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Jodie Comer
She found global fame – and critical acclaim – as the designer-clad assassin in Killing Eve, before Hollywood came knocking. So, now that JODIE COMER is finally laying Villanelle to rest, what’s next for the Liverpudlian actor? She talks to MOLLIE GOODFELLOW about the women who have helped shape her, bringing the #MeToo movement to the West End stage, and why knowing her worth is her secret weapon
Jodie Comer is sitting at a corner table in a central-London restaurant, reading from an iPad and waiting for a coffee when I arrive. “I’ve only just started having flat whites; I usually have a cappuccino, but I feel like a flat white has that extra kick up the bum,” she laughs. “It makes you feel like a grown-up.”
It’s hard to imagine the actor – not yet 30 – needing much of a kick, though, having spent the past four years watching her fast-paced performance as the enigmatic Villanelle in cult drama Killing Eve. The show has earned the actor a BAFTA and an Emmy for her portrayal of the trained assassin, who – with the current season being the fourth and final – Comer is getting ready to say goodbye to.
“It’s crazy. It’s really, really crazy, because it’s been so long. And the wonderful thing about that show was the people… a lot of the same crew came back every year. There was a familiarity to that and a comfort,” she says. “To play a character like Villanelle has been such a gift.”
“I was like a fish out of water when [Killing Eve] started… PHOEBE [Waller-Bridge] had created [Villanelle], but I had to let GO of my own insecurities and really THROW myself into it”
It’s been quite a journey since the first season of the show – which hit screens in 2018 and was written and executive produced by Phoebe Waller-Bridge – catapulted her career to new global heights. “I got sent the first episode and I’d seen Phoebe’s name and I’d seen Fleabag, which I adored, and I just thought, ‘Ooh, what is this gonna be?’” Comer remembers. By the time she was auditioning, the titular role of Eve Polastri already had Sandra Oh’s name on it. “I was like a fish out of water when [it] started… Phoebe had created [Villanelle], but I had to let go of my own insecurities and really throw myself into it, so [the character] was molded, in a way, as we went along.”
Across its four seasons, Killing Eve has been a platform for female creative talent, both behind and in front of the camera, and Comer has appreciated sharing the screen with such an eminent line-up. “The women I’ve worked with – Harriet [Walter], Fiona [Shaw] and Sandra [Oh] – have encouraged me in so many ways and given me so much advice,” she says. “They’ve been invaluable. There’s just a connection, [which] is unspoken a lot of the time but is also very present.”
“I think you’ll always have a MOMENT when you walk into a room and think, ‘Oh WOW, how did I get here?’… I hope I never get too COMFORTABLE”
Big names aren’t enough to draw her to a job, though – working on the right projects and knowing what she’s bringing to the table are important, too. “You want to take roles to work with people that you admire; people you’re going to learn from and be inspired by. But I feel like you can’t look over what it is that you can bring to the piece [and] to the character. You never want to do yourself a disservice in that way. Always make sure you know what the challenge is for you.”
Last year, Comer teamed up with fellow Liverpudlian actor and close friend Stephen Graham on Channel 4’s Covid 19-based drama Help, in which she played care assistant Sarah in a storyline navigating the early days of the pandemic. It was a heavy plot to cover, especially as medics and carers were still in the thick of fighting the virus.
“I know there were people who [said], ‘Oh, it’s too soon’, and that’s fine, I respect that – if it is too soon for people then they absolutely shouldn’t have to watch it. But also, in a sense, there’s no time like the present,” reflects the actor, who also served as an executive producer. “That’s the beauty of drama. Even though it’s uncomfortable and confronting, it’s an insight into what someone else went through and is still going through. [Help] was the first project I did that was political and really had something to say, and I left feeling like it really shaped me in a way.”
The drama gave Comer a chance to play a character closer to home than usual, too. “I really enjoyed the opportunity to celebrate a woman from Liverpool, [who is similar to] the women I know.” In an industry that has long been rooted in elitism and exclusivity, Comer has spoken about how her being Liverpudlian has been received in certain situations. She recounts a story from the early days of her career, when a director assumed she wouldn’t be able to do an RP (received pronunciation, or ‘Queen’s English’) accent because of where she hails from. Sitting in front of me, Comer (who is, incidentally, the queen of accents) seems wholly comfortable in herself. “I mean, [people] in America think I’m Scottish, or they just think [of] The Beatles, you know! So, it is very different over there,” she says. “I feel like I’m in a different place now in a sense of feeling like I know who I am.”
