From director Chase Palmer and adapted from the novel by Sergio De La Pava, the crime drama Naked Singularity follows Casi (John Boyega), a young and idealistic public defender who finds himself crossing paths with former client Lea (Olivia Cooke) when she gets herself into trouble again. But with heist money involved and the chance at a new life, you never can tell just who’s manipulating who.
During this 1-on-1 interview with Collider, Cooke talked about why this project appealed to her, finding the look for her character, how much fun she had with her co-stars, and why Lea is someone who can’t seem to stop getting into trouble. She also talked about getting cast in the Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon and what audiences might think of her character, along with playing a spy in the upcoming Apple TV+ series Slow Horses, opposite Gary Oldman.
Collider: When it came your way, what was it that most appealed to you? Was it something about the story? Was it something in the character that you hadn’t gotten to play before?
OLIVIA COOKE: It was both. The story, in itself, of a young public defender who’s trying so hard to change the justice system, at the same time this genre-bending infusion of also seeing the universe collapse, and then he embarks on a big old drug heist was something I thought would be so thematically interesting to play out. My character reminded me so much of my sister, back in 2019, when we shot the movie. She’s a little bit different now, but she had her hair, lashes, nails and tops like that. Without completely ripping her off and offending her, I wanted to play a character like that, just in the guise of a woman from Brooklyn.
You’re the lone woman among the men in this story. What was it like to find where you fit among all of these guys? Did you come into this with a certain sense of purpose and confidence, or did it take some time to find that groove?
COOKE: No. Apart from Bill [Skarsgård], John [Boyega], Ed [Skrein] and I are English and we’re working class, so there was a bit of a collective of, “Fucking hell, we’ve done well, haven’t we?” That was really lovely, straight off the bat. It was really easy. They’re just lovely lads, Bill included. It was really, really fun. The set was really joyous. (Director) Chase [Palmer] was so open to our input and wanted it to be as creatively exciting as possible. Also, the sets were completely real. It wasn’t a New York movie that was shot in Montreal. It felt like we were living and breathing the film as well.
You chose to bleach your eyebrows for Sound of Metal, and with this, it seems like the nails might have been an equivalent to that. Was that something that really helped you with the character? Was there anything you specifically wanted to do with her?
COOKE: Lea is a bit of a peacock. I wanted her jewelry, her hair, the makeup, and the nails to feel like armor. The nails were like mini knives that she was pointing at people, at all times. It felt fierce and powerful to dress like this, especially in a way that I haven’t for a character before. It really helps you embody it.
When you play someone like this who doesn’t really have a lot of background and we don’t know much about where she’s come from or how she’s gotten to where she is, how do you dive in, for yourself? How much of that fuller picture do you need, as an actor, in order to play a character?
COOKE: Having played a few characters that you just meet, and then audience works it out as you go along, or are left to fill in the blanks, I need a full intensive history of the character’s life, so I always ask my directors to fill in the blanks for me. That’s an ongoing discussion, from pre-production throughout the film, so you can draw upon memories that you’ve created, as the character, to help infuse the emotion of the scene. Otherwise, it feels a bit flat and a bit pointless for m to not have an emotional compass.
We really get to know her when she finds herself stuck between these two men. And we get to see how she is with each of them. What did you most enjoy about exploring those different dynamics, and finding them with John Boyega and Ed Skrein? How different were they, as scene partners?
COOKE: Very different. They’re very different people, energy wise, but also the characters are so completely different. Sometimes subconsciously, as actors, even when you’re off set, you’re going through the world with the lens of your character still firmly on, so it did feel very, very different. The scenes with Ed were fun and chaotic. I was constantly surprised at what he was gonna do next, which was really fun. And then, the scenes with John playing Casi were much more tender. They were very, very different, both of them, but still loads of fun. I was very lucky to have them both as my scene partners.
What do you think it is about this woman that just makes her someone that can’t seem to stop getting into trouble?
COOKE: I don’t know. I’ve got a few friends like this, where things just happen to them. I’m like, “What did you do this time?” And they’re like, “I don’t know.” I think there are people that go about the world and they try so hard to stay out of trouble, but they’re just a magnet to it. It could just be the slightest little look or one sentence that they said to the wrong guy, and that’s it, they’re in it again. And she is definitely someone who leaves her apartment in the morning and just braces herself for what’s gonna happen now. She gets herself into it, but she gets herself out of it as well, which is a relief. I couldn’t. I would be a mess. I wouldn’t leave my house, if that was me.
Is there something refreshing then about doing a project like Naked Singularity, where it is so stripped down and you’re really just focused on the character?
COOKE: It comes with its own challenges because I was doing an accent that I’d never done before and embodying a woman that felt really specific in the story. You wanna do that justice, and then you’re also finding out where your chemistry lies with the other actors. Because there’s not great, huge set pieces, apart from New York itself, it hinges more on your performance, so that comes with its own pressures.
How was the experience of doing this with somebody like Chase Palmer, who was a first-time feature director? How did he approach working with the cast throughout this production? Was it very collaborative?
