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Pixie cast talk about "terrifying" accents and the "comfortable" threesome scene

From Digital Spy

"It was pretty terrifying, to be honest," reflected Ben Hardy of his new movie Pixie, but he's not talking about the deadly gangster priests he comes up against.

Instead, he's talking to Digital Spy about the Irish accent that he had to adopt for the new gangster comedy-thriller. Luckily, both Hardy and co-star Olivia Cooke could call upon their Irish co-star Daryl McCormack for tips on set, alongside dialect coach Nick Trumble.

"There was lots of going up to Daryl, and just being like, 'Is that how you would say this? Is that how you would say that? Does that sound all right?'. But it was definitely daunting. I just didn't want it to be one of the worst Irish accents of all time," Hardy added.

Photo credit: Paramount
Photo credit: Paramount

McCormack thought his co-stars passed the accent test with "flying colours" and like a good friend, he'd tell them that on set all the time – not that they'd believe him.

"They didn't believe me throughout the whole film. So if they don't believe me now, there's nothing I can do," he joked.

"I sat in with some of the dialect sessions with Nick Trumble, and he was very, very good, and very specific. Because I grew up around that area, and he was getting the sounds exactly as I would have heard them growing up."

Set in the West of Ireland, Pixie follows the titular character (Cooke) who sets out to avenge her mother's death by pulling off a drug heist.

However, her plans go awry when Frank (Hardy) and Harland (McCormack) inadvertently get involved, and the trio soon find themselves on the run from gangsters in the Irish countryside.

But they're not just any old gangsters, they're deadly gangster priests, led by Alec Baldwin's Father Hector McGrath, who hold a grudge against fellow gangster – and Pixie's stepfather – Dermot O'Brien (Colm Meaney).

Photo credit: Paramount
Photo credit: Paramount

Throughout it all, you're never quite sure what Pixie is planning and it was that edge that attracted Cooke to the role.

"I just liked how she was very unapologetic about being so conniving and naughty and mischievous and a little bit manipulative with the two boys, and I found that really fun to play," she explained.

There's certainly a knockabout quality to Pixie that's reminiscent of late '90s/early 2000s gangster capers as the trio try (and fail) to carry out their own drug deal, while trying desperately to avoid being tracked down by the gangster Pixie's stepfather has unwittingly sent after them.

For McCormack, the script brought to mind Martin McDonagh's black-comedy classic In Bruges:

"I think the dynamic between the three characters is very fun and light, but, at the same time, what they find themselves in can feel quite dangerous and with high consequences. That really came up for me a lot, I think, whilst reading it."

Photo credit: Paramount
Photo credit: Paramount

As Pixie's story plays out, there are plenty of twists and turns in store as more is revealed about the enigmatic main character, with revelations that surprised Cooke when she first read the script.

It's something she hopes is replicated when audiences watch the movie.

"I think when you're an audience member, you are questioning what's driving this woman to do all these extreme things that she's undertaking, and then it pays off in full when you do find out," she teased.

What's sure to be one of the most-talked about scenes from the movie though comes when Pixie tries to instigate a threesome, with best friends Frank and Harland getting closer than they have before.

"I thought it was an interesting scene. I thought it would serve the movie well. I thought, 'I wonder what the guy's breath's going to be like'," said Hardy of his reaction to the scene.

"In filming, by the time we filmed it, we'd been working together for about four or five weeks and socialising. So it didn't feel too awkward, did it? I think there's bound to be some awkwardness in that situation. But I think we threw ourselves into it."

Photo credit: Aidan Monaghan - Paramount
Photo credit: Aidan Monaghan - Paramount

McCormack added: "What Ben said. I think we had been so comfortable with each other by the time we got around to that scene. It was just a bit of fun. We were just laughing our way through it. It was what it was."

And at least the scene was more enjoyable for Hardy to film than a sequence on top of a mountain in cold weather, which mostly just led to Cooke and McCormack "laughing at me whilst I was miserable".

"They still had fun, but... I don't do well in cold weather. I became very introverted and I brought the whole energy down for about three days. But luckily we were shooting quite serious stuff at that point," Hardy recalled.

"Sorry about that guys!"

Pixie is out in UK cinemas on October 23.



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