Wilderness creators on lead star Jenna Coleman, strikes and their love letter to Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift might already be somewhat ubiquitous at the moment thanks to her Eras tour, upcoming movie and the nine MTV VMA prizes she took home this week, but she’s about to get even more attention thanks to her track being used in a new drama starring Jenna Coleman.
Her 2017 song Look What You Made Me Do is the title track for Wilderness – the story of a couple whose dream holiday quickly sours amid deception and revenge – and also sums up the mood of the main character Liv, who is portrayed by Coleman.
Swift is one of the biggest stars in the world right now which might make the process of using one of her tracks sound challenging but the show’s creator Marnie Dickens told Sky News’ Backstage podcast it was in fact “lovely”.
“I write all my commercial tracks into the script, so in this case, it’s Liv’s point of view, so it’s kind of like her playlist because I think music is a very good way to get behind whatever the character, whatever mask they put up, whatever you listen to in your AirPods, I think, is expressing your sort of emotional state,” she explained.
“So the track was in there in episode two anyway, and then Amazon were like, ‘you know, you can have somebody for the title track, who’s your dream?’ And obviously Taylor was the dream.”
Taylor Swift’s 2017 revenge anthem Look What You Made Me Do is the Wilderness title track Pic: AP
“So I wrote a love letter to her saying why this song is perfect, why she’s perfect, and it worked… She gave her blessing.”
Wilderness is based on a book and Dickens, whose previous work includes the series’ Gold Digger and Thirteen, says that while she appreciates being given a twisty thriller to write from, she also loved the setting of the drama.
“It’s a juicy relationship thriller which is very much in my wheelhouse but instantly it took it out of the domestic sphere,” she said.
“So you had a natural sort of expansive story stage, which is very exciting because sometimes in relationship dramas you think they’re going to get very boxed in, kitchen sinky, and then there’s this amazing female protagonist in Liv.
“And I guess the other thing was like, there’s this chance to play with this idea in the audience’s mind of like, What’s your darkest revenge fantasy? And we get to kind of have wish fulfilment watching it play out via our heroine.”
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The series director So Yong Kim says it was the revenge aspect that drew her to the project.
“Oh, I had fantasies of killing off my husband before,” she laughed. “So I thought, ‘hey, this is great, it’s just right up my alley.”
Both Dickens and Yong Kim are extremely complimentary about Coleman’s work on the show and on-screen presence.
With members of SAG-AFTRA on strike because the US union hasn’t reached a deal with studios, Coleman and fellow cast members Oliver Jackson-Cohen and Ashley Benson can’t do the interviews and promo that they usually would when a new project comes out.
“I think I feel for them it’s.. I feel like Jenna and Oliver worked so hard, and the rest of the cast, we’ve got such an incredible ensemble cast, I feel like they should be celebrated,” said Dickens.
“So that is a shame I think that they can’t be, but there’s a strike for a very good reason, and we’re very supportive of the strike.”
“Yeah, likewise, I support the strike, but I feel sad that we can’t celebrate with them,” said Yong Kim.
Dickens – who is British – says the impact of the walkouts in Hollywood is definitely being felt on this side of the Atlantic.
“Speaking to So and to Cat our amazing DOP, you realise we’re not being hit anywhere near as hard as our colleagues and friends in LA and New York,” she explained.
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Jenna Coleman is unable to promote the show amid the SAG-AFTRA strike Pic: Firebird Pictures / Prime Video
“But I think there is a slow down on the commissioning front and you are having to work harder to get green lights, so it’s tough.”
“[But] I think it’s tougher for the crews because there’s just fewer things filming, but hopefully it’s short-term pain, long term gain.”
When it came to making the show, the cast didn’t rehearse much, instead Yong Kim had them write letters to one another in character, and the cast and crew simply spent time together in order to build relationships.
“We had Zoom calls with Marnie and Liz [Kilgariff – the other executive producer on the show] to go over particular scenes that were more complex,” she said.
“But otherwise we just spent time having coffee and having meals, doing some journaling and doing a lot of just getting to know each other, building trust and friendship.”
But while positive relationships were formed off-screen, what we see on screen is a story of revenge, toxic relationships and how complex they can be.
Dickens hopes that’s something the audience takes away.
“I would want people to come away thinking revenge is a very fun thing to pursue, but it causes huge devastation across the series.
