‘Pillion’ director Harry Lighton and Alexander Skarsgård reveal unlikely first meeting
In an exclusive interview with Far Out, Alexander Skarsgård unveiled the first time that he met Pillion director and screenwriter, Harry Lighton.
Pillion follows the storyline of a timid man, Colin, played by Harry Melling, who meets Ray, a confident biker gang leader played by Skarsgård, who initiates him into a submissive relationship.
This challenges Colin’s mundane existence and brings to the forefront questions of desire, emotionality, and social dynamics.
The movie is based on a novel by British author and film critic Adam Mars-Jones, who wrote the novella BOX HILL. In the interview with Far Out, Mars-Jones admitted that Skarsgård’s attachment to the project was a shock.
The author explained that he’d grown used to options fizzling out; one of his short stories was previously optioned by the sound recordist of the Tom Cruise-starrer Days of Thunder, but never came to life.
Mars-Jones admitted, “When [I was told] ‘some major stars are interested,’ I thought, ‘No, they’re not.’ That’s just what you say to get money. And then when they said ‘Alexander Skarsgård is on board’ – really? It’s hard to find somebody as really perfect as the character is supposed to be.”
Here, Skarsgård reflected on his meeting with Lighton, which all but sealed the deal. He flew into London for a single night, and texted Lighton: “Do you want to come to an Arcade Fire concert?”
Lighton then joined Skarsgård at the Brixton Academy, where the unlikely pair “spent the night drinking and dancing, and occasionally talking about Pillion. It was a good night,” Lighton reminisced. “He’s a fun guy.”
He also took this carefree attitude along with him throughout the filming process. When asked if he was scared by the considerable challenge, he admitted, “A lot of people were like, ‘Oh, a BDSM, kinky gay biker movie by a first-time filmmaker – was that scary?… It’s an incredible screenplay. It’s so good.”
He added, “And then I had one conversation with Harry Lighton… And he’s extraordinary… I just felt so confident in him and his ability to kind of tell this story in the right way, so I didn’t hesitate for a second.”
Pillion is out in UK cinemas now. Watch a clip of the unconventional romance movie below.
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