Cillian Murphy Talks Small Things Like These (and Rewatching Peaky Blinders)

Were you coming off Oppenheimer and going into this much smaller, more intimate production?

Well, I think I had about six or seven months off after we wrapped. And this script was ready to go before we shot Oppenheimer. We shot it while Chris was cutting Oppenheimer. But it was a lovely experience to be shooting back at home, shooting with Irish crews, and shooting with these amazing Irish actors. To be working with dear friends of mine who happen to be brilliantly talented writers, actors, and directors. So it was really special to shoot.

Do you approach a smaller production any differently than a huge one?

I think you need to take each role as seriously as the next, no matter what the size or scale. For sure, there was an added weight when you’re playing somebody like Oppenheimer who is a real life 20th-century icon. He changed the course of history. That has an added weight to it. But I approached playing Furlong with the same amount of rigor and prep and dedication. It’s the same thing, but just nobody knows who he is.

How did that prep shape the role?

Because I was producing the film as well, there was a lot of work in terms of working on the script and casting the movie and finding the locations and auditioning the actors, and all of those things, which were really satisfying. I read an awful lot about those homes and the experiences of those women. But mostly it was trying to inhabit the character in a way that felt sort of authentic and real so that he felt like a real human being.

Did you feel any change after the Oscar?

Foolishly or not, I don’t know, but I kind of went straight back to work. So I was on a film set again after a couple of weeks, and that was good. That’s what I should be doing. And then I went and I had a holiday.

What was that film?

It’s a film called Steve that Tim Mielants also directed. And we just wrapped that not long ago.

What do you like working with directors over and over again?

I think it’s all about trust. If you trust somebody, you can really be, go straight to the work and be vulnerable and really try things out. [Tim and I] have a very shared aesthetic and shared taste. I just adore working with him. He’s a true artist. And I think a lot of my work has been re-collaborations. A lot of the good stuff. It’s 20 years since I started working with Chris. So they’re also friends, but through that friendship comes really good work. I hope.