Jeremy Irons is a living legend. Whether in the world of theater or films, he has definitely left his prints. The roles he plays and the characters he embodies remain anchored within us, like an everlasting memory… Be it Gabriel in The Mission (1986) by Roland Joffé, with the soundtrack of Ennio Morricone, or the voice of Scar in The Lion King (1994) by Disney, or even aa a Shakespearean hero…
During a roundtable discussion at the Marrakech International Film Festival, Irons answered a few questions.
Speaking of character building, is your acting based on a technique or is it more of an intuitive approach?
It’s a mix of all these things. It depends on how far the role is from you. Still, you find ways to get under the skin of the character you play. For the filming of The Mission, I had to spend four months in South America. As soon as the plane landed in Cartagena, I took off my shoes. From the moment I stepped on the ground, I stayed with no shoes for four months. In order to work with the Indians, I wanted to experience the ground – and hoped I won’t get stung by a scorpion. Looking at this character in a different way, he was very different from me: Catholic, Jesuit, priest, so basically in short, everything I am not… I had to do a lot of research. I visited the Jesuits to find out what they went through at that time. I had a Jesuit working with me the whole time. There are different ways to dig onto the character; reading his diary, seeing videos… You try to get into his skin. The further the characters are from you, whether in history or in personality, the harder you’d have to work. Sometimes, you can just be you. It really depends on the character. However, the ultimate goal remains that when the camera points its lens at you, you have to be someone else.
How do you “heal” from the character you’re playing?
Oh, I heal very easily. I was trained in theater, in the Shakespearean world. Sometimes, I would practice a play in the morning, perform another one in the afternoon, and a third one again in the evening. I’m used to that.
What about theater? Is it any different from acting in movies?
In theater, you practice, you rehearse, and then you play. You always aim for your character. In film, you play by scene. Each scene is part of a path that will eventually be paved by the director. There is no general rule, but this is how I proceed; by reading, researching, talking to people who have experienced the traits of a certain character in real life…