James McAvoy admits he’s ‘faking it’ ahead of ‘unhinged’ new film role in Speak No Evil-Rishma Dosani-Entertainment – Metro

James McAvoy has opened up about his transformation into his terrifyingly unhinged new role in Speak No Evil, revealing that he didn’t actually have to do much to prepare.

The 45-year-old is set to steal the show as Paddy in the psychological thriller, which is released on September 12 in the UK, and the following day in the US.

In the flick, which is a remake of the 2022 horror movie of the same name, two families meet and grow close on holiday and reunite in the UK shortly after – however, things take a chilling turn when their reunion becomes the trip from hell.

Paddy’s seemingly charming country home turns into a house of horrors for guests Louise (Mackenzie Davis), Ben (Scoot McNairy) and their daughter, Agnes (Alex West Lefler), as they find themselves in danger at the hands of their hosts.

Speaking to Metro.co.uk at the New York premiere of Speak No Evil on Monday, James unpacked his portrayal of the depraved dad, insisting that he didn’t have to ‘f**k himself up too bad’ as he was just ‘faking it’ on film.

‘Physically, it was fine, I didn’t have to do anything,’ he told us of his preparation ahead of time. ‘I was already the right size and shape to play Paddy, just because that’s what I was doing at the time.

James McAvoy stole the show in Speak No Evil (Picture: Universal)

The terrifying flick is released this week (Picture: Universal)

‘Mentally, psychologically, it’s just acting so I’m just faking it, to be honest with you. So I didn’t have to f**k myself up too bad.’

However, he found Paddy’s voice a little more difficult to navigate as the Glasgow native had to swap his Scottish accent for a ‘West Country’ tone – with a sprinkling of different accents thrown in to flesh out the ‘well-travelled’ character.

‘The accent was actually fairly tricky because we wanted to sound rural – and he definitely had to be from the West Country,’ the Hollywood icon continued.

‘But there is a danger that you get too idiosyncratic and too parochial, I guess, when you get into really rural accents of Scotland, England, Ireland and Wales.

Aisling Franciosi starred as James’ equally creepy on-screen partner (Picture: Universal)

‘We wanted him to sound like he traveled the world. I had to do a half and half, mix up, mash up of the accent, which is what I ended up doing.’

‘I think people in America will be fine with it but I worry that people in Britain will be like, “Hmmm what is that nothing accent you’re doing?”’ James laughed.

The original Speak No Evil premiered in 2022 and has become a cult classic, which left many questioning why director James Watkins and Blumhouse had decided to remake it so soon after it was released.

The trio endured the holiday from hell (Picture: Universal)

The Split actor explained that, while he had heard of his movie’s predecessor, he hadn’t watched any part of it before taking on the role, and only took it in properly once he’d wrapped.

His efforts have clearly gone down well with critics, who praised his Paddy as ‘unsettling’ and ‘unhinged’ on Rotten Tomatoes, where the remake has an impressive 88% score from impressed reviewers.

Shedding light on his decision to GamesRadar+ and Inside Total Film, he said: ‘I’d heard of the original, but I hadn’t seen the trailer and I certainly hadn’t seen the film.

James spoke of the transformation for his latest role (Picture: Getty)

‘Which I’m glad about because I don’t know if I’d have taken the role if I had – [I] just don’t really want to be comparing myself to what somebody else [has] done. So I watched it the day after we finished.

‘I really liked that there was this good couple, with a kind of relationship and love that was so gray and depressing, and not anything you’d wish on your worst enemy,’ James added of the script.

‘Then you’ve got this bad couple, who get the kind of love that you can only dream of and you’d be desperate to have, who seemed so capable of happiness and joy in their lives. Sticking them at a dinner table and having couples’ chat, it just felt so brilliantly tension-inducing. That was pretty much the backbone of what made me go, “This could be really fun.”’

Speak No Evil is released in cinemas on September 12 in the UK, and September 13 in the US.

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