The actor reveals to ETonline how a visit to the pub led to playing Stephen Hawking.
It takes more than a village to make an award-worthy performance--it takes a million tiny moments that together create a film or TV show more magical than its parts. This week, ETonline talks with Golden Globe nominees about all the big and small ways stars have to align for a great idea to make it to the screen.
Eddie Redmayne transformed into Stephen Hawking for his Golden Globe-nominated role in The Theory of Everything. But the recently married actor has style as well as substance: British GQ just named him the world's best dressed man.
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After accepting the Desert Palm Achievement Award at the Palm Springs International Film Festival, ETonline inquired about how the dapper newlywed landed the part.
ETonline: How did you first become aware of the role?
Eddie Redmayne: I read the script. Working Title, who made Les Miserables, were making it. And I fought pretty hard to get [The Theory of Everything's director] James Marsh on the phone. And then James Marsh took me to a pub.
A business meeting in a pub? What was that like?
It was a Tuesday afternoon and he said, 'What do you want to drink?' And I didn’t know whether to go with booze or caffeine. I said, 'Beer,' and he said [to the bartender]: 'OK, Eddie will have a beer. I'll have a coffee.'
How did that decision work out for you?
He then proceeded to have six coffees and got wired. I had six pints [of beer] and got drunk. And somehow along the way, we revealed our inner fears. And he kindly offered me the job. So that’s how it all came about.
ETonline recently caught up with fellow nominees, Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game) and Reese Witherspoon (Wild), who both opened up about their game-changing roles.
Watch as Redmayne interviews his Theory of Everything co-star Felicity Jones in the video below:
