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Four months ago, we promised that 'soon' an interview with Chris Rankin would be posted on the site. 'Soon' is now here, as Lynn catches up with Chris on auditioning, acting, and of course smocking. Naturally, he can't say much about the filming due to Warner Brothers' penchant for mystery, but here's what the Muppet Supreme had to say for himself:
How did you get the part of Percy?
I got the part via a mate of mine (Will - pictured with me in most of the Premiere photos), who saw it on TV and gave me the address. Very good of him.
Describe the audition process.
In one word... scary! It was surprisingly short. I got "the phone call" on a not so very special day [and] went for an audition the day after that, in London. They had sent me a couple of bits of script to learn before I went, which I did. After the audition I was asked to go back to meet the director and re-audition in front of him, so I did. And then the day after that, I got another phone call saying "Hello? Am I talking to Percy Weasley?" Scary!
What was your reaction to that phone call?
*jaw dropped, sat in shocked silence* And then phoned everyone who had their mobiles (or cells to you people over the puddle) on.
Tell us a bit about your character, Percy. Are you like him at all?
I suppose in a bit I am, we share hair colour (obviously!). Nah - he's much more boring than me. I suppose Percy is a good guy really, he always tries to do the right thing, and often ends up making a prat of himself...
Did you feel nervous on the set at first?
A bit, but everyone's so nice and friendly that the nerves soon disapparate.
You had such a wide range in the cast - from incredibly famous actors to young kids - on set. What was it like working with such a mix?
Slightly odd... although the wierdest thing is that the extras have a random nature of getting excited about famous people. There were a couple of occassions when people from UK TV programmes would come along, and the extras (sorry - background artistes) got more excited about them than about double Oscar winners... strange...
Were there any cast members who were particularly enjoyable to work with?
Rik Mayall was a laff (played Peeves, but never appeared in the end film...) Julie Walters is the second best mummy in the world. Generally everyone was lovely and very easy to talk to.
Was the switch from theatre to film very difficult?
Not really. The fact that the audience (in filming's case, camera) is RIGHT next to you can sometimes be a bit weird, but the acting bit is exactly the same most of the time, although you often have to play things down more on screen than stage. It's much more like naturalism on screen - because you don't have to over-do everything so that it can be seen from the back of an audience, but then again in some respects it's slightly more brechtian, because you can stop and start and come out of character a lot more.... Am I boring you?
How substantial is your role in Chamber of Secrets compared to the first movie?
In theory it's a bit bigger; whether it translates to the final cut like that or not, we have yet to see.
How many movies are you signed on for?
I'm signed to the end of Chamber of Secrets, but then nobody really knows about number 3.
What are your future plans in terms of acting and life in general?
Enjoy myself, make money and be happy. :)
The big question: are you single?
Marraige-wise, yes I'm very single. Girlfriend-wise I'm very un-single, and very happy that way! :) *huggles to Luce*
What are your thoughts on Creative Smocking?
Well apparently it's very good for your skin...
Anything you'd like to say to your fans before we wrap this up?
Cheers to all you looney bins out there for helping to keep my head at a quite large size, but occasionally popping it and making me feel loved. :) Thank you all for your lovely letters and e-mails and strange comments on the forum, live long and smock-a-lot!
