Tom Hiddleston: War Horse Q&A

TOM HIDDLESTON (Captain Nicholls) has appeared in the following films during the last twelve months: “Archipelago” (dir. Joanna Hogg), as Loki in Kenneth Branagh’s “Thor,” as F. Scott Fitzgerald in Woody Allen’s “Midnight in Paris” and most recently as Freddie Page in Terence Davies’ “The Deep Blue Sea.”

In 2012 he will reprise his role as Loki, the primary villain in “Marvel’s The Avengers.” He is currently filming an adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Henry V” for television (BBC/NBC), playing the title role of King Henry V.

Q: How familiar were you with the play and the book before you started filming and how important was it for you to be?

A: It was hugely important for me to be familiar with the material. The first time I heard about the play “War Horse” was from two very good friends who both work in the theatre but aren’t actors. They told me about it and that, like everybody else, they’d come out of the National on a wintry evening in floods of tears. So, needless to say, it always intrigued me. At the time, I was in a production that was touring around the world so I missed the play at the National and I missed it at the West End. The play always felt like this elusive creature that I never quite got to come to grips with.

I finally got to see the play at the New London Theatre. It was extraordinary. It was breathtaking. The single thing that obviously leapt out at me was the puppets. There’s a collective gasp when the foal totters onto its legs and takes its first steps. It’s the magic of theatre to make it seem as if a living animal is really there. I thought the play was extraordinarily powerful and very, very moving.

Q: What do you think of taking a stage play with puppets and a novel told from the point of view of a horse and turning those concepts into a movie?

A: I think the story can translate into all of these different genres because [author] Michael Morpurgo has written such an extraordinary book and at the center of it is such heart and soul that it really appeals to the best in all of us. It appeals to the sensitive side of us and to our courage and our forbearance.

Q: How did you get the part of Officer Nicholls?

A: I had been shooting “Thor” in Los Angles and I came back to London for my father’s 70th Birthday. My English agent called me and he said, “Look, they’re doing this film and everyone’s being very secretive about it and no one’s saying it’s ‘War Horse,’ but I know it’s ‘War Horse.’”

I didn’t know who was directing it at the time, but I put myself on tape doing a little scene and the tape went to Jina Jay, the casting director. She sent it to America. The next day, I flew back to L.A and about a week later, I got a call from my agent saying, “Steven Spielberg wants to meet you.”

I had to find a day, sometime while I was shooting “Thor,” to drive over to DreamWorks to sit down in his office. I didn’t have to prepare anything and we sat there and we had a chat, talked about Guinness and Peter O’Toole and these kinds of things that you talk about. Then we talked about the First World War and he told me the reasons why he was attracted to the project and that he’d always wanted to do something about the First World War but that he’d never found the right story to tell. It was always about finding the story and the horses really solved it for him. Then he asked me if I rode and I said, “Actually, funnily enough, Steven, I do. I’m all right at it. I’m not like the world’s expert at it, but I’ve been doing some riding on ‘Thor’ and the man who was in charge of all the horses is a man called Vic Armstrong, who coincidentally was Harrison Ford’s stunt double in the ‘Indiana Jones’ films.”

Steven proceeded to tell me a story about Vic Armstrong and “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and then he said he would like me to do the part. I was stunned. It never, ever happens like that in my experience. Usually, you meet on things and then wait a while and then your agents call you. He just offered it to me on the spot across the table. I was blown away.

Q: As an actor, did you do a lot of preparation for your role?

A: I did a lot of my own research. You just have to find something that helps you work up your imagination. I find that to jump in dry always feels like too big a leap. It’s nice to kind of warm yourself up with things. I watched lots of horse movies and war films and I re-read “Journey’s End.” I also read “Memoirs of a Foxhunting Man” by Siegfried Sassoon. That was an education in terms of who these young guys were before the war. Our job in the film is not to show any cynicism. Once you get into 1915, 1916, there’s that awful spiritual despair that sets in. That wasn’t our job. We were noble and heroic. Sassoon was really helpful in painting a picture of the kind of young men that we were.

I also watched both versions of “The Charge of the Light Brigade,” the Errol Flynn one and the Tony Richardson one with David Hemmings and John Gielgud. I watched “Seabiscuit,” “The Horse Whisperer” and “All Quiet On the Western Front”—anything that was even vaguely related to horses or a war movie.

