From author/screenwriterEleanor Cattonand directorClaire McCarthy, the drama seriesThe Luminariesis set in the 1860s and follows Anna Wetherell (Eve Hewson) and Emery Staines (Himesh Patel), who have both traveled to New Zealand to start a new life with the promise of a prosperous future. Once there, scheming fortune teller Lydia Wells (Eva Green) sets a plan in motion that leads Anna to be framed for murder and wondering how to get her life back.
During this 1-on-1 phone interview with Collider, Patel talked about why he wanted to be a part of this project, the appeal of shooting in New Zealand, the ways he found himself relating to this story, and the dynamic between Anna and Emery. He also talked about working withChristopher NolanonTenet, and what it’s like to tell a story about a pandemic during an actual pandemic with the HBO Max seriesStation Eleven.
Collider: When this came your way, what was it that attracted you to it? Was it any one specific thing, or was it sort of the overall package of what it would be?
PATEL: I think it was the overall package, really. It was a novel that I’d heard a lot of great things about. I hadn’t read it, at the time, but subsequently did. I’d been to New Zealand before, for a short break, and fell in love with the place. The idea of going to film something there for several months was attractive. And then, it was a story that’s so connected to New Zealand’s history. I felt a personal connection to it, as well, because it’s also British history. We’re drawing on colonial history, which is running underneath this thing. It’s ultimately a really unique and really cerebral love story that’s really brilliantly adapted by Eleanor [Catton] from her own novel. Usually, you’d imagine an author adapting their own work would stick quite closely to the novel, but she drifted away from it so amazingly and adapted it in a really clever way.
When you watch and experience a story like this, even though the world and the time period might feel foreign and unknown, the themes and what drives the individuals are far more universal and easier to understand. Did you find yourself relating to aspects of this story and these characters that surprised you?
PATEL: Yeah, definitely the fish out of water aspect of it and feeling like you’re different to the world around you. That’s something that I definitely related to, in terms of Emery. And I think that I’m a bit of a romantic at heart. His drive to do the right thing for the person he loves is something that I think is always nice to see in a character, but there was something special about the way that Eleanor had written him for the show that I had not really seen before. It was a really great character and there were lots of different ways that I could connect it to him.
What was it like to work in and experience New Zealand while making this? Did you find the experience of working in the world that was created for this production to be something that you could get yourself lost in?
PATEL: Yeah, it was amazing. The production design was so fantastic, from the interior studios to the amazing sets that were built. Everything that you see was all built from scratch and it was quite amazing. It gave us this little world to dive into, every day. Everywhere you looked, there was seemingly real life, happening around you. It was a farm and the farmer was very generous and gave us some of his livestock, so we had chickens and animals running around.
It seems almost sad to leave all of that behind when filming was over.
PATEL: Yeah, there were conversations going on about maybe keeping it there, or maybe it could become a paint ball arena, but it was never built to last. I doubt it’s there anymore.
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You’re in these incredible locations and on these sets, but how does the wardrobe also inform the character for you?
PATEL: It was huge for me, and it generally is. As an actor, wardrobe is really important, just in terms of the physicality that you’re playing. Clothing says something about a person. Every costume shows your history. That huge coat that he wears, where did that come from? Whose is it? Who gave it to him, or did he take it from someone? I remember being really interested in figuring out his costume and the history of what he’s wearing, even down to the jewelry that he’s wearing and that he eventually loses when he’s left by his friend. It helps paint a full picture of the person.
What were the biggest production challenges in doing something as massive and expansive as this seems to be?
PATEL: The schedule becomes a bit of a concern, just because you’ve got so much to fit in, in a relatively short period of time. And I must say that it was on a relatively modest budget compared to productions I’ve worked on since. I think they did amazingly well, creating such an in-depth world in that environment. It’s something that I continue to be proud of being a part of.
