You know what? Joy is the only guide. I'm going to have fun regardless. Joseph Fiennes More Quotes by Joseph Fiennes More Quotes From Joseph Fiennes I can only put myself in the process and try to learn through the process. Sometimes it will go well and sometimes it won't. Joseph Fiennes processtryingsometimes I think everything I do is my early work. I can't wait to get on to the later stuff. Joseph Fiennes waitingstuffthinking From the age of about five to twelve I was very bad, a hideous little terror who beat people up. I was a member of a Rough Gang - we went around and terrorised all the pupils in school. Joseph Fiennes agepeopleschool The great thing about films is that you have access to this whole world of experts who teach you the skills your character's supposed to have. Joseph Fiennes skillsexpertscharacter I guess there's nothing I don't like about Merlin, in this presentation. I love everything, even the things I find despicable and abhorrent in Merlin. They're actually a joy to ride on the tailcoats of. Joseph Fiennes presentationabhorrentjoy I like the fact that we're stripping the icons away. They're the WikiLeaks for the age that we're revealing, with the transparency of the characters. We're unearthing the truth beyond or underneath the myth. I love that aspect. Joseph Fiennes iconsagecharacter Youth is a predominant factor. We are seeing a young King Arthur, and thereby a young-ish - as I'm into my 40s - Merlin. It was about how to tackle it, from that point view. Joseph Fiennes youthkingsviews I read as much as I could, but really just spoke to Chris Chibnall and asked all the pertinent questions. That made me feel like we weren't going to do an off-the-peg Camelot, which has been touched upon in many films and TV series before. I really just picked his brain and, in doing so, I got fired up by tackling Merlin in a fresher angle. Joseph Fiennes pertinent-questionstvsbrain I think religion might throw up a kind of resistance, but I think if one talks about conditioning we can all kind of understand that. Joseph Fiennes resistancemightthinking There are a couple of films that I've done, where I've had to get on a horse and wear a pair of tights, so that helped. But, nothing could have prepared me for the fun of wielding magic like Merlin does, especially in the perverted mind of Chris Chibnall. Joseph Fiennes horsecouplefun A large part of how an actor works and their process is the stimulation of what's around you, and none more so than in a period piece. This is a modern piece, as much as it is set in a different time, age and myth. If it wasn't relevant, it wouldn't have been made and we wouldn't be putting our energy into it. It's relevant for us today because, in some ways, it throws up a mirror to all of us. As an actor, you get stimulus and you're effected by that, whether it's costumes or funny beards or castles. Joseph Fiennes castlesmirrorsage I wanted to say, "Hey, Pope Francis," but I cried like a baby. I was reduced to a very humble set of feelings, because it was not about what was said: There's a presence. That was a blessing for myself and my family and everyone there to be a part of that. Joseph Fiennes blessinghumblebaby 'How do you balance the creative with the biblical?' One could pick up the scripture and read it to oneself and you would be communing directly with that information. As soon as you go into film, as soon as there's a camera, and there's an angle, and there's lighting, and there's editing, you're into the adaptation. Joseph Fiennes biblicalcreativeediting It's all about human condition, ultimately. That's what you're looking at. You're also looking to have some fun, as well, because that also translates. Maybe wearing tights once in awhile helped. Getting up on a horse a couple of times before might have helped. Joseph Fiennes horsecouplefun I'm a huge admirer of Pope Francis and everything he stands for. I think he's an incredibly connected spiritual and authentic being. Joseph Fiennes popespiritualthinking Merlin is really at the forefront, in that regard. We get a glimpse into the dark, Machiavellian corridors of power. I like the fact that, although he has powers, his powers are almost in his political guile as much as what he relies on, in darker forces. Joseph Fiennes politicaldarkfacts I also wanted to have fun with it. I wanted to have the scope, which I felt Merlin has, in his Machiavellian bi-polar way. He's not to be trusted, yet he is fighting for this great power and is really a master, to some degree, in orchestrating Camelot and King Arthur. He's a strange, dark devious character, and I just wanted to have fun, and get away from the cloak and long beard and pointy hat. Joseph Fiennes kingsfuncharacter he challenge is finding the modern conduit for the audience, having fun and really looking at the duality of this particular character, that is both devil and angel, and on the cusp of losing control of the pagan background, to this newfangled religion called Christianity. There's a great backdrop there, and just a whole dark side with the magic. Joseph Fiennes angelfuncharacter We strived very hard in getting the balance between cinema and Scripture, working with the church communities in the process of making the film has allowed us to stay as true as possible to Scripture. Joseph Fiennes opinion We are not selling religion or pushing religion, we are pushing for great cinema and great story telling and I believe we got the balance right. Joseph Fiennes opinion