“So it’s not that I want the audience to think twice about their own revenge plans, but I guess for me, if they come away, feeling that they’ve experienced Liv’s journey and that they understand the things that she’s done, that would be a real satisfying achievement, I think.”
Wilderness is out on Prime Video now. Hear our review on the latest episode of Backstage, the film and TV podcast from Sky News.
The creator of an AI actress has told Sky News that synthetic performers will get more actors working, rather than steal jobs.
AI production studio Particle6 has ruffled feathers in Hollywood by unveiling Tilly Norwood – a 20-something actress created by artificial intelligence.
Speaking to Sky News’ Dominic Waghorn, actor and comedian Eline Van der Velden – who founded Particle6 – insisted Norwood is “not meant to take jobs in the traditional film”.
AI entertainment is “developing as a completely separate genre”, she said, adding: “And that’s where Tilly is meant to stay. She’s meant to stay in the AI genre and be a star in that.”
“I don’t want her to take real actors’ jobs,” she continued. “I wanted to have her own creative path.”
Norwood has been labelled “really, really scary” by Mary Poppins Returns star Emily Blunt, while the US actors’ union SAG-AFTRA said in a statement: “Tilly Norwood is not an actor, it’s a character generated by a computer program that was trained on the work of countless professional performers – without permission or compensation.”
Responding to the criticism, Ms Van der Velden argued that Hollywood is “going to have to learn how to work with [AI] going forward”.
“We can’t stop it,” she said. “If we put our head in the sand, then our jobs will be gone. However, instead, if we learn how to use these tools, if we use it going forward, especially in Britain, we can be that creative powerhouse.”
Eline Van der Velden said she wanted the character to ‘have her own creative path’
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Ms Van der Velden said her studio has already helped a number of projects that were struggling due to budget constraints.
“Some productions get stuck, not able to find the last 30% of their budget, and so they don’t go into production,” she said. “Now with AI, by replacing some of the shots […] we can actually get that production going and working. So as a result, we get more jobs, we get more actors working, so that’s all really, really positive news.”
Entertainment
Sally Rooney tells court new books may not be published in UK due to Palestine Action ban
Irish author Sally Rooney has told the High Court she may not be able to publish new books in the UK, and may have to withdraw previous titles from sale, because of the ban on Palestine Action.
The group’s co-founder Huda Ammori is taking legal action against the Home Office over the decision to proscribe Palestine Action under anti-terror laws in July.
The ban made being a member of, or supporting, Palestine Action a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
Rooney was in August warned that she risked committing a terrorist offence after saying she would donate earnings from her books, and the TV adaptations of Normal People and Conversations With Friends, to support Palestine Action.
In a witness statement made public on Thursday, Rooney said the producer of the BBC dramas said they had been advised that they could not send money to her agent if the funds could be used to fund the group, as that would be a crime under anti-terror laws.
Rooney added that it was “unclear” whether any UK company can pay her, stating that if she is prevented from profiting from her work, her income would be “enormously restricted”.
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Why was Palestine Action proscribed?
She added: “If I were to write another screenplay, television show or similar creative work, I would not be able to have it produced or distributed by a company based in England and Wales without, expressly or tacitly, accepting that I would not be paid.”
Rooney described how the publication of her books is based on royalties on sales, and that non-payment of royalties would mean she can terminate her contract.
“If, therefore, Faber and Faber Limited are legally prohibited from paying me the royalties I am owed, my existing works may have to be withdrawn from sale and would therefore no longer be available to readers in the UK,” Rooney added, saying this would be “a truly extreme incursion by the state into the realm of artistic expression”.
Rooney added that it is “almost certain” that she cannot publish or produce new work in the UK while the Palestine Action ban remains in force.
She said: “If Palestine Action is still proscribed by the time my next book is due for publication, then that book will be available to readers all over the world and in dozens of languages, but will be unavailable to readers in the United Kingdom simply because no one will be permitted to publish it, unless I am content to give it away for free.”
Sir James Eadie KC, barrister for the Home Office, said in a written submission that the ban’s aim is “stifling organisations concerned in terrorism and for members of the public to face criminal liability for joining or supporting such organisations”.
“That serves to ensure proscribed organisations are deprived of the oxygen of publicity as well as both vocal and financial support,” he continued.
The High Court hearing is due to conclude on 2 December, with a decision expected in writing at a later date.
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