The only difference between acting and living is that in acting, actors live the lives of their characters.
If acting is living someone else’s persona, lying only makes a small part of this impersonation. Let’s learn about the actors who mastered the actual feat of lying as the primary tool to get into this business of acting.
Tom Hardy pretended to be a skier
Spoiler alert: he wasn’t!
When the popular science fiction film was casting its crew, Christopher Nolan inquired about Tom Hardy’s skiing skills. Without skipping a beat, the actor knew he had to lie to grab the role.
It wasn’t even about the role, let me tell you. It was more about Nolan. When you are around Nolan, the only thing you obsess about is getting in his good books.
Well, we all know how it went because Tom Hardy could get through the audition and casting process to play the famed role of Eames in the film.
Meghan Markle banked on her fictitious sag card
Later on, she got reprimanded for it!
So, if you are thinking that lying is the surefire route towards building a career in Hollywood, stop! You may also ruin your connection even before you have a chance to benefit from them.
As the legend has it, Megan claimed that she had a SAG card when in fact she wasn’t part of any acting union.
The positive outcome was confirmation of her role in the TV Show Century City. The negative result was her casting directors’ refusal to work with her in the future.
Jodie Comer claimed proficiency in several languages
She did learn the languages later on.
In ‘Killing Eve,’ her Russian character, Eve, was supposed to be proficient in different languages including Italian, Russian, and French.
When Jodie found out about this requirement of character, she didn’t give up. Rather, she did what most audition gurus advise aspiring actors to do, ‘Claim to know the skill of riding a horse if that is what is needed by the casting crew even if you don’t have the skill.’
Mads Mikkelsen faked enthusiasm
Who can believe the famous Le Chiffre in Casino Royale hadn’t seen a single Bond film till his audition for the role.
Spoiler alert: he later made up for his lack of background knowledge by watching films from the franchise.
While auditioning, Mads covered up his lack of enthusiasm for Bond’s films by lying that he was a huge fan. He still got the role, a fact which speaks volumes about his acting skills in reel as well as real life. And it wasn’t for the successful portrayal of his role but for answering media questions that prompted him to start watching these films.
Jada Pinkett concealed her due date
Luck only supported her lie.
When she was being auditioned for the role of Niobe, Jada told the producers that she would have her baby in October when, in fact, her due date was in November. The lie showed her available in November to take up her acting duties because the film had to start shooting in that month.
In a surprising turn of events, her luck made it possible for her to honor her promise by giving birth before the expected date.
Michael O’Keefe exaggerated his golfing skills
In Michael’s defense, that lie was partially true, however, Michael had some insignificant connection with golf in his childhood.
It was another instance of mismatch in casting crew’s expectations and auditioning actor’s skills that happened in auditions for Caddyshack, a comedy film of the 1980s. The film needed skills related to golf. And, like other bluffs that went well in this article, this lie was also bought by the casting directors.
But because the actor didn’t have much experience in the sport, he had to take emergency lessons to get ready for the role.
Sadie Sink bluffed about her skating talent
The actress knew that she would get plenty of time to master the talent. So, the lie ensued!
But she could’ve spilled the beans on the audition day when she was expecting someone to ask her to skate. Thankfully, no one from the audition crew made that request.
She soon faced her fears towards the sport and learned the skill much to the relief of Stranger Things’ viewers.