

Two of your most recent projects have you working alongside foreign filmmakers, such as Martin Koolhoven and Xavier Dolan. Is that part of your strive for authenticity? Do you think there is something more authentic about foreign film right now than, say, Hollywood? That is such a film critic question that I don't even think I'm qualified to answer, honestly, but it's more of a happy coincidence than anything. Brimstone was in the works long before my involvement, and I was one of the last people to get involved. I think I joined the cast something like three weeks before shooting began. Martin wrote the script in addition to directing, and I knew while reading it that I wanted to do anything he wrote. It's an action film, and my heart pounded from start to finish. Having Martin act as the guiding hand was very reassuring in that regard. The Death and Life of John F. Donovan, which I'll be shooting with Xavier this summer, is a much different kind of film. Xavier is one of those people who proves that age is no measure of capability or breadth. It infuriates me how young and talented he is. I was glittering on screen at that age. [laughs] But yeah, I'm not sure that means foreign film is succeeding where Hollywood isn't. But maybe it is and my opinion is meaningless. I don't really know.
It seems you are immersing yourself in a variety of projects across genres—and now across mediums, with a play in London's West End this spring. Are you excited about that? I actually started out in the theatre, so coming back to the stage feels like a natural homecoming for me. I did youth theatre in Glasgow as a teenager, which was where I got scouted for Harry Potter, and doing live theatre had always been my first and foremost intention. I wanted to be in the West End performing the classics. And now I'm playing the Doctor Faustus in Doctor Faustus. I've always been a fan of Marlowe, and being able to take on one of the most complex and dark characters in literary history... it's a stupendous opportunity, and I'm so looking forward to getting a bit twisted. I haven't really had that with a role before. And no one could ask for a better director tha James Lloyd. He's the king of the West End right now, as far as I'm concerned.