Curran says the ambitions of his ‘Blood of My Blood’ character, Simon Fraser, are the catalyst for the story in the ‘Outlander’ prequel.
[Editor’s note: The following contains some spoilers for Mary & George.]
The Big Picture
- The Starz series ‘Mary & George’ is inspired by true events and explores a tale of scheming and seduction in the English court.
- King James’s desire for beautiful men becomes his downfall, leading to intense and decadent moments in the series.
- The show explores complex characters and their self-destructive tendencies, delving into themes of trauma, paranoia, and manipulation through intimate scenes.
The Starz series Mary & George, inspired by the true story of Mary Villiers (Julianne Moore) and her son George (Nicholas Galitzine), tells a tale of scheming and seduction in the court of England. Unable to reach the levels of power and wealth that she desires, Mary wants the naïve George to step up and pursue King James I (Tony Curran) to achieve the prestige that has eluded their family. And while he started out as a romantic in a tender love story, George’s desires grow into exactly what Mary has molded him into, which could have deadly consequences.
Living a lavishly decadent lifestyle is normal for King James, but his desire to be around beautiful young men will also prove to be his downfall. He’s a shrewd political operator but puts himself in the position of being taken advantage of when he’s seduced to be in proximity to the power he can provide. During this one-on-one interview with Collider, Curran talked about wanting to dig into this bit of his Scottish heritage, King James’ worst characteristics, working with the intimacy coordinator for the relationship between James and George, and the blend of his trauma and paranoia. He also explained how his character, Lord Lovat, fits into the Outlander prequel, Blood of My Blood, and hinted at how intense things will get. (This interview was conducted prior to the death of co-star Brian McCardie.)
Mary & George
- Release Date
- April 5, 2024
- Creator
- D. C. Moore
- Cast
- Julianne Moore , Nicholas Galitzine , Tony Curran , Laurie Davidson , nicola walker , Niamh Algar , Trine Dyrholm , Sean Gilder , Adrian Rawlins
- Main Genre
- History
- Number of Episodes
- 7
- Network
- Starz
Tony Curran Enjoyed Getting to Dig Into His Scottish Heritage for ‘Mary & George’
Collider: This is a very lavish period piece with many layers to it and these are complex characters that have a lot going on. What was the thing that most excited you about it? Was it something about the story that you would be telling? Was it getting to play this specific guy? What was the thing that grabbed you first?
TONY CURRAN: What comes to mind, being a Scotsman, is that I was very compelled and interested to dive into the world of King James and his court. There are not that many moments, but there are moments where Nick [Galitzine], who plays George, says, “These people are being kind.” And I have this outburst and say, “These people gave my mother to the English to be beheaded.” The elements of historical significance of King James’s time in Scotland ultimately had a huge bearing on his reign in England, as well. It was a very contentious decision. Scotland and England have had this tumultuous past, so much so that we call England the old enemy. Obviously, we’re in peace time now, and we are now the United Kingdom, since 1707, which was the brainchild of King James. The union of bringing the two crowns together was King James’ idea, but that actually didn’t happen until his passing. The idea of him being a Scottish king brought down onto an English throne, a lot of the English lords weren’t too happy about. In 1605, they tried to assassinate King James and some of his court and his family but failed. Just the elements of his reign and unearthing the relationships between Mary and George Villiers was something that I didn’t know much about and found diving into that to be quite compelling.
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The players of this story all seem a bit self-destructive in their own ways. Characters in this time period seem to really love deeply and die tragically. What do you think this guy’s worst characteristic was?
CURRAN: That’s a good question. It’s better to burn out than to fade away, as someone once said. There’s an element to King James that’s quite sad. There’s a self-loathing element to him that comes from his trauma. Nobody loves you like your mama. I was just visiting my mom last week, and she’s 90. I can’t imagine being brought up without my mother, and that was an element, sadly, to King James’ life. Mary, Queen of Scots was executed when he was 13 months old. The element of tapping into his darker side came from the trauma that he suffered when he was a kid. His darker nature was maybe his lascivious exploits, if you want to consider that a dark side. A lot of the show is quite liberated and quite liberal with the way we portray these characters with their sensual and sexual exploits, as opposed to maybe some people in other times or even today, where you think that sensual or sexual pleasures are taboo.
