Baby Reindeer star Jessica Gunning has shared the one concern she would have had if she hadn't taken on the role of Martha Scott in the hit Netflix series.
The show chronicles the relentless harassment and stalking of struggling comedian Donny Dunn (played by Richard Gadd) by Scott over a span of more than four years. The series quickly captivated audiences globally and is on track to become one of the streaming service’s most popular shows ever.
The 38-year-old insisted that she "didn't know anything" about the character she was portraying and that her approach to the role was not an "impersonation" but her own interpretation.
Now, in a new interview for Variety’s Making a Scene, the actor discussed the concerns she would have faced if she hadn't succeeded in the role.
She shared: “I really fought for it because I just saw her so clearly and I just kept thinking, ‘Oh, man. If somebody were to do this and play her as a villain or play her as crazy, you’d miss the point a bit.’”
Elaborating on the efforts she made to secure the role, Gunning revealed that a friend and make-up artist directed her to "a wig place" in London to help her appear older, as there were concerns she looked "too young" for the part.
Gunning added: “They wigged me up and aged me up and I went and put myself on tape and sent it over to be like, ‘Look, see? Please.’ Luckily it worked, they were probably like ‘Who is this woman? Back off.’”The actor previously said that she took great care to portray the role with complexity and nuance, ensuring Scott was not simply reduced to being labeled as "mad" or "crazy."
The TV star previously told BBC: “I really cared about Martha, you know. As soon as I read episode one I was drawn in by her.
“I never saw her as a villain. I don’t think you can do if you’re playing that kind of part. I always saw her as multifaceted and complicated.”
Scottish lawyer Fiona Harvey, 58, who claims to be the 'real' Martha, appeared on Piers Morgan’s Uncensored last month to "set the record straight" after fans of the show "unmasked" her by matching social media posts featured in the series with her own.
Elsewhere, Gunning recently spoke about her sexuality for the first time and shared the moment she realised she was "a big, old gay".
