Josh O’Connor says working with Olivia Colman on ‘The Crown’ is the "peak" of his career.
The 29-year-old actor – who portrays Prince Charles on the Netflix show – admitted it has been a special experience on set, and he insisted the 45-year-old Academy Award-winning star is incredibly grounded.
He told ES Magazine: "Epic. I remember looking over and being like: ‘Holy s**t! This is it. This is the peak for me.’
"You have to stop yourself midway through a scene and be like, ‘I’m acting with Olivia Colman!’
"But then she’s also got this amazing thing where they call ‘cut’, and she’s like, ‘Shall we have a cup of tea?’ "
Josh has enjoyed playing Prince Charles opposite Olivia’s Queen Elizabeth II, and he joked his "big ears" landed him the role of the royal.
He added: "I did think immediately, who’s gonna play Charles? I don’t know anyone my age who’s got these. They’re not huge, but they stick out."
He also insisted he doesn’t "really buy" the suggestion that male stars are pressured to charge their body image for roles.
He explained: "I don’t really buy that. Richard Madden said that recently — ‘the pressure on us lads’ and so on. But I haven’t experienced it."
Meanwhile, Josh also previously revealed everyone on set was delighted to see Olivia win a Best Actress Oscar for ‘The Favourite’ earlier this year.
He said: "We can’t stop talking about it. We’re so happy for her, it’s thoroughly deserved. It’s the first of many for her."
And despite how welcome he was made to feel during the first days of filming, he admitted the all-star cast was initially quite intimidating.
He added: "There were more physically demanding scenes or emotionally demanding scenes, but the first day on set was the hardest because I walked into an unbelievable powerhouse of a series with incredible actors like Olivia and [Helena Bonham Carter and Tobias Menzies].
"There’s an endless list of brilliant actors. Walking in and feeling the weight of it, it was so difficult."
The full interview appears in this week’s issue of ES Magazine,
Thursday 11th July 2019.
Josh O’Connor: Working with Olivia Colman is ‘peak’ of career
