STACK September 2017 Issue 155

72 / 101

Taboo, created by Tom Hardy and his
father, Chips. The younger Hardy also
stars as the enigmatic John Delaney,
who returns to London following the
death of his father to contest a
piece of land on the West Coast of
America called Nootka Sound – the
same bit of land the East India
Company are desperate to obtain
at any cost.
“That story of Taboo, from the
page, is very complicated and
there are so many characters and
so many elements to the
story,” says Pryce.
“They only issued
the four episodes when
we started filming; they
hadn’t written the second
four. I found that interesting
because we were making those
first four episodes not knowing
what happened to your character,
whether he lived or died or
whether he disappeared from the
story after four episodes.”
In Taboo, Strange and Delaney spar
incessantly over the disputed Nootka Sound;
Strange the head of the most powerful company
in the world, who will stop at nothing to get
what he wants and Delaney, a mysterious
character who practices witchcraft and hides in
the shadows.
“As an actor you tend to try and find the good
things about your character, some redeeming
aspect of his character”, explains Pryce. “In
Stuart Strange, I could find no redeeming
characteristics, but that was equally as attractive.
I just knew he was a bad b–tard and he
was going to be a very strong antagonist
to Delaney, and I relished playing it.
“They don’t give you very much freedom
sometimes in filmmaking, but I can tell you the
profanity that came out of Strange’s mouth was
all ad lib and I was surprised they kept it in. I had
a great time telling people to f-ck off left right and
centre. My research for the role was based on
the person I’d like to be some days when I leave
the house [laughs].”
Finally, we must commend the
extravagant production values of Taboo,
remembering of course that Ridley
Scott is an executive producer on
the series. The gritty aesthetic
of a filthy, grim, working class
early 19th century London is
remarkably detailed and well-
realised.
“I think that was also part of the
attraction with Taboo; its production
values were as good as any major
film production,” agrees Pryce. “Things
like Game of Thrones have now set such a high
standard in production values, that if something
like Taboo doesn’t measure up to it, it’s not going
to be appreciated as well. Not only did it feature
some really interesting characters, it looked
fantastic too.”
Jonathan Pryce plays the pernicious head of the
East India Company inTom Hardy's gripping new
drama series,Taboo. Words Paul Jones
"My agent for nearly 30 years,
before he retired, used to say
to me when I was looking at a
script that wasn’t the lead role or Hamlet or
whatever, ‘Does this character change
the situation? Can the story exist
without this character? If it can
exist without this character,
don’t do it,'" reflects veteran
British actor Jonathan Pryce.
"There could have been no
story without my character
in Taboo and that’s why the
role appealed to me.”
Fresh from his part as
religious despot The High Sparrow
in Game of Thrones, Pryce plays Stuart
Strange, the nefarious boss of the infamous East
India Company in the compelling new series
STRANGE
brew
020 SEPTEMBER 2017
visit DVD&BD FEATURE
Facts About Taboo
The idea was conceived by Tom Hardy and his writer father, Chips Hardy.
It took nearly ten years from the original concept to actual production.
Hardy’s character Delaney is, in the actor’s words, an amalgam of Sherlock Holmes, Bill
Sykes, Hannibal Lecter, and Heathcliff from Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights.
Taboo featured two directors. Kristoffer Nyholm and Anders Engstrom, each helming four episodes.
A second season of Taboo has been officially confirmed by executive producer Steven Knight.
• Taboo:
Season 1
is out Sept 6
In Stuart
Strange, I could
find no redeeming
characteristics...
Did you
know?
Jonathan Pryce worked
alongside River Phoenix
on the movie Dark Blood
(1992). However, the project
remained unfinished after
Phoenix infamously died
during filming.
5