COOKE: It was really collaborative. He’d been writing his film for a long time and was trying to get it made for a long time as well. He was so confident with the text and what he wanted and his vision that he never felt unsure or hesitant. He always knew what he wanted. Even if he didn’t, he filled you with confidence that it was what he wanted. He never felt like he was Bambi on ice.
We know that you’re doing the Game of Thrones prequel, House of the Dragon. What goes through your mind when you’re cast in and then filming a prequel series for one of the biggest shows, ever? Is it just totally bizarre, or does it help that the story is set hundreds of years prior?
COOKE: It does help that the story is of a hundred years prior. We’re in the world of Game of Thrones, but you can also put yourself in a different head space as well and know that, for an actor, you don’t have to necessarily follow on from what anyone else is doing. But at the same time, yeah, it’s utterly bizarre, after the year or year and a half, of fucking 10 years that we’ve had, looking down and just being like, “What am I wearing? What am I doing? This is mad.”
It sounds like there will be an interesting relationship at the center of that show with the struggle for power between your character, Queen Alicent Hightower, and Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen. Without spoilers, what can you say about the kind of woman that you’re playing?
COOKE: I don’t know if I can say anything without really giving it away. She’s very complex and I think people are gonna want to see the worst in her.
Is she someone that you think we’ll understand right away, or is she someone that it’ll take some time to figure out?
COOKE: I think it will take some time. What’s amazing about Game of Thrones, like we saw in the past series, is that one season, you hate a character, and the next, you absolutely love them and will go to the ends of the earth for them. You just don’t know what you’re gonna get with these characters. They’re so well-written. Such is the human condition, you can do some horrendous things, but then you can also do some wonderful things as well. It’s very complex, and it’s not black and white at all.
What do you think would most surprise people about making a show like that and what it truly takes to make a show like that?
COOKE: Just the amount of people it takes to make a show like that. The crew is a hundred strong. The artistry involved is mind blowing. The sets that have been created are fucking gorgeous, and the costumes. Down to the tiny prop that you hold in your hands, there’s just so much thought that goes into it and so much history as well. It’s amazing to work on a film, a TV show, or anything where everyone is just so passionate about it.
You also shot the Apple TV+ series, Slow Horses. Who doesn’t want to do something with Gary Oldman and Kristin Scott Thomas, but what was the appeal of that project? Have you always secretly wanted to play a spy, or was there more to it than that?
COOKE: I love the fact that we’re playing spies, but they’re spies that are in spy jail, at the moment. They have to sit there doing admin work. They’re doing paperwork. To play out the mundanity of being an agent was really fun. It has this wicked sense of humor throughout. And seeing Gary Oldman at his best, doing what he does, was amazing.
When you look at the career that you’ve had, with projects including Bates Motel, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, Ready Player One and Sound of Metal, it’s this incredible collection of different kinds of projects and very different roles. Has any of it been intentional choices that you’ve made, or do you just feel really lucky about that?
COOKE: I feel like they’re intentional in the moment, but you never know what’s gonna happen and how your experience is gonna be on set. With the people that I’ve met and the artists that I’ve gotten to collaborate with, I’ve been extremely lucky, in that sense. I’ve grown so much, as an actor and a creative. I never went to drama school, so this has been my schooling, and it’s been the best schooling for me, in the world. I’m so lucky for that. A lot of my choices are knowledge mixed with gut instinct. If something doesn’t feel right, even if everyone is being like, “Olivia, this is gonna be the one that really helps you break out,” or something like that, I’m just like, “No, it just doesn’t feel right,” and 99.99% of the time, I’ve not regretted that.
Selfishly, I don’t wanna repeat myself because I feel like I’d get bored. I get bored of myself, very easily, so to be able to mask that in someone else who’s entirely different and getting to live a mini-life, again and again and again, is just the most exciting and fulfilling. At the end of the day, I don’t take it too seriously because I am playing pretend. I’m waiting to get the hook and get yanked from set. I feel so lucky to be able to do what I do because it is so silly, at the end of the day. Even if you’re doing a really emotional scene and you’re crying your guts out and you feel all of these things, they yell, “Cut!,” and you’re wrapped for the day and you’re like, “That was so self-indulgent. What did I just put myself through?” But it’s fun and it’s all within safe parameters.
Are you someone who gets nervous at the start of every project, or are you able to not have the nerves happen?
COOKE: At the start of every project, for sure, I get really nervous. Slow Horses was the first thing that I did after being in lockdown and I felt ill. I hadn’t felt like that in ages, but I hadn’t worked for a year and I didn’t know if I could do it anymore. And then, your first day is with Gary Oldman and you’re like, “He’s gonna think I’m shit.” Now, if I’m embarking on a big, meaty story hinging on this scene, then I get nervous. It’s good though. It means you care.
Is it just about pushing through it on the day, or do you have tricks to get through it?
COOKE: No, I just admit defeat and know that the first take is gonna be horrible, and then we’ll get into a flow. Hopefully, we’ll rehearse a few times, but as soon as the camera’s on, I’m just like, “I don’t know what I’m doing.” That first one is a write off and it’ll get better.
Naked Singularity is in theaters and available On-Demand.
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