keira knightley style keira knightley style
 Keira Knightley Posters
|
 Keira Knightley Talks King Arthur Full Interview Is your Guinevere what we would expect from previous stories?Keira Knightley: Hopefully not! (laughs) We are trying to make reality out of the myth and in our story the enemy of Rome are the Picts and in Pictish society it was actually matriarchal, the blood line went through the women and therefore women fought with equal standing with men..
Is that true?
Keira Knightley: Yeah. So there you go (laughs). So Guinevere is absolutely definitely a leader and she is a warrior which is wonderful. So we are bringing that in which has never been done before, so that makes it much more exciting and a far stronger story from my point of view..
So she's not girly girl waiting for one of the knights to come and rescue her?
Keira Knightley: Absolutely not. No! (laughs) No, she has plans of her own, reasons why she wants Arthur on her side and she is very politically astute. She should be terribly interesting - fingers crossed, making no predictions, but that's the idea anyway! (laughs).
So this is a different take on the Arthurian legend...
Keira Knightley: Totally. And it's absolutely fascinating. The script is such a page turner.
Presumably you aware of the story before you read the script?
Keira Knightley: Yes, I'm British so it's our heritage. I mean, I love it. I think it's very hard being British and not knowing the King Arthur legend. I've got so many books. There are some Aubrey Beardsley drawings that I've always been a big fan of, so I knew those as well. But yes, absolutely. But when I heard they were doing King Arthur, before I'd read the script, to be honest my first reaction was that I couldn't understand why they were doing it again.
Why was that?
Keira Knightley: Well, it was like `how many more versions can they have?' I thought it was pointless and then I read the script and it was like `ah, that hasn't been done...' And it hasn't. Because it has always been very mystical and magical, the way it's been written, which is fine, but this is trying to make a reality out of the myth, so forget the magic. I mean, yeah, the Picts were Pagans, and there are some tree spirits because that is what they believed in, but there is nothing like Merlin turning into an owl or something or the sword in the stone. It's specifically that there is a theory that the actual King Arthur, if he did exist, was a Roman general at the end of the Roman empire in Britain called Artorius and that's what we're going on.
Have you read a lot of research?
Keira Knightley: I did read a lot because I'm interested in the subject anyway. But when you are doing something like this you can extremely obsessed with the research that's been done and then you can get a bit pissed off if they are not going for the research straight down the line (laughs).
You mean it can be kind of distracting?
Keira Knightley: Yeah. So I got a rough outline of the period, I didn't delve into it too deeply. And then I'm like `right, artistic license!' Basically you read what you can but then you have to go with the script because otherwise it would be impossible. It's funny, I love the myths, but they do vary - if you meet people from Scotland then Camelot was in Scotland, if you meet people from Cornwall, then Camelot was at Tintagel, others say it was in Gloucestershire. But it's good to give another take on it, our story is different and anyway, we've seen that First Knight sort of vibe.
How did you get the role of Guinevere?
Keira Knightley: I met Antoine for lunch in Los Angeles and we talked and I really liked him. And I thought that he was possibly one of the only people I'd met in America who had real artistic integrity. I'm desperate to do theatre and normally if you say that in Hollywood people laugh, but what he said to me was `if you want to do theatre don't let anyone stand in your way ` and automatically I went `wow, God I didn't expect that..' He's a really, really cool guy and is very aware of the business as a whole and not just the big film blockbuster side of it which as an actor kind of makes you go `wicked, nice, this is a guy I really respect..'
 What happened then?
Keira Knightley: Not a lot (laughs) After that lunch I basically phoned up my agent and said `anything this guy wants me to do I'll do it, I don't care..' It can be just a walk on, I don't care I'll do it. And plus the fact that you have this director who did something like Training Day and wants to come and do King Arthur film - that in itself is quite incredible. So I got quite excited and then, the ******, I didn't hear anything for three months (laughs). I thought `God, OK, I must have got that completely wrong. Maybe it was just me talking at him for hours....'
So you really had to fight for this part...
Keira Knightley: I did. They finally phoned up and said `listen there's five of you left in the race, would you come and do a screen test with Clive Owen?' So I came in and again it went well and again I didn't hear anything for about a month and a half after that and it wasn't until I'd finished Pirates of the Caribbean, come home, gone back out to America to open Bend It Like Beckham that they said `come on, let's do it..' So it was very exciting, but it was such a long drawn out process.
And it's really embarrassing when I'm sitting there talking to the other guys because they are all going `it was really quick..' and I'm thinking `not for me!' (laughs). But it was good because obviously I was working with Jerry (Bruckheimer) anyway, I would have hated it if they had kind of gone `oh she did a good job on that one so we may as well put her on this one...' It kind of felt better to have to really fight for it, because then at least you know that they want you and it's not just `oh she's a cool kid' or anything like that. It was `yes, she's good for the part...' So it was good to have to fight for it.
You're more or less the only woman. How does it feel for an actress to be in the middle of a big production like this?
Keira Knightley: You have to keep focused andit's very easy to lose your focus. We did a scene last week which was one fifth of a page but it was an epic shot, it was entering this village and we had hundreds and hundreds of extras and we had to go into a small scene after that, And it is amazing to go from something where there are hundreds of people and millions of cameras everywhere to a really focused one on one with lots of dialogue.
