Have you ever worked with an actor who was so good in a role that you were forced to kill them off? No, I don't mean in the sense that they were outshining those on screen, and I certainly don't mean in the sense that you felt intimidated by them. I mean that they gave such a decent performance in their role that they changed the way their character interacted with others.
That's what happened during out last weekend of shooting. After a dreadful rehearsal with a certain unnamed actor, we were left with no option but to either recast or rewrite around their ability. With little to no time left to recast we rewrote the scene. Only, to quote Doctor Ian Malcolm from Jurassic Park, "life, er, er, finds a way".
As it happens the original actor couldn't make the dates, irritating, for sure, but also a possible God send, it meant that with even less time on our hands than before, a rewrite was out of the question, and a full recast was also impossible, no auditions, no nothing. All we could do is ask someone who fit the brief and hope they could bring their A-game.
After feverishly browsing through several showreels and casting profiles, we found someone who looked, for lack of a better word, okay. We asked him, he accepted. The actor in question here I will name, Stu Jackson. Local to the Swindon area Stu was available and willing, and so he was cast, and we all crossed our fingers and hoped things turned out for the best.
When it came to the day of shooting we held our collective breath. Low and behold, he performed the scene perfectly, but he also brought something we weren't expecting. As stupid as it sounds to say now, this guy can act. In fact, he brought such a multi-dimensional performance to the character that it changed the very way we viewed him.
No longer was this character a simple "muscle man", no longer was he dim-witted and stupid. In fact, he became somewhat sympathetic, and despite doing some pretty horrible things throughout the narrative, he became what can only be described as, shudder, likeable.
So, now we were left with another issue. You see, the character plays against someone who is not likeable in the slightest. And with Stu's new, excellent take on the part, it created something of a new dynamic between the two roles. Whereas before they had simply been "brain" and "brawn", now they had that added element of "abuser" and "abused", like a kind of post-apocalyptic Walter White and Jessie Pinkman.
While nothing had changed in the script and nothing had changed in the performances of the other actors, by simply having someone who could actually perform in that one role it created an entirely different atmosphere to the scene.
Now we had the problem of deal with the fact that the relationship dynamic had changed. Stu had given such a likeable performance that he'd inadvertently turned his partner into a monster. One that wouldn't stand for the kind of crap Stu's character puts him through. And so we found ourselves having to kill him off, to ensure that it was in keeping with the dynamic created.
So, now, if anyone was to ever ask me if I'd worked with an actor who was so good in a role that you were forced to kill them off, I'd have to say yes. I'd tell them the story of Stu Jackson, who created something out of almost nothing and basically signed his own death sentence, because he was just that damned good in the part.
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