Domhnall Gleeson Discusses the Year That Was 2015

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In an interview with the Daily Beast, Domhnall Gleeson (Bill Weasley) talks about the philosophy of acting, his character in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and how 2015 turned out to be a dazzling year in his career, among other things.

Domhnall Gleeson has starred in some great films, from Anna Karenina and True Grit to Never Let Me Go, a dystopian drama based on the bestselling novel of the same name. But this year specifically has been truly spectacular for Domhnall. After landing a role in the indie sci-fi thriller Ex Machina, he then took a sharp turn in the period drama Brooklyn, followed by The Revenant, which saw him working alongside Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hardy – Domhnall has certainly been busy. In an interview with the Daily Beast, he talks about his latest streak of success, saying,

First, you just do what you’re offered. Then when you get a little bit of choice, you do what interests you. Oftentimes, you don’t really know why you make choices until you start talking about them, so you don’t know how much of this is true or how much you’re putting reason on things that actually had no reason to it. I’m a very lucky guy in terms of the people I’ve gotten to share sets with, and that’s really the reason for the good year.

Domhnall goes on to talk about his role in Brooklyn and how it opened up his philosophy on both acting and love.

I think particularly when you’re younger, you think that real acting is pain […] Unless you’re really in pain, you don’t feel like you’re expressing yourself because that was the place you thought, [‘W]ell, that’s really acting.[‘]

Lastly, Domhnall discusses his role as General Hux in the much-awaited Star Wars sequel. He describes his character’s relationship with antagonist Kylo Ren as fun and elaborates on what it was like to play the ruthless bad guy in the film.

His fascist relationship with Kylo Ren was great fun […] And it’s Star Wars, so you don’t want to leave anything at home. There were people when I was young, bullies, who just had a disregard for human life and were just born that way—you know, when you look at some people’s faces, and you’re like, ‘That person’s an asshole.’ Some people have it in them. Their sourness from the inside just shapes the way they hold themselves. So it was kind of fun to go there. As long at you’re not dealing with those people in real life, it’s enjoyable to hate them.

The full interview covers many more topics such as The Revenant and some upcoming productions Domhnall is involved in. You can read it here. We’re definitely looking forward to the next role Domhnall brings to life. What do you think about his performance in Star Wars: The Force Awakens? Let us know in the comments below!