The great Robert Wise once said an important thing about casting: “When you cast the actors, you’ve done much of their work. You may need to guide them a little, take it up or down, have them go faster or slower, but the casting process is crucial. “
Martin Scorsese also made a similar comment, saying that more than 90% of directing a movie or show was getting the right cast. Truer words have never been spoken. The potential of many great shows has been lost through bad casting, but such an accusation cannot be leveled against Peaky Blinders.
Right from the start, series creator Steven Knight and his team sought to get the best actors. The sequel film even features Barry Keoghan, someone we’ve only come to expect in big-budget Hollywood productions. It’s amazing just how solid the cast is, considering that neither the series nor the spin-off feature was shot on crazy budgets.
By Order of the Peaky Blinders…. Only Top Talent Allowed
Peaky Blinders follows the exploits of the notorious Peaky Blinders gang in Birmingham, England, in the immediate aftermath of World War I. A few characters and events are based on actual history, but the show is mostly fictional, weaving crime, politics, and family drama. The Blinders are led by Tommy Shelby, portrayed by Cillian Murphy. The actor, known for appearing in several Christopher Nolan films (notably Oppenheimer), famously competed with Jason Statham to play Tommy, and most fans will be glad he won the casting duel.
Murphy is hardly the most accomplished actor on the show. Tom Hardy plays the fan-favorite character, Alfie Solomons, a Jewish gang leader based in Camden Town. Ever eccentric and ruthless, the character is best known for the quote, “It was f—ing biblical, mate,” while describing how he hammered a nail into an enemy’s skin. Hardy appears to have a great working relationship with series creator Steven Knight, as the two have also worked together in the miniseries Taboo and the movie Locke.
Away from these two titans, the show has many other famous names. Anya Taylor-Joy plays Gina Gray, a scheming wife who tries to manipulate her husband to take over the Peaky Blinders. Oscar winner Adrien Brody is also present as the Cosa Nostra boss, Luca Changretta, who comes to England to avenge his dead brother. Additionally, there is Stephen Graham as the union conveyor, Hayden Stagg, Sam Neill as Chief Inspector Chester Campbell, and Helen McCrory as the matriarch, Poly Gray, among others.
Despite Competition, Cillian Murphy is the Clear Boss of This “Family”
Given the wealth of acting talent on the show, it would have been very easy for Cillian Murphy to be upstaged. However, no one comes close to him. The rest are good. More than good, I must say. But he is excellent. He is the only male actor on the show to be nominated for major British awards like the IFTAs and BAFTAs. Perhaps Tom Hardy would have impressed more if he had appeared in more episodes, but given his packed Hollywood schedule, it was simply not possible.
“Remember, I am an actor!” is what Cillian Murphy famously told Stephen Knight while trying to convince the series creator to pick him instead of Jason Statham. Indeed, Murphy looks nothing like a crime boss in real life, but when he becomes Thomas Shelby, you can’t picture any other person in the role. Murphy’s walk is magnificent, and he cannot help but grab a viewer’s attention by the raw potency of his physical presence. He cuts through a room like a bull shark swimming through the Pacific. As Tommy Shelby, Murphy can be repellent in one scene… too hot to touch… smoldering like coal… then totally charming and sexy the next minute.
It’s a measure of Mr. Murphy’s allure that when he is next to some better-dressed characters on the show, they barely register on-screen. Tommy Shelby navigates good and evil, fate and the inevitable happenstance, trying to achieve his goals without too many bruises and scratches. As it all happens, Murphy captures all emotions perfectly. The Irish actor would easily have made a great James Bond. But that ship has sailed now. Or has it? With Steven Knight hired to direct the next 007 movie, who knows what might happen? You can bet on Murphy getting a key role, even if he is deemed too old to play Bond. If not him, then expect Tom Hardy as a villain or an MI6 member.
- Release Date
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2013 – 2022-00-00
- Network
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BBC One, BBC Two
- Showrunner
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Steven Knight
