Crawley-born actor hits the big screen in Wonka

SussexWorld

After featuring in the massive summer hit film Barbie, Crawley-born and bred Todd Talbot is back on the silver screen in the new Willie Wonka prequel Wonka.

Transcript

00:00 Good morning, my name is Phil Hewitt, Group Arts Editor at Sussex Newspapers. Fantastic

00:06 to speak again to Todd Talbot, born and bred in Crawley, and goodness, you have had a fantastic

00:11 year on the big screen. You were in Barbie in the summer, and now, this December, you

00:17 are in Wonka. What a fantastic double of probably the two biggest crowd-pleasing films in the

00:22 entire year, aren't they? How was Barbie?

00:26 Barbie was, I can't explain it really, it was incredible. It had such an incredible

00:34 response, I was really shocked at how many people saw the film, how many people loved

00:40 the film, I just got a really positive response, which was amazing.

00:43 Yeah, and people were saying there was a real sort of rebirth in the cinema over the summer

00:47 thanks to Barbie, weren't there?

00:50 It went crazy, it was like Barbie mania, wasn't it?

00:52 It was, absolutely.

00:53 I wasn't really in for it, but I think everyone was on board.

00:56 And it was such an incredibly fun film, wasn't it? And so enjoyable, and all the right messages

01:01 too. Now, will Wonka be as big, do you think?

01:07 I think it will, to be honest, I think it will. It's such an iconic story, isn't it,

01:12 Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory? It's a much-loved film. I myself loved it as a

01:17 child growing up, it's so magical, isn't it? It's such an incredible story and takes

01:23 you to a very happy place.

01:25 Yeah, and it's quite brave to touch it, isn't it? As you say, it's so iconic for people.

01:30 What have the filmmakers done with Wonka in this one? It's the prequel, isn't it?

01:34 It's a prequel, so it's basically going back to where Willy Wonka was born and his

01:38 childhood, the attachment to his childhood a little bit, and his relationship with his

01:42 family. And it then goes on to his first, how he gets into chocolate and selling chocolate,

01:48 and his dream of getting his first shop and competing with the best of the best.

01:55 And oddly, you were saying you were working on this before, Barbie. So you were working

02:00 on this in the tail end of COVID, plenty of masks, plenty of precautions, that must have

02:04 been a strange experience.

02:07 It was. It was amazing to be working again after the quiet period everyone had after

02:11 COVID. It was nice to get back to work, but it was definitely still very evident that

02:17 it was still there. I mean, I had to be very cautious and testing every day, wearing masks

02:22 in between takes and distancing as much as we could. It's impossible on a film set, but

02:29 we did, they did a very good job at sort of keeping everybody safe.

02:34 And you've now had the Leicester Square cast and crew screening. That must have felt like

02:38 incredible reward for those strange times and all that work on what's looking like a

02:43 brilliant film.

02:44 Yes. And it's been two years has passed since we finished filming. So it's just, I can't

02:49 believe it's been that long. It's crazy where the time has gone. But yeah, it was amazing

02:53 to see again, see everyone from the film, catch up and to be in Leicester Square again

02:59 for the second time this year, as you said.

03:00 You're going to get used to that, aren't you?

03:05 I'd like to think so, yes.

03:06 But the point is, both films are a reward for the slog. You're saying that, you know,

03:11 acting is tough, isn't it? There's lots of waiting, a lot of hoping, a lot of things

03:15 don't happen. And then this comes along and then like Busters, you get another one.

03:19 Yeah, two come at once. But it is difficult. I don't think being an actor is an easy, it's

03:26 not an easy job. It looks glamorous. It looks, it is, it's a fabulous thing to do. But it

03:33 comes with its trials and tribulations, that can be tough. But I spend a lot of time out

03:37 of work, which is part of the job. People say when you get the job, when you're working,

03:43 that's actually the easy part, really. It's the part when you're working and having to

03:48 audition and that's the challenge that we face and the competitiveness of the industry.

03:54 There's just so many people that you're competing against. There's just thousands.

04:00 But such high exposure, encouragement. That's just fabulous, isn't it? This is going to

04:05 sustain you for a while, isn't it?

04:07 Yeah, absolutely. The validation and just being able to be part of a massive film like

04:12 this is just, yeah, it's an incredible feeling. I'm very grateful.

04:16 I must leave you wondering what next. Good things are supposed to come in threes, aren't

04:23 they? Really?

04:24 Let's hope.

04:25 Fantastic. We're really looking forward to seeing the film. Great to speak to you again.

04:31 Congratulations on an astonishing double success. Two biggest films of the year. You're in both

04:35 of them.

04:36 Yes, there is a third because Wicked is out next Christmas.

04:40 And you're in that as well?

04:41 Yes, which I film this summer. Yes.

04:44 Oh, fantastic. That's your hat trick. We will talk Wicked in 2024. But I'm really lovely

04:53 to speak to you, Todd. Congratulations. Thank you.

04:56 Thank you so much. Thank you. Have a great Christmas.

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