Cillian Murphy Did Not Like One Thing About His Peaky Blinders Role
Irish actor Cillian Murphy who recently appeared as J. Robert Oppenheimer in Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer is very famously known for playing Thomas Shelby in BBC’s hit British drama series; Peaky Blinders. The real urban youth gang of the same name who were reportedly active in Birmingham city from the 1880s to 1910s served as the inspiration for Steven King to create the show.
The series ran for six seasons receiving critical acclaim as well as praise from the audience with special mention about its stylish cinematography, performances by the actors, the direction, and the beautiful locations it was filmed in. The show became one of the most significant shows of all time and fans love to keep going back to it. But there is one thing that bothers Cillian Murphy about his character; Thomas Shelby. What is it? Let’s find out.
Cillian Murphy says ‘it’s crazy’ that people like Thomas Shelby’s haircut
During an interview with ShortList, Cillian Murphy who is undoubtedly one of the most loved actors currently and is famous for playing Thomas Shelby on Peaky Blinders; had mentioned that one thing he has not been able to adapt about his character. He said,
“People ask for a Peaky cut. It’s crazy that people like it- it hasn’t grown on me. I normally keep my hair long.”
The Peaky cut or the WWI-era haircut is shaved sides with long hair on the top which after the show premiered became one of the iconic Peaky Blinders looks along with their three piece-suits and flat-billed caps. It has been said that the show managed to inspire the revival of classic menswear from the 1920s.
The costume designer Stephanie Collie who had a huge part to play in making the iconic Peaky Blinders look had shared with Esquire;
“You could see everything in so much detail; the cufflinks, the tie-pins, the textures.”
The costume designer added that the wardrobe or the look from the show was popular amongst the viewers for one simple reason which is the fact that every Englishman wants to wear a suit.
Cillian Murphy talks about the fame that came along with Peaky Blinders
In an interview with Rolling Stone U.K., the actor spoke about the explosive fame that came along his way with the show being as popular as it could be and he said,
“Such fame can ruin experiences, because it fetishizes everything: you can be walking down the street and someone takes a picture like this a f**king event. It kind of destroys nuance and human behavior, but that’s part and parcel of it. Fame evaporates with regularity.”
The actor acknowledges the fact that when he is in his home country of Ireland no one pays much attention to him and he can carry out through his day like a normal person would. He notes he does not like to be photographed adding that he finds that offensive. He also added;
“If one of the guys from Succession walked in here, I’d be all intimidated and shaky. When you’re confronted with someone you’ve invested a lot in, or you think is amazing, the encounter is strange.”
On asking about the feature film, Murphy said if there’s more story there, he’d love to be a part of it adding that it has to be right because they left on such a high note and he is very proud of the series so the feature film has to feel legitimate and justified to be done.
Peaky Blinders is available to stream on BBC One and Netflix.
