Los Angeles, February 21 – Director Natasha Kermani, who directed ‘The Dreadful’, has spoken about casting Sophie Turner and Kit Harington as lovers.
Kermani has added to the “forbidden fruit” element of the film, according to ‘Female First UK’.
The pair played half-siblings Sansa Stark and Jon Snow in ‘Game of Thrones’ before being cast as childhood friends turned lovers Anne and Jago in the new dramatic horror film ‘The Dreadful’, and director Natasha Kermani believes their previous work simply adds another layer to the new film.
She told ‘Variety’, “These characters were always childhood friends. One of the themes of the film is growing up, so she has these memories of this character as a child and their childhood together. Now they are adults, reevaluating their relationship.”
She added, “They are not related in our film, but there is a bit of a love triangle, so there is a forbidden fruit element in our film. I think it’s interesting that it worked out that way.”
According to ‘Female First UK’, the horror film is set during the War of the Roses, at the end of the Dark Ages, and stars Sophie as Anne, who is living with her mother-in-law, Morwen (Marcia Gay Harden), while her husband is at war.
Praising Sophie’s performance, Kermani said, “One of the things she latched onto was the character’s spirituality and inner strength. I think that was something I didn’t necessarily see upfront. I thought maybe this character would feel more childlike, a bit of a blank slate that evolves. But what Sophie brought that I loved so much, and I’m so glad she did, is that you can actually see that strength and steeliness in her from the first time she appears onscreen.”
She shared, “She has these instincts and intuition for the characters that she is able to string through in a very consistent way. That core relationship between the two women, specifically the older generation and a younger generation, and the struggle between them as it starts to fray and to fall apart, and the one character is trying to move away, and the other one is trying to hold onto her, felt to me like an interesting sandbox to play in. Everything else, the mythology, the fantastical elements, the period - really came out of exploring that core relationship.”
Meanwhile, Kit, 39, previously admitted he felt “odd” about kissing his friend Sophie, 30, for the movie.
He told E! News, “She was one that sent that movie to me and somehow didn't see what I saw in it. I was like, 'These guys, these are lovers, right?' I felt very odd about that. It was slightly embarrassing, having to get on an apple box to kiss her because she's about a foot taller than me. But other than that, my dignity was pretty intact. It was a good chance to be with her again and work together.”
“What was lovely is that we got on set together and our friendship completely ignited again. It felt like being with family. It really did,” he added.