Q: Can you tell us about the relationship between the two horses, Joey and Topthorn?

A: The relationship between Joey and Topthorn is wonderful and I love how they absorb the sense of competition between Nicholls and Stewart. When Stewart is first introduced, he walks past Joey and says to me, “Not bad, not bad.” It’s such an alpha male statement. Then you see Topthorn for the first time and here is this enormous, black, beautiful, sleek animal that is physically bigger than Joey and immediately, Nicholls can’t let that slide.

So the practice charge does turn into a race between Nicholls and Stewart and Joey and Topthorn. What’s so great is that there’s a presumption by Stewart that he’s going to win because he’s on the best and the most beautiful horse. But he’s underestimated Joey and he’s underestimated Joey’s character and speed.

I remember that Steven panned the camera down to Topthorn and Joey and there was a wonderful bit where, just instinctively, Joey was nibbling at Topthorn’s neck as if to say, “I’ve got your number mate; don’t you worry.”

In that moment, Topthorn and Joey become equals, I think, and they become friends because Topthorn knows that Joey is made of stern stuff and is a force to be reckoned with.

Q: Was it difficult to match you to a horse? How many of them did you actually have to ride through the different stages of the film?

A: I’ve ridden four Joeys. Civilon’s the one I’ve ridden most and we really clicked the first time I rode him. That’s not true of every horse that I rode in training. Civilon’s got the most amazing flanks. He’s really broad and he’s got a huge neck and very broad shoulders, so he’s very comfortable but he also asks for a lot of control, like he’s chomping at the bit. With Civilon, you just need to think about cantering and he canters. He’s that sensitive.

Q: What did you observe about Spielberg working with his below-the-line team?

A: Steven Spielberg has kind of a family spirit when it comes to making his movies. He works with the same people over and over again. He’s very loyal and has a sense of shorthand with his crew. The unit works seamlessly and just rolls along. The way Steven and [Cinematographer] Janusz [Kaminski] are with each other is hilarious because Janusz is so playful and mischievous and will just poke fun at everybody. There’s nobody who’s spared from him. He’s an irreverent presence on set, which is part of how I think he gets the job done. He doesn’t want it to be heavy. He wants the work to be light, even if you’re doing a very big, intense scene. Of course, he’s respectful of your space and your preparation and stuff, but he really reminds you on set to have a good time. The two of them are really brilliant when they’re working. There is this real sense of teamwork and they both know exactly what they’re doing. They’re the best and they’re the best at what they do.

Q: Can you talk about your fellow cast members?

A: It’s a big thing for Jeremy [Irvine], being cast as Albert, but once you’ve seen him in the role you’re not even remotely nervous about it. I know that he went through a huge casting process. The first time I met him was on the farm and the great thing about the farm, where we all learned to ride, was that we were all there together. Jeremy just threw himself into it with his whole heart and soul. He was there every day. He was always there when I got there, so he must have been there an hour before me. He wasn’t just riding. He was being a stable boy and he was essentially being treated as a farm hand. This role is a wonderful thing for him and the first of many, I think.

I was really excited about the rest of the cast, too. I’d seen “A Prophet” and I’d seen “The White Ribbon,” so the idea that I was in a film with Niels Arestrup and Rainer Bock was an enormous privilege because they’re such extraordinary actors. David Kross was astonishing in “The Reader.” This is actually the first time I’ve worked with Benedict [Cumberbatch] and Patrick [Kennedy], but I’ve known them for a long time. I’ve long admired their work and they’re both terrific. We’ve become a bit like brothers.

Emily Watson is amazing. She’s always been amazing in everything she’s ever done. Everything she does has such heart and spirit. I can’t remember how old I was when I saw “Breaking the Waves,” but she’s really wonderful. I think it’s a new kind of part for her, too, as well. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her play this kind of thing, and Peter Mullan, too, who’s fantastic.

Q: What is it about the film that resonates with you the most?

A: When I think about it, I think that there’s something very, very deep and instinctive, heartwarming and soulful about what’s at the bottom of this story. Joey the horse travels; he meets British soldiers, German soldiers, French families and all these different people and he touches them in a way that binds them all together. The story is about family, loss, courage, strength and forbearance.

War Horse will be released in cinemas on 13th January