Tom Bateman reveals there’s a knack to playing two leading men in one body!
In ITV’s stylish revamp of Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic, The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Tom plays both kind-hearted young doctor Robert Jekyll and his evil alter ego, Mr Hyde. Both of whom are the grandson of the original Jekyll and Hyde!
Talking to What’s on TV at the launch for ITV’s supernatural adventure, Tom said: "It’s Jekyll and Hyde, but not as we know it. It’s set in the 1930s… and there is this secret dark world of monsters and espionage that Jekyll gets thrown into. So, as well as discovering his own demons and what his family history is, he’s also thrown into this crazy world of monsters and ghouls.”
Explaining how he copes with playing the two main parts, Tom said: “Originally I started out looking at them as two completely different people. It works quite well because that’s how Jekyll and Hyde see it. Hyde took a lot more work to come up with. There’s a bit of improvisation… They’re two sides of the same coin.
“The crew had to put up with me doing quite a lot of weird things for getting into Hyde!”
Speaking about the action side of the series, Tom revealed: “It’s very action-packed. Once or twice in each episode you get a good old fight!
“I was a little bit concerned at first it might be gratuitous, but it’s not at all. The violence and the action in it is totally based in this liberated character that you’re waiting to see burst out – and when he does things get smashed!”
The 10-part series is written by Charlie Higson (The Fast Show) and also stars Enzo Cilenti, Richard E Grant, Stephanie Hyam and Natalie Gumede.
For the full interview with Jekyll and Hyde's Tom Bateman watch the video, above. "]
Jekyll and Hyde premieres on ITV on Sunday, October 26 at 6.30pm
