Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s ‘Fleabag’ Almost Missed the Opportunity to Cast an Iconic Actor Until a Last-minute Switch Up

Everyone who started watching Fleabag at first couldn’t understand what the central character or narrator was trying to convey. It felt like a storm of emotions where words were never enough to express the deepest, darkest secrets that Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s character held within her.

Ultimately, as more episodes were streamed, people got the sense of the show in a more nuanced manner and they were convinced that Fleabag is the greatest show ever. Similar to the narrator, other secondary characters are as bizarre as we can imagine, only adding to the overall strangeness of the show.

Phoebe Waller-Bridge reveals how Olivia Colman was cast as the Godmother in Fleabag

Being such a massively popular star, Olivia Colman certainly did not audition to play the eccentric stepmother in Fleabag, but the story of how she came to be a part of the show is an interesting one. Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Fleabag may hate her stepmother’s guts in the show, but in reality, Colman and Bridge get along splendidly.

Bridge reveals how she did a play with The Crown actress after which she wrote and made Fleabag. The actress told BAFTA Guru in an interview how keen Colman was to be a part of Fleabag in any manner,

She said oh I really love it if you ever write anything and you want me to be in it, let me know and I was like oh you may regret saying that. I’m gonna hound you and so when um and I wrote the first um draft of the first episode of the first series godmother wasn’t in there and then because Olivia had said that to me um and then when I saw her again she I was like oh instead I’m writing something you know I’m adapting it and she said oh you know if there’s a role for me.

Bridge further adds that when the producers got to know Colman was interested in being a part of Fleabag, they made her write a role for the legendary actress. Had Colman not expressed her interest, Bridge would perhaps have not imagined her being a part of Fleabag.

Olivia Colman wanted to play the opposite of her personality in Fleabag

In the same interview, Bridge claims that Colman wanted her character to be unlike her real personality. The actress is sweet and incredibly warm, whereas the Godmother character in Fleabag is exceptionally selfish and narcissistic. Bridge specifically added that mean streak to Colman’s character which the actress eventually played to perfection.

Colman’s portrayal of the Godmother or Stepmother in Fleabag. She is an arrogant artist who dismisses everyone’s feelings to claim herself superior. Her relationship with Fleabag, her father and her sister has been shown to be extremely one-sided as Colman’s character makes no effort to include them in her life. All she cares about is showing off her art and deeming herself better than others.

Fleabag is streaming on Prime Video.