Olivia Colman and Michael Ward opened up about the intergenerational age gap of their characters in their film Empire Of Light, with Olivia saying she was “so embarrassed” as they filmed sex scenes together.
The Sir Sam Mendes-directed romantic drama stars 48-year-old Olivia as a film manager, Hilary, who develops a relationship with a much younger ticket seller, Stephen, played 25-year-old Michael My.
About their on-screen relationship, Olivia told the new edition of radio schedules: ‘They love and care for each other. Having a romantic history with someone young, beautiful and vibrant is lovely, you don’t see that often. I’m older than Michael’s mother!
On screen: Olivia Colman, 48, and Michael Ward, 25, open up about the intergenerational age gap between their characters in their film Empire Of Light.
Michael added: “Stephen really makes a connection with Hilary. It doesn’t matter how old they are.
Meanwhile, the pair filmed sex scenes together and got help from an on-set intimacy coach to make sure the acting seemed genuine.
Olivia explained, “I was so embarrassed to do something like that, but [intimacy coordinator] Ita O’Brien made it easy and fun.
Plot: The Sir Sam Mendes-directed romantic drama stars Olivia as a movie manager, Hilary, who develops a relationship with the much younger ticket seller, Stephen, played my Michael.
Michael said, “She was making Olivia relax,” to which Olivia chimed in, “Which is quite a bit!”
“For me, it was fine, it was cool to explore that,” Michael concluded. “Working with an intimacy coordinator made the whole thing feel like a dance or action scene, rather than a sex scene.”
Empire Of Light is a love story ‘set in a beautiful old cinema on the south coast of England in the 1980s’.
On set: The couple filmed sex scenes together and got help from an on-set intimacy coach to make sure the acting seemed genuine.
Filming for the project began in early February in Margate. The seaside town was transported to the 1980s when developers transformed the area surrounding Dreamland amusement park.
The project marked the first time that Sir Sam directed a film that he did not write with the help of a co-writer.
He produced the film with Pippa Harris through Neal Street Productions, reuniting with his former cinematographer Roger Deakins on the production.
It comes when a deaf and autistic man got a “lovely” surprise when he met some of his favorite TV stars in person at local movie theaters.
Celebrities including Hollywood star and director Sir Sam were spotted by eagle-eyed members of the public at a special screening of the new film Empire Of Light in Thanet, Kent on Sunday, and the couple shocked people at several local cinemas in the area.
The film is set in an old cinema in an English seaside town in the early 1980s and explores human connection and romance.
Wilfred Jenkins, 26, who is deaf and autistic and lives in Westgate-on-Sea, Kent, told the PA news agency that he met Olivia, as well as actor Toby Jones, at the Carlton Cinema in Westgate- on-Sea, and also Sir Sam at the Dreamland Cinema in Margate.
“At first I didn’t know they were coming because they told me it was for extras,” he said.
I was then told that the celebrities (would be there) so I quickly got dressed and was on time.
Plot: The 1917 romantic drama directed by Sam Mendes stars Olivia as a film director, Hilary, who develops a relationship with a ticket salesman, Stephen, played by a much younger Michael.
“Luke the security guy was taking care of me and he arranged for me to meet those celebrities.”
Wilfred added that he tends to have problems when there are large crowds of people around, so he thanked security for taking him to a safe place where he could meet the stars.
He said that Olivia was “lovely and very kind”.
She knew who I was. I stood outside the theater and she came over to me and she was so happy to have a selfie with me.
Olivia spoke in the new edition of Radio Times
“Toby Jones was very humble, kind and a gentleman to me along with Sam Mendes,” he added.
He said that the trio were ‘incredible’ but that he particularly liked Toby because he could easily recognize him.
“I also remembered (Toby) very fondly (from) Numbertime, a BBC children’s television program that I used to watch when I was little,” he added.
He also recalled seeing Toby and Olivia in various episodes of Midsomer Murders, where the latter played a murderer in one episode and Jones played a pathologist in four episodes.
Movie: Olivia Colman has pondered filming sex scenes with her Empire of Light co-star Micheal Ward