An Infamous Batman Villain Performance And A Peaky Blinders Accent Share The Same Inspiration [Exclusive]
For better or worse, some performances in very specific projects will follow an actor for the rest of their life. Aidan Gillen is well aware of this not entirely unflattering phenomenon, given that he's been fortunate enough to be part of some of the biggest franchises in the world: from scene-stealing turns in "Game of Thrones" to "Peaky Blinders" to "The Dark Knight Rises." Needless to say, his incredibly brief but memorable role as a CIA agent in the opening sequence of Christopher Nolan's trilogy-capping blockbuster will continue to live on in internet memes for as long as we have an internet. But, sometimes, the universe enjoys throwing unexpected coincidences at us, and this certainly holds true for Gillen's work on "The Dark Knight Rises" and the hit series "Peaky Blinders" — both of which also happen to star a certain actor by the name of Tom Hardy.
In an interview with /Film, Ben Pearson talked with Gillen ahead of the release of "Barber," his next starring role. Naturally, the conversation turned towards Gillen's memories of working with his eventual "Peaky Blinders" co-star Hardy on the Batman film and, in particular, the meme-worthy voice that Hardy opted to use to bring the villainous Bane to life. To hear Gillen tell it, the overall experience wasn't all it could've been (while complimenting the film, he diplomatically refers to harboring "mixed feelings" about his own performance), but he does confirm one fascinating behind-the-scenes tidbit that further tightens the connections between Gillen and Hardy on "Peaky Blinders."
Apparently, Hardy based his infamous Bane voice on a British boxer by the name of Bartley Gorman. As fate would have it, Gillen himself studied the exact same historical figure to portray Aberama Gold in "Peaky Blinders." Who knew!
Strange bedfellows
The Film and TV Gods work in mysterious ways, folks. After sharing a grand total of one scene together in "The Dark Knight Rises," actors Aidan Gillen and Tom Hardy would eventually go on to appear in another scant handful of scenes throughout their overlapping tenures on later seasons of "Peaky Blinders." If that had been the end of their journey together, it would already be interesting enough. But each one ended up taking things one step further, and it has everything to do with something both well-traveled actors know a thing or two about: accents.
In his conversation with /Film's Ben Pearson, Gillen recalled the shared influence of Bartley Gorman. As it so happens, /Film has previously written about the real-life legend behind Hardy's notorious (dare I say mythical?) Bane voice, but Gillen revealed that he himself took certain voice cues of his own from the self-proclaimed "Gypsy boxer" when it came time to portray the deadly, yet charming mercenary Aberama Gold on "Peaky Blinders." According to Gillen:
"I kinda based a character accent on the same guy that I think [Tom Hardy] might've based his original Bane voice on, but it sounds quite different. It's a [self-proclaimed] Gypsy boxer called Bartley Gorman [...] I'd read somewhere that Tom had been studying this guy, Bartley Gorman, who was a bare-knuckle Gypsy in England. Then I did 'Peaky Blinders' and Tom was in it, and one of my first scenes was actually with him. I was doing my [version] — and I studied this guy also, because I thought it's subtle, and it's strange, and it just sounds old-fashioned, and it just sounds properly Gypsy. But Tom didn't mention it. He was too busy being Hasidic, Alfie Solomons. But, great actor."
Mixed feelings
Both Gillen and Hardy's work over the decades speak for themselves at this point, making it that much easier to move on from and maybe even laugh about what some might consider less-than-ideal circumstances on "The Dark Knight Rises." We can count Gillen among those who feel that way as he reminisced in the interview with /Film about his performance in the film's still-breathtakingly ambitious opening sequence. That said, the classy actor spoke diplomatically about the role that, along with "Peaky Blinders," will forever tie him and Hardy together in the minds of superhero fans. Not only does it seem like Gillen wasn't fully comfortable with how his character factored into the story, but the chaos of filming that particular scene didn't help, either. As he explained:
"No one could really hear anything because of the IMAX camera, which was heavily whirring, like a washing machine. [Tom Hardy] had the mask on. He hadn't really decided what [his voice] was going to be yet, and I couldn't hear. I have mixed feelings — it's a great film to be part of, and I wish the circumstances had been a little different for myself. I could have done a better job if I just knew a little more about what was what. But I'm not going to knock it."
Kudos to Gillen for being honest and forthright, even if weirdos like myself would maintain that neither Hardy nor Gillen have anything to be self-conscious about. While I wouldn't go so far as to defend all aspects of "The Dark Knight Rises," both of their performances feel in line with the film's sillier and more heightened tone. So as far as I'm concerned, Gillen and Hardy innocent! Gillen being a good sport just feels like the cherry on top.