Read below new interview Michael Sheen gave to the BBC, in which he also tells how the miniseries was always going to be political:
When Michael Sheen was filming clashes between steelworkers and riot police in his home town Port Talbot, little did he know 2,000 jobs at its steelworks would be at risk by the time it premiered.
“We had no idea when we were developing the story what would be happening at the steelworks when this came out,” he said.
“It’s incredibly unfortunate that the story we’ve written has come bizarrely very close to the truth.”
Speaking ahead of The Way’s premiere at Port Talbot’s Reel Cinema, he insisted the three-part BBC drama – originally conceived in 2016 – was a fictional story and not about the Tata steelworks.
“But obviously, knowing the town, knowing the relationship the town has with the steelworks, knowing the insecurities and the anxieties that have always been there in my lifetime around employment and work there – that was part of what drew us to setting the story in this town,” said Sheen, 55, who both directed and starred in the drama.
Ler maisSpeaking with Deadline, Michael Sheen also revealed why he assembled Adam Curtis and James Graham to the project. More below:
EXCLUSIVE: Michael Sheen, Adam Curtis and James Graham‘s BBC drama The Way has been gestating for almost a decade but, for Good Omens star Sheen, the wait has been a necessary one.
As the BBC prepares to launch the drama set in Sheen’s hometown of Port Talbot, he told Deadline the pandemic and other recent events played an important role in shaping the script and believability of the three-part series, which is one of the broadcaster’s most anticipated of the year, bringing together three of the nation’s supreme creative talents.
Starring Sheen, who is making his directorial debut, Luke Evans (The Hobbit), Callum Scott Howells (It’s a Sin) and a wealth of talented Welsh actors, The Way tells the story of an ordinary family caught up in an extraordinary chain of events that ripple out from their home town. Driven by celebrated documentary maker Curtis, the drama takes an experimental approach by imagining a civil uprising in a small industrial Welsh town. Fleeing unrest, the Driscolls are forced to escape the country they’ve always called home and the certainties of their old lives, but will they be overwhelmed by their memories of the past or lay their ghosts to rest and take the risk of an unknown future?
Sheen said the idea had always been to make a story about an “explosion of unrest” as “believable” as possible. Before the pandemic, the team initially dismissed ideas around making an entire population remain indoors, or placing a hard border around Wales.
“Lockdown gave the story a whole new lease of life,” he told Deadline. “When it ended we revisited the story and it allowed us to be bolder, particularly around ideas of conspiracies and Covid. We knew it was ‘of the moment’ and didn’t want something to feel dated, but we didn’t ever imagine it would be quite as timely as it has turned out to be.”
Ler maisMichael Sheen as been announced as one of the guests of The Graham Norton Show episode to be aired on Febuary 9 on BBC One to promote The Way and possibly Nye. Ian McKellen, Ambika Mod and Josh Widdicombe also join Norton’s couch.
The Graham Norton Show airs on BBC One at 10.40pm UK Time.
In interview with The Guardian, Michael Sheen tells how the new BBC miniseries came about, working in his hometown for the second time after The Passion and more. Read the full interview below:
New TV series The Way sees Sheen team up with documentary legend Adam Curtis and Sherwood writer James Graham – to start a rebellion. The team talk dirt, destruction and civil war
One Friday last month a demonstration was held outside the Port Talbot steelworks in south Wales, protesting the closure of the site’s two main blast furnaces. The demonstration was peaceful, passed off without incident and earned a brief mention on the evening news. But suppose for a moment that it had gone the other way. Suppose it spiralled into violence and sparked a full-blown Welsh rebellion. In which case, Port Talbot is no longer a fading industrial town. It’s a hotbed of revolution; a signpost to the future.
This, in a nutshell, is the premise of The Way, a boisterous BBC drama about a parallel Britain that’s just a shuffle step from our own. It’s a tale of civil war and family strife, a series that installs a militarised hard border between England and Wales and effectively turns all the Celts into outlaws. It used to be that people visited border town Hay-on-Wye to buy books. Now they come seeking shelter and a secret route into England.
Ler maisWatch below Michael Sheen’s appearance on Christmas with Katherine Jenkins, aired on BBC Two and BBC One Wales last Friday (December 23):
If you live in the UK, you can watch the full Christmas special here.
Michael Sheen will be attending the preview, followed by a Q&A session with James Graham, cast members and EP Bethan Jones. More details below:
Further TV events in February will include previews of The Way (Michael Sheen, 2024, BBC/Red Seam in association with Little Door Productions) on 5 February and This Town (Paul Whittington, 2024, BBC/Kudos/Nebulastar/Stigma Films/Mercury Studios) on 26 February. Created by Michael Sheen, James Graham and Adam Curtis, The Way taps into the social and political chaos of today’s world by imagining a civil uprising that begins in a small industrial town. The preview will be followed by a Q&A with creators Michael Sheen and James Graham, cast members Steffan Rhodri, Mali Harries and Callum Scott Howells and executive producer Bethan Jones.
You can buy tickets to the event here.
Earlier today Michael Sheen visited the Port Talb Library as part of the Warm Welcome campaign, which “wants everyone to access a warm and welcoming space in their local community, to connect with others, make new friends, and feel part of your community”. He appeared on BBC Breakfast live, and you can watch the video below:
Ler maisThe news the fans were waiting for has finally come! This week Amazon announced that Good Omens will be back for its third and final season:
More details below:
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The second season of Good Omens has been nominated at the 51st Annual Saturn Awards for Best Fantasy Television Series. Check out the nominees below:
Best Fantasy Television Series:
Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches
Ghosts
Good Omens
House of the Dragon
The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power
Schmigadoon!
Wednesday – WINNER
The winners will be announced on February 4, 2024, and once they are, this post will be updated.
Good luck to Good Omens team!
The Christmas special is set to air on BBC Two and BBC One Wales on December 23 at 7.10pm UK time. More details below:
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