ROBERT SHEEHAN words : Mark Williams | image : Lorna Roach

On a grey Friday afternoon, somewhere in the vicinity of Ladbroke Grove, West London, we were on our way to meet Robert Sheehan, a young Irish actor, known to many E4 viewers as Nathan from Misfits. He made a big impact in the Channel 4 series Red Riding a couple of years ago, and since then he’s been regularly popping up in all sorts of film and TV roles.

In 2009, he starred in Cherry Bomb with Rupert Grint and has recently made his first waves in Hollywood, appearing in Season of The Witch with Nicolas Cage and this month, he co-stars with Ben Barnes in Killing Bono, an Irish comedy about two brothers desperate for their band to make it big, but somewhat living in the shadow of their classmates, who just happened to become U2.

When I caught up with Robert, he had just finished a seven hour photo shoot, but was surprisingly talkative for a man who had just spent all day doing costume changes and seeing a flash go off in his face every five seconds. So, once he had a cup of tea and a packet of cheese and onion crisps, we sat down and had a chat. He began by telling us about Nicolas Cage’s rather peculiar doodling habits... ‘I was in New York recently for the Season Irish film about two brothers who both But yeah, he had great craic, it was an of the Witch press conference in a hotel, love and despise each other, and you get honour and a pleasure to even get to chat there were about thirty five-odd this very Withnail and I relationship to him, because he had some amazing journalists and myself, Ron Perlman, Nick between them. stories about his life and his career. Cage, Clare Foy and Stephen Campbell-Moore and we all had a pad WJ: Were you a fan of U2 before filming WJ: Is making a film about being in a and pens and so we immediately all began and are you now? band more fun than making a film about started doodling. We’re like ‘yeah, we’ve RS: Well, in an effort to research, or do kids taking part in a suicide pact, as in been doing a lot of research into the some kind of homework, I watched all of Suicide Kids? (Out in May this year) fourteenth century...’ and we’re doodling the tours of U2... RS: I suppose, day-to-day, it’s more fun in away as someone else is speaking, and the sense that you get to do a lot of I was doing a house on the hill, with the WJ: Getting gradually more and more extra curricular activities like guitar sun and that. I looked over and Cage had spectacular I guess? lessons, and you get to go into a done a massive, detailed cock and balls RS: Yeah, they’re major stadium rockers. It bona-fide studio and sing your heart out, on his pad! He just coughs and throws it was good to see the massive levels of pretending to be a rock star for a few over to me and Ron. I was going to get it charisma that Bono has on stage, and hours. But Suicide Kids was great craic as a souvenir but one of the journalists always has had, and it’s very obvious as to as well, because it was quite a large main stole the pad!’ why they could hold 160,000 people in the cast and I’m happy to say they were all palm of their hand. So they are deserved lovely people. WJ: Journalists will do that, they’re of being the biggest band in the world, or So, day-to-day we were all just sitting shameless. Tell us a bit about Killing having that title. And yeah, I am a fan of round, drinking tea and having a laugh. Bono. theirs I suppose, I’m proud of them, When you’re shooting a film, the bit RS: Killing Bono, is about a master plan because they’re Irish, they’re probably the between ‘action’ and ‘cut’ is a very small to assassinate Bono by two brothers... no biggest thing, musically, to come out of portion of the day in comparison to all the it’s not, I’m kidding... it’s about two Ireland, other than Riverdance or Enya! nonsense you talk to each other and all brothers [Neil and Ivan McCormick] who the mates you make. went to school with Bono and the lads. WJ: According to the Killing Bono blog Bono forms U2, then called The Hype, or and the U2 website, U2 have seen the film I did a thing, the Red Riding trilogy, which originally Feedback as they were known, and loved it? is all about paedophilia and the and then the two McCormick brothers RS: They did, they saw it in Australia murdering of small children in the North, start their own terrible garage band as recently. It’s kind of terrifying to think that which is horrible content, but again, you well. Bono’s aware of my existence. just have a laugh because you have to if you’re going to survive the day, you can’t 67 At the age of about 17, U2 land them- WJ: Peter Serafinowicz is also in Killing have your head in that kind of shit for too selves a manager and start becoming a Bono. Did you know he was the voice of long. professional outfit, whereas the two Darth Maul in Star Wars? (And did anyone lads are standing gawping, thinking, ask him to do the voice?) WJ: Was the character of BJ in Red Riding ‘shit, what are we doing?’ All the while RS: I only found out that he was the voice (on Channel 4 in 2009) one of the most their friends are being launched in to the of the Darth Maul guy after filming, but difficult to play, in terms of the stratosphere of rock stardom while the he’s always doing impressions for you, background history and psychology of brothers are slogging it out in Dublin, whether you ask him or not! He’s a the character? trying to get just one gig. comedian who just does it for the love, RS: Yeah, it was probably one of the he’s always doing his Michael Caine or his hardest. I suppose each one is difficult Nothing’s really happening in Dublin so Kevin Spacey impression or his for its own reasons, like Season of The they decide to go to London to try and impression of the director Nick Hamm. Witch for example, because you had two make it, and they’re both very sure of or three producers staring at you every the fact that they will... well Neil more so WJ: It was sadly Pete Postlethwaite’s final time you did a take, and they’re looking at than Ivan, Neil being the older brother, film. What was he like to work with? playback going (mimes rubbing chin and Ben Barnes’ character, Ivan being my RS: We had loads of scenes with Pete, scowling), and you’re shitting yourself character. Neil’s very sure of the fact that which was quite an honour when it comes because you’re getting constantly they’re going to make it; a record deal in to an actor like that, because he’s been tested! It’s like several job interviews, six months, first album in year, a around for twenty five, thirty years. Before after you’ve got the job. You’re thinking, million fans in two years, and of course, it I even took my first piss! He was such an they’re going to cut me out of the film, doesn’t quite work out like that. unfussy guy, for the adverse condition he because I didn’t do that the way they was in, because he was having wanted it. But, in fairness, you can’t WJ: And Neil McCormick’s the journalist chemotherapy at the same time that we blame them, because they’re playing who wrote the book I Was Bono’s were shooting the film, and you’ve got to around with a lot of money and they’ve Doppleganger, which the film was based be one tough cookie to do that. got a lot at stake, that’s just their way of on? Nick Hamm was a good friend of his for doing things. RS: Yeah, it’s kind of like his memoirs of years, he used to direct at the RSC and his musical career. He still thinks he’s Pete was a resident actor at the RSC for WJ: So after that, it’s nice to do brilliant, he’ll still tell you ‘I don’t know years, and they lived together. Nick was something with a smaller budget again, why we didn’t make it!’ fussing around him quite a bit but Pete like Killing Bono? was like, ‘fuck off, leave me along, I’m RS: Yeah, it’s far more relaxed, it’s a far WJ: So the film’s an alternative rock bi- fine!’ (laughs). It’s a pleasure to say there’s smaller unit of people, it’s not like an opic, where the band doesn’t make it big? a scene where I bend over and he gives audience, it just becomes very RS: Yeah, it’s very loosely based on the ac- me a pat on the bum, in a kind of a gay comfortable, and I find the more tual book, so you get this landlord, flirtatious kind of way. comfortable you are, the better the stuff light-hearted, fast moving, comedic, very will be. ‘You can’t do anything nervous, and if you do it’ll be shit, in my opinion.’