You have to be really focused on what you are doing, because it;'s very easy to lose it and it's very easy to get fazed by it. We have more cameras on this than I've ever worked with before. On Pirates we maybe had four and this is like 12 on a big day and you have to be really focused, you do, definitely. I certainly forget that sometimes when were were doing the big scenes, I'm like `look at that! And that!' but I suppose that's quite good, I mean at least you are doing something, as opposed to sitting there blank (laughs).
Great hair by the way....
Keira Knightley: It's not mine (laughs). It's rather sweet though, isn't it. What's great is that I have long hair during the day and it just clips off so I can give it away at night. I have short hair at night. On Pirates I had extensions and they were in the entire time and they are very annoying, they turn into dreadlocks but this is just a nice little piece that clips in.
I remember you talking about how uncomfortable the costumes were on Pirates. How are they on this?
Keira Knightley: No, we haven't got any of that, thank God. In this Guinevere doesn't actually come in until about half way through the film - it's that same kind of vibe as in Cleopatra when Richard Burton, who is the love interest doesn't arrive until half way through. So when we do find Guinevere she has been tortured and she's a bundle of rags. And then we have this gorgeous transformation and suddenly she's got a dress and all clean and pretty (laughs). And then you don't know she is a warrior until all that is revealed, too. So we have a dress, very easy to move in, no corsets, nice and flowing, nice and free and you can run around. I love it! And then she is in warrior gear and - all leathered up with axes and bows and arrows. Great!
Do you get to do any of the battle scenes?
Keira Knightley: Oh yeah! I get to do all of it. You should see my fight scenes. I'm not quite sure how to put this politely, but I fight in a bitch pack! (laughs) Yes. I mean, looking at my size it's going to look a bit odd if a six foot four Saxon - and we seem to be fighting Saxons a lot of the time - comes up to me and I kill him quite easily. It would look stupid and we are all really aware of that and I don't want it to be the girly thing with the girl who can suddenly kill all these ten foot people.
So we decided it would be a really good idea if a lot of the women who are all around my size and build sort of fight in a pack a bit like wolves, and then you see how they can overpower a big man and how they can win. But basically she gets down and dirty and there's none of that honour on the battlefield, she will do absolutely anything to win, which is great, really cool. And it gives something more interesting to play, and something we've never seen with a Guinevere - she is ruthless, which is great.
There's a very strong British cast on this...
Keira Knightley: Which is great. I have to say on Pirates as well we were lucky, because I think for some reason the British thing is beginning to be trendy again - great for me. Because on Pirates we had Orlando (Bloom) obviously, Jonathan Pryce, Jack Davenport. On King Arthur, it's all British or European, there aren't any Americans in it. Which for a big budget Hollywood movie is incredible.
You know, it's a really, really exciting thing to be part of. And I guess we don't have the big huge star name but everybody is here because they are the best actor for the part. And again, that's really exciting because it makes it more real and it makes it more organic. Actually, I just remembered - we've got one Australian as well.. We've got a lot of actors with theatre backgrounds and it feels like that, because it's a lot of rehearsal, a lot of discussion and all that kind of thing. And again that's great on a big film like this. Dare I say it, it feels like a rather artistic experience on a very big film. No, I shouldn't say that (laughs). Hush! It's very exciting to have a budget like this and still feel you have an input on the story.
You sound like you're having a great time?
Keira Knightley: I am. I love doing the stunt stuff, or as much as I can. I'm one of the lads here! (laughs) It's very strange. Honestly, I really feel like one of the boys. And I really like doing all the physical stuff - the training with the weapons and everything. And you have to do it, but it pays off when it comes to the scene. It's been a blast. But the thing I like most of all is that, yes, it is a big action adventure film but there are well drawn characters in here too.
To state the obvious, your career is going remarkably well. Have you had a moment to savour the success?
Well the thing is when Bend It Like Beckham came out I was in Prague doing Dr Zhivago. When Dr Zhivago came out I was in America, so I wasn't home in London for that. And when Pirates came out I was in Ireland and people over here don't give a shit about anything like that. But I did get home for a couple of days just after Pirates came out and it hit home because suddenly I had people staring at me. I thought `what, have I got something on my face?' And it's like `no, it is my face...' It was very weird. It was lovely to go home but it was also nice to come back to Ireland where nobody looks and nobody cares, they couldn't give a shit in general, which is fantastic.
Your Mother and Father obviously know the business very well. Are they able to give you good advice?
Keira Knightley: It does because it doesn't give you any fairytale expectations and `I've never had that. It's always a surprise to me when I do get more work because when I think of actors I've always thought `out of work..' And the list of things I have to do when I'm out of work is fantastic! (laughs) I'm not going to stop! So it's fantastic to have people there who are very grounding, because they have seen it for what it is, and they've been through it all. I'm very, very lucky for that.
What is it that you love so much about acting?
Keira Knightley:I don't know. It's the whole nomadic lifestyle. I love that. I love to keep moving. I think that's fantastic. At the moment it's perfect for me. I mean, I'm sure years ahead when I want to settle down, it might be different, but I'm young and I really love the job and the travelling so it's just great.
by Martyn Palmer
|
 The Duchess, Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, Domino, Pride and Prejudice, and more.
Great collections of Keira Knightley pictures. Hundreds of hot pictures.
Exclusive interviews selected from most popular worlwide magazines.
Sister Sites
|
RSS Feed XML Sitemap HTML Sitemap Privacy Policy