Escaping a media feeding frenzy in the UK where her break-up with fellow actor Matt Smith has proved a diversion from dire election news, Lily James was all smiles as she hosted a masterclass at the International Film Festival & Awards Macao.
Discussing her career at length, the British beauty has enjoyed a diverse career, which includes roles in Cinderella, Baby Driver, Mamma Mia 2, Yesterday and Downton Abbey.
With upcoming roles in Ben Wheatley’s adaptation of Rebecca and Australian Simon Stone’s The Dig, the 30-year-actress remarkably began less than ten years ago.
At what age did you get the acting bug?
I’ve always loved singing and dancing and just being very annoying and always seeking attention when I was younger. I went to a regular school aged 12 with an emphasis on performing arts rather than doing sports. So, I did start young. But my focus then wasn’t on acting – it was more about singing and dancing. After that I went to Guildhall which blew my mind; the training there was just incredible.
What did you like most?
I loved pretending and being in my imagination and I liked the social element of dance classes. It’s such a social job which I liked too – an ensemble of actors or a company of dancers. I like the collaborative aspect.
Downton Abbey projected you onto the world screen. What are your memories?
That is one of those moments that I’ll always remember because I’d watched the first two seasons and loved it. I’ve always loved periodic dramas and Titanic was one of the first films I ever saw, and I was obsessed with Kate Winslet. I got that first audition and worked so hard on it and it just felt right – often there are parts that are for you and others that aren’t so it’s always good to remember that the right ones come to you, which doesn’t make it any less heartbreaking when you don’t get them. But I got this one and it was so overwhelming because, of course, the show was so successful, therefore it was very daunting to enter into this cast of incredible actors, but they were so welcoming. On my first day, they all hid and jumped out from behind furniture – including Maggie Smith which was terrifying.
What did it teach you?
In one way, I learned to do screen acting in the most high-pressure environment, so I felt I couldn’t make a mistake. On one hand that felt terrifying but on the other hand it was just the best opportunity I could ever have been given, because it was such an ensemble piece and I was learning from the best.
What was the process of your being cast in Cinderella?
I auditioned like 7,000 times! It literally was torture! I even got told by my agent just before my screen test – and there was three of us girls at that point, but you don’t see the other girls which is so weird – “You’re really never going to get this, so just have fun”, and it was the best thing anyone could have said. I think it was true; I really don’t think I was supposed to get it but then I just thought: This is my chance, in front of Kenneth Branagh and all these producers. Also, it was at Pinewood, in one of these huge warehouse set studios which I’d never been in before, and there was a camera and lights and I was dressed in a blue gown and I just thought, “this is fun”. I don’t think I understood the stakes of it at the time. In the end, I went through about eight rounds, but I was already in Downton Abbey and I always remember Maggie Smith, in particular, would keep asking if I’d heard any news yet. And then when I got it, Hugh Bonneville got up and made a congratulations speech, Downton Abbey style. It was really sweet, and they were all so supportive. They were really like a family and they still are. I will be forever grateful for that job on so many levels, particularly the friendships I made and what I learned as an actor and the opportunities it gave me. It definitely opened so many doors for me.
But then you worked with Kenneth Branagh again on the stage in Romeo & Juliet?
Yes, I did it with Richard Madden who was also in Cinderella playing Prince Charming, so we were reunited on stage, then six weeks into the run he broke his ankle and couldn’t finish the show and then the understudy went on and then he smashed his knee and he couldn’t continue so then my friend had to come in so I ended up with three Romeos! It was awful – not how it was supposed to go down at all.
Was your career palpably different after Cinderella and then your stage run? Did you feel like you had more power over your career?
It wasn’t like it was immediate but certainly there was a different caliber of work. One of the most influential women in my life was Allison Shearmur, an amazing producer who did all the recent Star Wars films and did Cinderella and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies who sadly passed away. She really believed in me and worked with amazing actresses like Natalie Portman and Jennifer Lawrence. She was a real champion of women and she taught me to stop apologising and to stop repeating myself and to ask for forgiveness, not permission. She was trying to toughen me up a bit, I think.
Did she succeed?
Yes, she did. just about taking your own power. And it’s hard when you suddenly start working and people assume that you’re super in control and confident and that it’s easy, but it happens faster than you sometimes. You have to catch up.
Cinderella showed us that you could sing; has music has been a real factor in your choices?
I feel very emotional when I sing. I think you have to be very open and relaxed and your voice comes right from your heart and soul. Definitely my mantra now is that everything has to be a challenge and has to frighten you.
You’ve just finished shooting Rebecca with director Ben Wheatley for Netflix?
It’s an amazing story by Daphne Du Maurer. An amazing gothic romance /thriller/horror – it’s pretty dark. Hitchcock did the original film version, but this is very different from Hitchcock’s Rebecca.
And you did All About Eve on stage with Gillian Anderson?
Yes, it was an amazing experience but being on stage is very hard. It was 14 weeks, eight times a week and it does take over your life. But I do find it difficult and I was dead afterwards because I get very, very, very nervous. I couldn’t eat for the first ten weeks.
Can you talk about The Dig?
It’s a film with Ralph Fiennes and Carey Mulligan about an archeological find just before WWII.
Are you drawn to strong female characters?
I’m not drawn to strong female characters – it’s more about women who I can relate to that feel like I understand their story or struggle and all their strengths and weaknesses and brilliance and madness and all that stuff.
What music do you like to listen to on set?
I listen to a lot of Whitney Houston when I want to get emotional and Keith Jarrett, an amazing jazz pianist.
What’s next for you?
I’m trying to take more time between projects so I can really spend time preparing. In my next project, I am executive producing which will be really great for me to understand the work from that side. Beyond that, there’s a book I found which I’m utterly and completely in love with and I think it’s going to make the most amazing film.
Is it possible for you to enjoy your downtime or are you always thinking about the next project?
There are one or two projects that I’ve not done because I’ve needed to work back to back and they haunt me still. It’s really hard to say no to things and I haven’t figured that out yet because I’m still so grateful and so excited to be working that I don’t want to let things go but I do think it’s important [to take time off] because if you go from one to the next, you’re not giving yourself a chance to really do good work. I’m a bit quieter next year which is good.
So the ones you turned down, they really haunt you?
God yeah, especially when you watch them and go “Dang!” Not that there’s many but there’s been one or two and equally the ones that you just don’t get – but I do feel that they go to the right people. And then there’s weird things that happen like there’s stuff I haven’t done and then the person has ended up falling in love with their person and they’re married. Like it was meant to be.
It must be gratifying for people to know that you still have to audition, even when you are as established as you are?
I actually genuinely like auditioning now because you get to discover whether you can do it because sometimes you just don’t know. I think even the greatest actors audition still; even if you don’t know you’re auditioning, you probably are.
Photos by Anthony Harvey/BAFTA/REX/Shutterstock
