The “Fleabag” standout goes in-depth with EW about his biggest role to date in the part-love/part-ghost story.
One can’t really blame him.
Thank you very much," he says with a laugh after being reminded of the achievement.
Illustration by Sophia Lauren Franco
Illustration by Sophia Lauren Franco
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Congrats on the Golden Globe nomination!
How are you feeling about the reception to the film and all of these honors coming your way?
ANDREW SCOTT:I’mreallythrilled about it, to be honest.
Andrew Scott in ‘All of Us Strangers’.Searchlight Pictures
I think it’s a cathartic film.
It’s a difficult thing to do.
You think,okay, what’s just happened?
Andrew Scott in ‘All of Us Strangers’.Chris Harris/Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures
That’s the first time you see it.
You’re scanning for noise a little bit and you know the story.
But this one, I’ve got to say, I’m going to watch again.
Jamie Bell, Andrew Scott, and Claire Foy in ‘All of Us Strangers’.Searchlight Pictures
There’s so much of me in the character that it’s important that I just face that.
And you’re in, I think, pretty much every frame of the film.
So there’s that.
Paul Mescal and Andrew Scott in ‘All of Us Strangers’.Searchlight Pictures
There’s no escape.
When he said that to me, I was like, wait…no, that was a supporting…
I was like, this guy has definitely had a lead role, right?
Paul Mescal and Andrew Scott in ‘All of Us Strangers’.Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures
Did I dream that?
Well, I have.
I’ve just been in films that not a lot of people have seen.
[Laughs] And also, I don’t really look at things that way.
That’s just the way it’s happened.
There’s no intentionality behind it.
Julianne Moore and Charles Melton in ‘May December.'.Everett Collection
For example, I’ll happily play a supporting part again.
A good role is a good role.
A good role is a good role, and this was certainly one of them.
Danielle Brooks and Taraji P. Henson in ‘The Color Purple’.Ser Baffo/Warner Bros.
Just in relation to the stamina of it.
I think that’s what it is.
You’re just always there.
Leonardo DiCaprio in ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’.Apple Original Films
Chris Harris/Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures
And emotional stamina for this one.
Yeah, emotional stamina.
I think that’s the thing.
Emma Stone and Mark Ruffalo in ‘Poor Things’.Atsushi Nishijima/Searchlight Pictures
It’s like holding water a little bit.
That’s what it’s about.
And keeping it fresh.
Sterling K. Brown in ‘American Fiction’.Claire Folger
It’s a really weird thing.
You just have to be very particularly in this one very in touch with how you’re feeling.
For me, it’s about vulnerability, really.
Penélope Cruz in ‘Ferrari’.NEON
I do feel like that’s what I would look for in every single character.
I think our mental health is so dependent on how vulnerable we allow ourselves to be.
Some of the most mentally ill people in the world project absolutely no vulnerability.
I’m thinking about Donald Trump, if I’m honest.
If you ask Donald Trump, “How do you feel about dying?”
I don’t think he would really admit that he might even die.
Christopher Nolan, Sterling K. Brown, Lily Gladstone, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Charles Melton.Getty Images; Orion; Apple TV; Netflix - Design:Alex Sandoval
Do you know what I mean?
And that’s why I think you’re able to tell that there’s something not right there.
That makes for very dramatic watching, and I think it’s something that audiences love to watch.
That was the real pleasure of this screenplay, and to be with these extraordinary actors.
Adam is a guy who is a bit lost.
He’s still traumatized by his parents’ death decades earlier.
He’s trying to look towards the light.
That’s what he does for a living to make it understand himself.
So he’s got the excitement of seeing them again.
And that’s what he immerses himself in.
There must be a different creative fulfillment for you on both sides?
It was a very physical part for me.
Steven Yeun, Ayo Edebiri, and Sarah Snook.Courtesy of Netflix; Matt Dinerstein/FX on Hulu/Courtesy Everett; David M. Russell/HBO
He kind of wants to be near them.
And I find that all that really kind of interesting.
We had two weeks, almost like a mini childhood, with Claire and Jamie.
So we went through that, and then I had to say goodbye to them.
We shot it for the most part chronologically.
So saying goodbye to them was sad.
We ain’t no strangers.
Did you guys just tackle all of the intimate scenes in one day and get it done?
No, we didn’t.
There’s sex and there’s intimacy.
That intimacy requires coordination too.
But the wonderful thing about having an intimacy coordinator is that everybody knows what their boundaries is.
Norman Lear at the 2019 Creative Arts Emmys.The Emmy Awards
Everybody’s listened to.
It is, like you said, it’s tender, it’s quiet, very sensitive.
Yeah, literally feeling out.
[Laughs] Yeah, it was mostly Andrew’s script.
But then, of course, there’s things physically that you discover.
And chemistry is all about listening.
Chemistry is all about: What’s that person doing now?
Are they doing that?
Or what are they doing there?
So you might’t write that in a script.
This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
This year, those snubs might sting worse for many given the number of incredible film performances.
And when someone doesn’t get in, someone else sometimes surprisingly does.
That is certainly the case with this year’s SAG Awards nominations.
Fantasia Barrino and Taraji P. Henson The Color Purple
Ser Baffo/Warner Bros. or the first major sign of the Cruz train preparing to crash into the Academys station on Jan. 23.
Heat Index | Contender or Pretender?
So who’s now up and down in the race?
Joey Nolfi breaks that down below.
And be sure to check out his latestnomination predictions here.
Would it be nice to seeBetter Call Saulfinally take home the gold after six unparalleled seasons?
I got a great reaction saying that opening a Christmas present when I was 7 years old.