The introduction to each of these characters is so interesting because we really only know what they tell us as viewers, and then we continue to learn about them, as layers peel back in the episodes. What did you find most compelling about Emery, as a character? Were there things that you were excited to play and explore, as the story progressed?
PATEL: Yeah, I was so intrigued by that idea of us not really knowing much about these people, aside from what they choose to say to us, or what others choose to say about them. That’s something that was really clever cleverly done in Eleanor’s novel and it’s an element that she knew how to translate to the screen. The initial chat that I ended up having with Claire [McCarthy], our director, and Eve Hewson was about who these people were beforehand and how much we wanted to dig into that. What was great was that we created these backstories, but we never felt the need to then translate them or add them to the story, in any way. The interesting thing about these two people is that we know so little about them, and yet we feel the connection that they have with each other and we’re behind them the whole way, which is so interesting. Separate to that, in terms of just being a great character to play, for me personally, to see someone who looks like me, play a role like this, is not something that I’ve seen in the past and it was a great opportunity. To have elements of that in my mind, for my backstory of who he is and how he’s ended up in this place, was really, really exciting.
What are the challenges in building a relationship dynamic with a character that you have this scene with in the beginning, but then you’re not even really interacting together? Did you feel an extra sense of responsibility to get like that initial introduction exactly right?
PATEL: Yeah. Going back to that first meeting that I had with Eve and Claire, when I got to New Zealand, we knew that was the scene where we had to sell that these two people have some connection. If we don’t believe that, then there’s no show and there’s no foundation upon which everything is rotating, so there was a certain pressure. On a personal level, I got on with Eve, straight away. We got on personally really well, and that obviously helped, but we didn’t shoot anything together until about three months into the shoot because of the way that the story unfolded. Actually, that scene on the boat was the last scene that we filmed together. When I watched it back, it made complete sense to do that. It wasn’t anything done on purpose. It was just the way the schedule panned out, but it just meant that there was that sense of familiarity between the two of, when they meet, because by that point, we both knew each other so well.
You also have the character of Lydia Wells at the center of the separation of these two characters. What’s it like to have someone like Eva Green as an adversary, when you don’t even realize that she’s actually working against you?
PATEL: Yeah, that was interesting. What’s so compelling about this is the intricacy to the way that Eleanor has crafted the story, in terms of how the characters relate to one another and how they interact with one another because it’s about how the planets relate to one another and how they move in the sky. Maybe these two people will never meet because they’re relative planets never meet in the sky. That was such an interesting jumping off point because, as an actor, I have to be aware of all of the machinations of the story, but in terms of getting inside Emery’s head, he doesn’t have any idea about Lydia because he’s not met her. He doesn’t know who this person is. He doesn’t realize who’s pulling the strings. I found it quite compelling that there was this idea of, further down the line, you might tap into a different point of view and get an idea of who this person is and how she relates to him and how she relates to Anna. I found that really interesting. To have a truth unfold in that way was something that I’ve not really seen before.
There’s an interesting dynamic between Emery and Carver, as they spend more time together. How did Marton Csokas challenge you, as a scene partner?
PATEL: Oh, he was fantastic. I learned so much from working with him. He’s such a meticulous and yet playful actor. He and I are now really great friends. We got on really well and spent a lot of time together in New Zealand. We found that relationship so interesting, as a counterpoint to the Lydia and Anna relationship. There’s this interesting thing happening between Carver and Emery, where there is that moment of betrayal and this idea that Carver is just leading him on, but we talked about this idea that there is actually something between the two of them. They do recognize something in each other and, in a way, it makes it all the more heartbreaking when Carver is just using him. The way that they have to deal with one another, as the story unfolds, there’s a sense of heartbreak in that relationship. It was really great, playing with that. And as a scene parter, I was excited to work with Marton because you just know that every take is gonna be different and there are gonna be precise things that we pivot on. I really loved it.
You were also inTenet, which is certainly a film that was talked quite a bit about. What was the process like, working with a filmmaker like Christopher Nolan?