She has made a successful leap into the world of feature films in recent years, too, having played lead roles in The Last Duel, directed by Ridley Scott, and Free Guy, alongside Ryan Reynolds. “I think you’ll always have a moment when you walk into a room and you think, ‘Oh wow, how did I get here?’… I hope I never get too comfortable; I think it’s nice to have those moments, but I definitely feel more steady in myself now.” She pauses, before adding, “I feel it more in the publicity side… when you’re having to be yourself, instead of being on set. It’s like, when you’re on set, that’s your work, that’s what you’re focused on, and then when you have to go into the world as yourself, that can be quite exposing and you can feel a bit out of body.”
Comer doesn’t shy away from pushing herself out of her comfort zone, though. This spring, she will make her West End debut in a one-woman play, Suzie Miller’s Prima Facie – and the actor is letting me in on a secret about it: “I can speak about this because it’ll be out by the time this is published, but Self Esteem [the pop-project alias of Rebecca Lucy Taylor] is composing the music for the show.” I drop my serious-interviewer mode to squeal. Taylor is a friend of mine – “an internet friend!” I tell Comer – “Amazing, no way!” she says: “Internet friends!”
The plot, however, is set to be a hard-hitting watch, and follows a barrister, Tessa, who is subjected to a sexual assault – with the audience acting as witnesses to the attack and grim aftermath.
“[Miller told me] she wanted to show the rape in a non-voyeuristic way and have the audience witness what Tessa goes through… the audience aren’t the jury, there is no, ‘Did it happen? Didn’t it?’ – they’re with Tessa. They know, which I thought was really powerful.”
The plot is timely, particularly following a year when news stories of sexual assault and violence against women have been rife. “It’s so present and so upsetting,” Comer says of the subject matter. “When you do material like this it feels so relevant to today, but it’s sadly never been any other way.”
Our conversation moves to #MeToo – it’s been several years since the movement shed light on the treatment of women in the entertainment industry, so does Comer feel like there has been noticeable change? “I think I’ve noticed it in myself and finding my own boundaries and what I’m comfortable with and not comfortable with, and the ability to be vocal about it,” she considers. “I wish I would have found that earlier, but you have to go through your own experiences in life, so that’s how I feel the change. But I haven’t had any awful experiences to speak [of]; I’ve been extremely lucky.”
She feels grateful for the women who have shown her the way in the industry, too. “I’ve worked with such incredible women… to be working on a show like Killing Eve, which is the essence of that, has shaped me in a real way.” This also extends to the characters who have filled her resume: “I’ve been lucky that a lot of the women I’ve played have been so fully fleshed out and colorful that now it’s set the bar.”
When she’s not working, Comer confesses she isn’t a woman of many hobbies. “I’m really boring, sorry!” she laughs, her eyes sparkling behind her tortoiseshell glasses. “I love concerts, music’s a huge part of my life. [And] I’ve realized I have to really look after myself for my mental health, so I enjoy Pilates as exercise.”
“I’ve worked with such INCREDIBLE women… to be working on a show like Killing Eve, which is the ESSENCE of that, has shaped me in a REAL way”
Looking after herself has also ignited a love for skincare. She’s an ambassador for Noble Panacea and enjoys the routine of looking after her skin. “During the pandemic, it was nice to have that ritual of getting up in the morning and doing something for yourself that feels good. Don’t get me wrong, I love a bit of concealer and eyebrow gel, but I definitely feel more comfortable with no makeup; skincare [has] become more important [to me] in the sense of looking after yourself from the inside out.”
Getting back to in-person events has created a shift in her sense of style too, she says, particularly when it comes to the red carpet. She spoke to her stylist and friend Elizabeth Saltzman when live events started up again about “how it’s great to experiment, but sometimes you don’t feel like yourself and, you know, I want to celebrate [at] these events and feel like [me].”
Finally, I wonder what Comer, a master of TV herself, enjoys watching in her downtime? She is currently obsessed with dark teen drama Euphoria, “[but] I feel so old watching it,” she insists. “I feel like millennials are like grandmas now. I just wanna go home and get in my bath and put my music on.” Us too, Jodie, us too.
Killing Eve is available to stream on BBC America, AMC+ and BBC iPlayer now. Prima Facie runs from April 15 to June 18 at the Harold Pinter Theatre, London
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