EXCLUSIVE! Danny Dyer on JioCinema's 'Mr Bigstuff': ‘A day that you don't laugh is a day wasted’

Mr Bigstuff follows two estranged brothers; Glen (Sampson), a nervy perfectionist and carpet salesman striving to live a suburban ideal and Lee (Dyer), an alpha male with a prescription drug addiction and a tin full of their dad’s ashes. A show around around masculinity, family and brotherhood, Firstpost had an exclusive interview with Danny Dyer and Ryan Sampson on what went behind the making of the characters and the fun that they had while doing the show.

Edited excerpts from the interview:

 What was the preparation for the role like, considering it’s a comedy?

Ryan: For me, obviously, it was a hell of a lot of writing going on. So, I kind of knew I wanted to work with Danny. I wanted to write something for him. I wanted to write something about masculinity, about these two men, two opposite kinds of brothers who are going about being met in different ways. One of who’s got this kind of idea of being this sort of maverick, slightly aggressive way of life, and the other one who’s doing this sort of nice guy template for living. In terms of, like, preparing for it, comedy wise, I mean, I’ve mostly done comedy, but I threw Danny at the deep end because his comedy has not been his bread and butter so far.

Danny: I think that’s why it works as well because Ryan is so good at comedy, and he’s done very different kinds of things. You never see Ryan doing the same thing. Well, some people would argue that, you know, I do the same thing, but slightly tweak it. But, I think that, you know, somebody that’s very well experienced in comedy and somebody like me is quite raw to it, but I’m a very experienced actor. I’ve been around a long time. So this was something new for me, which I was very excited about. And so I just wanted to learn and absorb like a sponge. And the writing was so good. It’s already funny. You read it, and I was just laughing out loud. It’s very rare you laugh at a script. It was special and I thought we have just got to bring it to life now.

And how much did you laugh behind the scenes while preparing for it or doing it?

Ryan: For me, everyone says, like, oh, was it you laughing a lot along with it. I mean, it was absolutely terrifying. It’s like, you’ve written it, and then these proper actors, people that you respect are having to say your lines.

Danny: There was some stuff that was really funny when we’re doing it because it plays out. I felt if the crew isn’t laughing, you’re in trouble. So you do need an element of people sort of, you know, shoulders behind the camera. So you know you’re doing it right. And secondly, there wasn’t too much time. You know, there’s a schedule. And, there’s producers there looking at their watch all day, and you need to get it all done within that short time. It wasn’t a long shoot for usThere were a lot of different locations. And we had to knuckle down and get this done within the time frame, which we did. And I don’t want to blow my own trumpet, but I think we nailed it.

And how are the characters of both of you similar, the roles that you play in real life? How much do you relate to it? The roles that you play and your real life character.

 Ryan: My character, I’m not that similar to. I wanted to write someone who I mean, you know, I’m similar in some ways, but, I wanted to write someone who’s very, like, conventional and very, like, conservative, always does the not whatever seem to be normal. That’s who he is. And I’m not really like that. I want to understand someone who is like that.

Danny: I think I’m quite similar to Lee. I’ve got a lot of his traits. He’s really quite complex. You know what I mean? He’s you think it’s all quite straightforward and black and white, but, actually, as the series goes on, you learn, actually, he’s got a lot of stuff going on. He’s got a lot of demons, and he just needs to express himself more, which men don’t do enough. You know, we need to open up about how we’re feeling and stop pretending that we were right all the time. So that was important. I think, I mean, Harriet, I don’t know if she’s a known thief, you know, who plays Kirsty. She was a revelation to me. So, you’ve all got a bit of yourself in whatever character you play. Like, you know, unless you play Jack the Ripper, you know. Finding yourself in the character is what humanizes the character and makes the character believable. We don’t have the luxury of being Daniel Day Lewis and getting two years to prepare for a role.

And how is comedy important in our life? I’m sure it’s not important with the things happening around us. How do you say that comedy is important in your life?

 Ryan: Comedy is very important. I think it’s very important to give people, particularly in quite difficult times at the moment, something I think people want something to laugh at, something that feels warm and embracing. I know that when I watch, particularly comedy, I always want it to be something that feels like I want to be there with those characters, and I want to hang out with them. Some of my favourite comedies have all got that. And there’s a big trend for having, like, quite cold comedies where it feels like everything’s awkward and uneasy and cynical. But for me, I just want to create a show where you feel like I wish I was in that world with those people.

Danny: Laughter is very important. It’s really important, especially at this time. You know what I mean? I think people are forgetting to laugh more. It’s such a beautiful feeling to really laugh as well. A day that you don’t laugh is a day wasted. And if you can pull it off as well, it’s not easy. It’s one of the hardest disciplines. It’s hard to make people laugh. Of course, it is. So, you know, you have to be sure, and you have to be committed, and you have to believe in the project. So from the feedback we’re getting, people are laughing. So the job is done.

Lachmi Deb Roy is the entertainment editor of Firtspost, Network18. She reviews films and series with a gender lens. Her interviews are called 'Not Just Bollywood' because she takes huge interest in world cinema. OTT over theatrical releases is her preference unless and until its a King Khan film. She takes interest in fashion, food and art reviews too. see more