
Boleyn Girl with Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson,
we were in the countryside and suddenly Scarlett freaks
out. She points out a man 10 metres away in a field,
dressed in full-on camouflage gear with a bit of grass
stuck on him with a telescopic lens. Suddenly a man on
a quad bike chases him away. Needless to say I have
none of these issues of being followed myself.
You’re making it big in the States. Are you still based
in London?
I live with my best mates in Borough, just behind the Tate
Modern. People often ask if I’ll move to LA. I really enjoy
my stints there but my life is London and I absolutely
love it as a city. It’s perfect to flit around interesting
places and then come back to it.
REDMAYNE’S RÉSUMÉ
Eddie Redmayne, 26, was born in London and attended
Eton College where his drama teachers included Mark
Rylance, an actor who would go on to appear with him in
The Other Boleyn Girl (2008). Redmayne began his career in
theatre and won Outstanding Newcomer at the 2004
Evening Standard Theatre Awards for his performance
in Edward Albee’s The Goat, which required an American
accent. His breakthrough movie performance was as
the son of Matt Damon and Angelina Jolie in The Good
Shepherd (2006). He also appeared in Elizabeth I (1998) and its sequel, Elizabeth: The
Golden Age (2007).