PATEL: Oh, it was amazing. It was a complete whirlwind for me. In terms of my schedule last year, I was on the press tour for Yesterday, and I found out that I had the part before the press tour, but I couldn’t say anything during the press, which was interesting, in and of itself. And then, almost as soon as that all finished, I was on a plane to Estonia to read the script. Then, I was home for a little bit, and then I was in Italy. Then, I was home for a bit, and then I was in Oslo. Then, I was home for a bit, and then I was in L.A. When I thought about being an actor as a kid, it was about blockbusters and flying around the world. It was everything that I could have imagined, which was exciting, in that respect. But then, on top of that, it’s one of the greatest filmmakers currently working, so to get to play in his universe and to tell this story, which was just so unique, was a complete thrill. I was fortunate enough to see it on a big screen. I know not everyone was, but I’m glad it’s out there now for everyone to see. It’s a hell of a thing. I’ll be thankful for being a part of that for the rest of my days.
Did you understand what was going on, as it was happening, or did it take stepping back from it a little bit?
PATEL: I only go to read the whole thing once. What was interesting was that, even in reading it that first time, I could see the whole thing, as it unfolded. As it eventually unfolded on the screen, it was unfolding on the page. There was the odd occasion where I had to go back and verify. It was less than I had to make sense of it and more my mind being blown by what I just read, and having to read it again just to go, “Okay, yeah, it is that good.” And then, to see it on the big screen put together, I think it was brilliant. I like that thrill. In all of Chris Nolan’s movies, there’s that thrill of going, “Man, I’m trying to keep up here and I think I’m keeping up.” There’s something about the thrill of the chase about it, and I really like that. I love the pace of his films and I love that feeling of trying to keep up.
You’re also doing the HBO Max seriesStation Eleven. How different does it feel to be telling a pandemic story while we’re actually living through a pandemic? Do you look at that story any differently now from when you first read it?
PATEL: Yeah, I look at it differently now from when we first started shooting. A year ago, we were shooting the pilot. When we started this whole project, it was a complete fiction. Now, there are elements of the story that have become far closer to reality, but no one has changed anything, in order for it to feel more relevant. We’re telling the story that we were always setting out to tell, and it’s still unfolding. I’m really, really excited to be part of it. People who read the book will know that it’s a story about how we hold onto the best things while we have to rebuild. I’m hoping that’s something that people will take away from it.
That’s being directed by Hiro Murai, and I’m a big fan of his work onAtlanta. How are you finding the experience of working with him?
PATEL: Oh, it’s fantastic. Artists like him have a very specific, meticulous vision for things, but I’ve also found him really easy to work with. He’s just a really down-to-earth, cool guy and really fun. It’s just great to get to work with him and be a part of his vision. It’s a vision that I’ve admired for a long time, through his music videos, and throughAtlantaandBarry, and all of these amazing shows that he’s made. To be a part of that is fantastic. He’s a very exciting storyteller.
You’re doing such interesting work with such creative and interesting talent, in front of and behind the camera, and you’re a part of these fascinating worlds. It also sounds like you’re going from project to project right now. Has it been particularly hard to say goodbye to any of these characters, as you’re jumping into the next thing?
PATEL: It has been a bit of a whirlwind. It’s a bit of a cliche after the last year, but I think having a bit of time at home wasn’t all that bad. But then, coming around to this period of time, I’m desperate to get back to work and I feel more privileged than ever to be working. I’m very excited to get back to it. It’s always hard saying goodbye to characters. Going back toThe Luminaries, it was really hard saying goodbye to Emery because it was a long time that I’d spent with him in this world. Especially when you’ve enjoyed a project and you’ve enjoyed working with the people, it’s hard to say goodbye to the people and to the character. I’m sure I’ll feel the same way, when we get to the end ofStation Eleven.
The Luminariesairs on Sunday nights on Starz.
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