Charlotte Kirk talks about her gangster thriller film "Duchess" at its premiere in Beverly Hills

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https://www.maximotv.com  Actress Charlotte Kirk (plays Scarlett Monaghan) interview on the red carpet at the premiere of the Saban Films gangster thriller "Duchess" on Tuesday, August 6, 2024, at the Lumiere Music Hall Theater in Beverly Hills, California, USA.  Reporter: Athenna Crosby @athennacrosby.  This video is only available for editorial use in all media and worldwide. To ensure compliance and proper licensing of this video, please contact us. ©MaximoTV

Transcript

00:00Charlotte, we are here at the premiere of Duchess.

00:05Tonight's the big night.

00:06How are you feeling?

00:07What's going through your mind?

00:08I'm trying to enjoy it.

00:11It's kind of nervous.

00:12This was my baby for a long time, you know, co-writing it and producing it and all these

00:17things.

00:18So it's exhilarating but very nervous at the same time.

00:22What would you say has been your favorite part about being involved with this project?

00:26Is it co-writing?

00:27Is it being the ingenue?

00:29What would you say?

00:31What I love about writing is you're literally at the...

00:35You can't...

00:36Sorry, it's really hard because I'm hearing all these different...

00:38No, what I love about writing, acting and producing is you're there from the very beginning

00:44to the very end.

00:45Right?

00:46So you've got this germ of an idea and then you do it as an actor and then as a producer

00:51you help see it through, make sure it gets made, then at the end...

00:54And again, this is like the best, most rewarding part when you're there and you sing on the

00:57big screen with an audience.

01:00It's very chaotic to be at a red carpet, right?

01:02We just had a bus go by, it was honking, people are talking.

01:05How do you manage this stress?

01:08I try and just focus on what it is, right?

01:11I'm focusing on the movie and trying not to focus on all the noise around, like traffic

01:17and all the distractions.

01:19But no, I'm just so excited to see it on the big screen with an audience, really.

01:26It's very rewarding to see, you know, I love to see the reaction of the audience.

01:31It's laughing, crying, screaming, whatever it is.

01:33I love it.

01:34Tell our audiences what you think the genesis of this movie is.

01:41It's called an actions, revenge, gangster movie, but it's got so many layers, it's got

01:48so many things.

01:49You know, it's about really love, portrayal, power, and I think any great film, any great

01:57gangster film has that, you know, it's a gangster film, but it's about all these other layers

02:03as well.

02:04Like The Godfather, it's about family, you know, all these other films, all these gangster

02:07films, action film, whatever it is, it's always about other things as well.

02:11You know, that's what makes a great story.

02:13I want to get your opinion on female protagonists in this genre.

02:19Do you think there's enough of them or how does this movie fit into the genre?

02:23Female protagonists, there needs to be more.

02:27There really needs to be more, hence why I wrote my own.

02:30I feel that good scripts are hard to find.

02:34Good scripts with good female characters are even more hard to find.

02:39And I think it's very empowering and I love to see women and, you know, great characters.

02:45It doesn't matter if it's female or male, but I just think there should be more female

02:49roles, female protagonists.

02:51Absolutely.

02:52I feel like sometimes female characters can be pigeonholed, right, to just being the pretty

02:56face or, you know, the honey trap.

02:59How does this character defy those stereotypes?

03:05This role, if you just read the script and didn't have a female name, you would think

03:09it's literally for a male because it is a typical badass action from start to finish.

03:17And this is why we wanted to just say, me and my co-writer Neil, who's also the director,

03:22wanted to literally say let's do exactly what, you know, we want to write exactly a kind

03:27of gangster film that we love, like the Scarface, the Goodfellas, but let's make it a woman.

03:33Let's just switch it.

03:34Let's do exactly what a man would do, but let's make it a woman.

03:37And how has this role differed from other characters that you've played in the past

03:41or how do you find this fitting into your legacy?

03:45It's very, very different to any role I've played before.

03:49Just her journey overall.

03:51It's very, it's kind of, it's got a My Fair Lady vibe.

03:54A girl in a very small fish tank world who then meets the love of her life and thrusts

04:02her into this criminal underworld.

04:05It was challenging because I've never had such a role that's so, the arc is so profound.

04:13It's massive.

04:14She starts off, as I said, in a small bubble in the UK and then becomes the leader of one

04:19of the biggest diamond cartels in Europe.

04:23So yeah, it was just making sure emotionally that I was, I got it right.

04:29And that was very, very important for me.

04:31To make sure that I'm not overplaying it, but at the same time underplaying it.

04:34At the same time, it's a gangster movie, right?

04:36So I think I could push the needle as far as I could.

04:40And I think with some of the best gangster movies out there, Scarface, Tony Montana,

04:45he plays that pretty badass and pretty out there, but it works.

04:48I think with this genre, if any genre, you can really push the needle in terms of acting

04:52and how far you can play it.

04:54How big you can play the character.

04:56From what we've heard from everyone we've talked to so far, it just seems like a lot

04:59of fun.

05:00We've heard them say, watch this on a Friday night, a Saturday night with your friends

05:04and family and just have a good time.

05:06Yes, absolutely.

05:07It's definitely one of those films.

05:09Just have fun.

05:12But again, it's one of those films that is going to hopefully make you cry and make you

05:16laugh and all the other things as well.

05:19So it's got substance and layers to it and it's got a real story to it.

05:25So exciting.

05:26Well, we cannot wait to head into the theatre and watch the premiere.

05:29Congratulations on the big night.

05:31Thank you so much.

05:33All right.

05:34Have fun in there.

05:35Thank you, my love.

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