British actor Matthew MacFadyen has revealed his feelings about his turn starring as romantic lead Mr. Darcy in Joe Wright’s beloved 2005 movie Pride & Prejudice based on the 1813 Jane Austen novel.
Asked whether its true that he didn’t have a good time making the movie, MacFadyen told CBS Mornings, “I didn’t really.”
“I feel bad saying that. There were moments I had a good time, but I wish I enjoyed it more. I wish I was less worried about it,” he added.
The reason he was so anxious on set, he says, is this:
“I felt a bit miscast, like, ‘I’m not dishy enough,'” he said. “But it worked out.”
Still, nearly two decades after the film came out, he’s flattered to be recognized as the character.
“Probably the most flattering thing that happens to me now is people say, ‘Were you Mr. Darcy?'” he said. “It’s a good 20 years later. So I think, ‘I can’t be aging that badly.'”
MacFadyen’s co-star in Pride & Prejudice was Keira Knightly, who played his love interest Elizabeth Bennet. Other cast included Rosamund Pike, Brenda Blethyn, Donald Sutherland, Jena Malone, Tom Hollander, Penelope Wilton, and Judi Dench.
Matthew MacFadyen on His Fellow Mr. Darcy and Succession
MacFadyen also confirmed that he and previous Mr. Darcy actor Colin Firth, who played the character in a 1995 TV miniseries, had compared notes “exhaustively” and “extensively.” The two recently acted together in Operation Mincemeat.
MacFadyen famously played Tom Wambsgans on HBO’s Succession, and will soon be seen in Deadpool & Wolverine opposite Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman as Mr. Paradox, the agent who oversees Deadpool. That comes out July 26.
The actor also discussed saying goodbye to his Succession character Tom, which may be his most famous role to date besides Mr. Darcy.
“I find it very liberating, playing Tom, and great therapy as well,” MacFadyen said. “He would do things that are just excruciatingly embarrassing and awful. So yeah, I felt very unburdened at the end of the day’s work.”
But in a way, he’s glad to say goodbye.
“There’s a sort of grief and relief in finishing a long show because you can’t keep playing the same part forever, but I miss the people and I miss the company,” he said.
Main Image: Matthew MacFadyen as Mr. Darcy in Pride & Prejudice, 2005, Focus Features