Iain De Caestecker photographed in central London last month Photo: Rii Schroer
“Luckily I had a very strong pad on my foot. back.» Iain De Caestecker, the latest in a very long line of actors to play Arthur Pendragon, laughs and winces at the same time as he recalls filming the opening scenes of The Winter King. The ten-episode ITVX drama opens with Arthur's father, King Uther, played by Eddie Marsan with his usual intensity, unleashes blows on his scorned illegitimate son: «Eddie is a wonderful, funny, sweet man, but he really annoyed me. He fits the character, this guy.»
It's a brutal start to the series, but it's a tea party compared to the bloody scenes in which the fragmented mini-kingdoms of 5th-century Britain brutally vie for supremacy. De Caestecker's Arthur, once and future king, must take charge of his father's kingdom on the South Wales coast and quell chaos.
De Caestecker, 35, is best known for playing the hot-blooded nerd engineer weaponsmith Dr. Leopold Fitz in seven seasons (2013–2020) of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. in USA. There's a simple-minded, innocent quality to his performance that explains why, when he was in his mid-20s, Ryan Gosling cast him as a troubled teenager in his directorial debut, Lost River. Overall: an unlikely casting for the role of a warlord.
His Arthur is not an earthly warrior like Clive Owen (in the 2004 film King Arthur), a natural aristocrat like Nigel Terry (Excalibur), or a hot-tempered handsome guy like Bradley James (in the TV show Merlin). . He is compassionate but practical, a cunning strategist in a world where leaders tend to try to solve their own problems, but ruthless when necessary.
De Caestecker did not feel the need to study his many predecessors in the role. “That's because I felt this version was very different from anything I'd seen before: it focused heavily on the more human side of the character and his relationship to the real politics of the time. Plus, the scripts were rich enough that I didn't feel the need for it, and the source material was books that I really enjoyed.”
He's referring to The Warlord's Chronicles, a trilogy of novels written in the 1990s by Bernard Cornwell; It is hoped that The Winter King will enjoy continued popularity, as have the other two period dramas adapted from Cornwell's works, Sharpe and The Last Kingdom. Cornwell wrote the books after immersing himself in ancient Welsh sources, which provide a grittier and less whimsical view of the period than the later medieval Arthurian romances of Chrétien de Troyes and Sir Thomas Malory.
“It was a truly barbaric time, and we show that,” says De Caestecker. “It's not meant to be provocative, but it's dramatic because when Arthur makes decisions, the stakes are very high — it's life and death. You won’t get a slap on the wrist in the Dark Ages.”
Despite its bloody realism, the series boasts a touch of magic in the form of Merlin, played here by 40-year-old Nathaniel Martello-White as a smoldering shaman rather than the usual irascible greybeard. “This is a wonderful performance. «I think Arthur drew a lot of his good nature and humility from his time in Avalon [presented here as a sort of hippie commune] when he was growing up, where Merlin gave him the guidance and love that he never received from Uther.» /p>
De Caestecker admits that «portraying the tough, confident and courageous side of [Arthur] took a lot more effort on my part than the kind and empathetic side. I don't have abs like a cheese grater and I will never be Sylvester Stallone. But the suits help, and it helps give you a certain swagger just by feeling the weight of the sword in your hand.
“And horseback riding: I find that you have no choice but to be stoic, when you sit on a horse they kind of put some of their stoicism into you.” He laughs as he recalls Monty Python-style rehearsals, when the horses rested and the actors had to pretend to ride: he was to be in contention for the lead role in a revival of Spamalot.
De Caestecker (as Gabe) with Joanna Vanderham (as Sam) in the control room. Photo: BBC
De Caestecker was born and raised in Glasgow and was proud to maintain his Scottish accent in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Birmingham, and then South Africa…” and opted for the standard English RP. “My father is English and you know what it's like growing up, you imitate your parents to make fun of them, so the accent was never a problem for me.”
He enjoyed filming in the bleak beauty of the Welsh landscape. , captured breathtakingly in the series. “We shot in the winter; the breath coming out of our mouths was definitely not CGI. At times it was hard to be covered in blood, dirt and grime all day, but I will say one thing: there was never a day when you came and everyone didn't have a smile on their faces.»
However, his acting experience was not always so happy. «I've often played characters who are very anxious, and — when I was younger I didn't have this problem — it affects me.» Last year he played an emergency service operator whose life spirals out of control in BBC thriller The Control Room. “It was a really fast-paced movie, a fantastic script, but I spent a few weeks filming this thing as a character in a constant state of fight or flight, and I found that it had really gotten into my body, and after that I didn't know how to get rid of it. This really confused me.
“I've never done this before, but I had to go and talk to someone professional about it. There's a lot of pressure and burden on Arthur's shoulders too, but because he's so stoic, it's easier to deal with.»
The Winter King, starring De Caestecker, begins airing on ITVX on December 21. Photo: ITV
De Caestecker is brilliant and outgoing, but clearly at heart a private man whose discomfort with fame has led him to occasionally consider giving up acting. This is due to the fact that he was a teenager when he played Adam Barlow, Ken's grandson, in Coronation Street.
“I loved doing it because I had to stay out of school and live in hotels. But no one really prepared me: millions of people watch it, and the day after your first episode airs, people are all over you as soon as you walk out the door. Then your friends start getting mad about it and suddenly you feel like you're a little different, I guess. But I appreciate that people come and say something nice.”
De Caestecker “is a Flemish-Belgian name meaning “cheese tester”; even I sometimes forget how to spell it,” the son of two doctors. His mother, Linda, recently retired as one of Scotland's most senior health officials: «She appears on television more often than I do in Scotland.»
He has lived in London for many years — he now lives with his girlfriend, actress Anne Skelly, but spent most of the 2010s in Los Angeles, filming 126 episodes of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. He liked Los Angeles, although it was a bit stiff for someone used to the pubs of Glasgow. “I remember my first party there – me and my friend were so excited because there was a free bar. But no one else drank. And we got really drunk and made a bit of an idiot of ourselves — we got some weird looks from across the pool. I thought the purpose of the party was to have fun.”
He hopes to return to Wales if The Winter King is renewed, but in the meantime he tries to count his blessings. “If I could tell my nine-year-old self what I do for a living now, he would be bouncing off the walls and screaming with joy. I think about it whenever I feel tired.»
The Winter King starts on ITVX on December 21.
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