In this period, it was a human self-expression, which it obviously is today. At that time, certainly for George Villiers, his exploits with King James ultimately could become quite destructive. His vulnerability came a lot from his trauma in his childhood and his paranoia, as well. He wrote a book, called Demonology, which was to do with witchcraft and the ideas of this otherworldly force that tapped into his paranoia. He actually burnt these three women at the stake, or they were possibly hung. Anne of Denmark came over twice from Denmark, and she couldn’t go across the Nordic Sea to Scotland because of these terrible storms, but he blamed it on these three women. William Shakespeare wrote a Scottish play, Macbeth, and the three characters that starred in the play were influenced by what King James had done. So, there were darker elements to his personality and to his soul that were related to witchcraft.
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A lot of the intimate moments in this feel quite decadent. They don’t hold back, but they also feel very much like they’re telling story and furthering story. Were there a lot of conversations about that? Did you work closely with an intimacy coordinator?
CURRAN: Our intimacy coordinator was great to work with. Before we started shooting it, I talked to Oliver Hermanus, our director, and we would scope out the sensual and sexual nature of these moments and these scenes. The so-called currency, if you will, within George Villiers, rises through King James’ royal court. He used sexuality as a means to an end, if you will. We talked about that in-depth, with the sexual and lascivious nature of it. With George and James, there was an essential nature, but obviously a friendship, a respect, and ultimately a love affair that bloomed. There’s a scene where I’m blindfolded and George is playing the viola da gamba, and there’s an orgy with my Scottish men of the bed chamber, somewhat like a Caravaggio painting. You don’t see that depicted too much on television. There’s a subtle way that Oliver approached it that is a pathway to other parts of the relationship. It gives it depth and enriches the story in many ways. There’s a very sexually manipulative approach to a lot of the characters in this. Everybody’s trying to gain control in some way and territory by sensual means, which is part of the story that’s quite compelling.
Tony Curran Says That ‘Outlander: Bood of My Blood’ Will Bring the Intensity
You’re also doing the Outlander prequel, Blood of My Blood. What can we expect to see from your character in that? What are you enjoying about playing Lord Lovat and figuring him out?
CURRAN: Well, I’ve been demoted. I’m not playing a king anymore. Although Lord Lovat Fraser, Simon Fraser, in Blood of My Blood, wants to be a king. He’s got ambitions. If he ever has any heirs, he would very much like the Frasers to become monarchs of Scotland, if not the United Kingdom. Simon Fraser, Lord Lovat, is quite the catalyst in the story of Blood of My Blood. Without giving too much away, he most definitely feels like a man who’s had his titles removed and some of his land. He’s not as affluent as he once was. He feels wronged in many ways. He’s a bit of a chess player, Lord Lovat. He’s quite smart. He’s quite canny. He has his son, Brian Fraser, played by the lovely and talented Jamie Roy. He’s going to use his son, in many ways like Mary Villiers used her son to try to rise up through society and get the Fraser name back to where it belongs. What we’ve shot so far is quite intense. I’m hoping the Outlander fan base, and anybody who hasn’t seen the show, will tap into Blood of My Blood. Historically, our story goes from 1914 back to 1714, within all those feudal clans, like the MacKenzies, the Grants and the Frasers. It also goes back to the first World War, as well. There’s a huge amount of historical significance within the prequel, Blood of My Blood, and there are incredible characters, as well. Hopefully, people will find it quite fascinating and compelling.
Nicholas Galitzine Is Bringing Joy to Audiences One Rom-Com at a Time
Galitzine also talks about wanting to tell a really tender love story in ‘Mary & George,” and that pearl earring.
Mary & George airs on Starz. Check out the trailer:
This article was originally published on collider.com