LOS ANGELES (AP) — Actor Matthew Macfadyen says he did not enjoy playing Mr. Darcy in Joe Wright’s 2005 film adaptation of Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” because he worried he was not “charming enough” to play one of literature’s favorite romantic heroes.
Looking back, the actor wishes he had enjoyed it more.
“I really didn’t. I feel bad saying that. There were moments when I had a good time, but I wish I enjoyed it more. I wish I worried about it less.
“I thought I was a little bit miscast, like, ‘I’m not that attractive.’ But it worked out,” the actor said on CBS Mornings.
McFadden, who played the popular character of Tom Wambsgans in “Succession” and starred in “Deadpool and Wolverine,” however, is ultimately happy with the way things turned out.
“The happiest thing about me now is that people say, ‘Were you Mr Darcy?’ It’s exactly 20 years later. So I think, ‘I can’t have aged so badly’,” the actor said of the film, which also starred the late Donald Sutherland, Rosamund Pike, Jena Malone, Tom Hollander, Judi Dench, Carey Mulligan, Talulah Riley and Rupert Friend.
Macfadyen, who plays Mr. Darcy opposite Keira Knightley’s Elizabeth Bennet in the film, has many fans, with a special internet section dedicated to the scene in which Mr. Darcy shakes Elizabeth Bennet’s character’s hands immediately after helping her into the carriage.
But the character, played by Colin Firth in the 1995 series, remains a screen favourite to this day, with his wet shirt scene often recreated and referenced by filmmakers.
This was done recently in “Bridgerton” Season 2, when Jonathan Bailey’s Anthony Bridgerton comes out after accidentally falling into a lake, an obvious homage to the character played by Firth as Mr. Darcy.
Published in 1813, Austen’s novel is set in the early 19th century and revolves around the Bennet family, particularly the second daughter, Elizabeth Bennet. With the arrival of a wealthy bachelor, Mr Bingley, the neighbour and Elizabeth’s mother hopes that one of her five daughters will become engaged.
At a party, the families are introduced and when Mr. Bingley falls in love with Elizabeth’s older sister Jane, he is heartbroken to learn that his rich friend Mr. Darcy looks down on his family.
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