You can’t do anything nervous, and if you Audrey Hepburn! I think Burt Lancaster Everything he does... he’s well... saved do it’ll be shit, in my opinion. The quicker would be an amazing one, I’ve watched Batman, what he did with The Dark Knight you get comfortable with the bunch of three of his films of late, I watched Elmer was fucking amazing, the best superhero people you’re working with, the better for Gantry, The Rainmaker and Birdman of film I’ve ever seen and Inception I your own performance. Alcatraz, and they’re all just amazing absolutely loved as well, brilliantly written performances. He was very theatrical, so and brilliantly directed. WJ: Arguably your best known role is charismatic, so cool. Nathan in Misfits, who discovers he is I might say Leo Di Caprio, just because in WJ: Do you ever Google yourself and if immortal. If you could have any the last few years, he has become so, what’s the strangest thing you’ve read superpower, what would it be? Hollywood’s undisputed number one, and written about you? RS: I think I’d be able to see people’s farts, that took a lot more than people think, to RS: Yes, I have been known to Google right, so that when you’re in a lift, you can have such an elongated list of fantastic myself, just to see what’s out there, but turn around and go ‘it was you, don’t try films. He never really makes a bad film. there’s not much, the IMDB page and the and deny it, because I can see it!’ Well, Gangs of New York I didn’t like, but page from my agency! Around the time of Actually, you know what, I went scuba that’s just one in his whole back catalogue. Season of the Witch opening, Ron diving recently, and I didn’t like all the I enjoy him every time I see him, he’s (Perlman) said, use Google Alerts, put in equipment, so to be able to breathe brilliant. ‘Robert Sheehan, Season of the Witch’ underwater would be nice! and anything new with those words in Mark Rylance would be a good one, I saw will come up. I wanted to see any reviews, WJ: If you were assembling a fantasy film him recently on stage, doing La Bete, in things like that. One thing came up and it cast and you could choose 3 actors or New York with David Hyde Pierce. was a gay site, with lots and lots of still actresses, dead or alive, which ones Astonishing, just breathtaking and I also photos of me, semi-naked in Misfits, just would you pick and why? saw him in Jerusalem, he’s on a different lots of stills and people commenting on RS: (Thinks for a bit) I don’t know why, but level and I think he’s probably the best them! they would probably all be male, I think theatre actor of his generation. So yeah, as a male actor you tend to study other that’s not a bad three. WJ: Gay icon perhaps? male actors more and relate far more... RS: You never know. Someone sent me a WJ: And who would direct your fantasy link to a Facebook group that was called WJ: ...Well, it’s not like you’re trying to be film? ‘Robert Sheehan is gay’. That was it. I’m the next Audrey Hepburn, is it? RS: I’m going through directors madly in glad there’s some rumours flying about my head, and I’m going to say, just out there! RS: No, I don’t think people would like because at the moment he’s the most me if I went around saying I was the next interesting I think, Chris Nolan. Killing Bono is in cinemas on 1st April 2 011.