Scottish actor Peter Mullan’s acting credits include several Academy Award-winning films, but also fan-favorite franchises. Mullan had a short role in 2010’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, where he played ruthless Death Eater Yaxley, and appeared in three episodes of Prime Video’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power as King Durin III. However, the actor wasn’t impressed by any of the franchises.
Harry Potter, based on J.K. Rowling’s work, and The Lord of The Rings, based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s novels, boast millions of devoted fans all around the world. Although both original stories ended over a decade ago, the fans’ interest in the franchises is still thriving. Because of that, The Lord of the Rings received the prequel The Hobbit, adapted into a trilogy, and now the Prime Video The Rings of Power. Harry Potter also has a new TV show in the works at Max.
During Series Mania Festival in France, Peter Mullan addressed his recent role in The Rings of Power, adding that “Those shows have all the money in the world, and then it comes down to: ‘Daddy, love me.’ ‘I will try, son.’ It all comes down to very simple things that people take ridiculously seriously,” (via Deadline). He went on to note that “it’s not Chekhov or Shakespeare. They are a weird bunch, the ‘Ring’ mob.”
He was equally as dismissive of his time in Harry Potter. “I did it so my kids could be on set. I didn’t give a shit about Harry Potter,” Mullan admitted. He explained that he was confused because he didn’t get any wand-holding lessons. “They just give you the wand. This piece of shit,” he said. “I was holding it as if I was in the gang and holding a knife.”
Peter Mullan Also Criticized Kevin Spacey
Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings weren’t the only topics Mullan touched upon during the festival. The actor also shared his experience of acting, and how some actors love to watch themselves on the screen, using actor Kevin Spacey as an example, with whom he collaborated for 2000’s Ordinary Decent Criminal.
“The thing with acting like any form of play is that it’s fun when you are playing,” Mullan said. “A footballer can relive the moment of scoring the goal, but it’s not as much fun as scoring the goal. And it’s the same with acting. You can relive it if you want. You can sit and watch yourself all day long if you want. Kevin Spacey would watch himself all day long. He never f*cking stops. The man is an asshole.”
“You would no sooner finish a scene with him, and he’d run to the monitor to watch playback. I used to wonder, why are you doing that? They’d barely shout cut, and he’d run. It took me a while to realize that he was checking if the cheat had worked because he was so fake. Everything about him was fake. So he can play fake because he is fake.”
He went on to highlight that he “didn’t like him at all,” and that he was a “horrible human being,” admitting that he was “fascinating to watch because he was so mannered it was like working with Bette Davis,” and that “everybody at the time, myself included, thought he was a great actor. But when you’re acting with him, it was ham, absolute ham. But there’s a place for ham.”
