The movie that “totally regalvanised” Eddie Redmayne’s love of acting
There was a moment in the early 2010s when it seemed like Eddie Redmayne was poised for world domination, well, at least the Hollywood kind.
After a role in the Oscar-winning musical Les Misérables, which was on everyone’s lips in 2012, he landed several leading parts in some rather controversial films, boldly taking on the role of Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything, playing the theoretical physicist as his health deteriorates following his diagnosis of motor neurone disease.
The film sparked debate around the ethics of an able-bodied actor taking on the role of a man with a severe disability, with various publications accusing him of “cripping up”, but that didn’t stop Redmayne from taking home an Oscar for his performance. Then, just one year later, he found himself at the centre of a casting controversy once again when he accepted the part of a transgender woman in The Danish Girl, for which he later apologised, telling The Times, “I wouldn’t take it on now. I made that film with the best intentions, but I think it was a mistake”.
Since then, he has become best known for playing Newt in the Fantastic Beasts franchise, a Harry Potter spin-off series that has gotten worse with every instalment, which makes one wonder what exactly happened to the steadfast actor who could’ve continued to appear in award-worthy productions, but it seems like he lost his spark, instead taking on a few voice roles and returning every few years to the Wizarding World for easy gains.
Sometimes, when you’re stuck in such a rut, you just need to find a project that helps you reignite the fire, and Redmayne found it in the form of 2022’s The Good Nurse, and was specifically buoyed by the experience of working with Jessica Chastain, who is an incredible actor herself, and thus reinvigorated Redmayne further.
Based on a true story, The Good Nurse saw him play Charles Cullen, a nurse hiding the secret of being a prolific serial killer, and while the film wasn’t going to be an easy story to take on, the actor threw himself into it. He reaped positive reviews as a result, even earning several prestigious award nominations, finally finding himself back in a place of acclaim, like he’d been almost a decade prior.
Talking to Backstage, the actor revealed how working on the film re-energised his approach to the art form, noting, “I was totally regalvanised by the goodness of Jessica Chastain. She is an extraordinary actor, a formidable person, and a real optimist. She is fucking brilliant, confident, and strong. Any moments of doubt I had, she was so galvanising.”
He continued, “And I kind of got bored of doubt, basically. [Director] Tobias Lindholm had also reinvigorated my love of film through pushing me and allowing space in takes to not feel rushed. He did that thing I dream of as an actor, which is when a director goes: ‘Great, we’ve got it, now do one to just play’.”
The Good Nurse seemed to flick a switch for Redmayne, who has since followed it with a similarly acclaimed role in the TV series The Day of the Jackal, which landed him yet another Golden Globe nomination, ensuring his domination plans stay afloat.
