Did you research any Marilyn Monroe impersonators for your role of Linda in "Room For Rent"?
I didn鈥檛, but I鈥檝e seen them before. It was really interesting because I鈥檓 playing a person first so I have to somehow show that character and she鈥檚 hiding behind the persona, what we all know of Marilyn Monroe, the lip quiver, soft voice and ultra feminine behaviour. Khaled and I discussed this, she鈥檚 kind of compatible with Marilyn in that she wants to feel a sense of belonging and know herself, and she鈥檚 very feminine. The first thing I had to work on was my very deep voice, so I softened that up a bit and watched some old Marilyn movies.
You also got to do a Marilyn-esque show tune in the film. How was that?
It was a little campy cabaret, and it was so exciting because I had to really think about Linda鈥檚 performance. Khaled would always give me my assignments, like "this number is from Let鈥檚 Make Love". It鈥檚 this routine that Marilyn does, and she wasn鈥檛 much of a dancer, she鈥檚 just sort of a wiggler. So I had to wiggle myself from the stage to the audience and sing the song. It was really fun, we rehearsed that on the Sunday and shot it on the Monday. We just ran with it, that was Linda鈥檚 big production number.
How does working in the UK compare to working on a Hollywood movie?
There wasn鈥檛 much down time on this film. It was a fast and furious shoot because it was such a tight schedule. Making a film is pretty much the same wherever you are, though you find each set has a character or a feeling about it which I find is usually generated from the director. And because Khaled is such an easygoing, nice, sensitive person the set is nice too. We鈥檙e all there to do the same thing and create the movie. The only thing that was a little bit different is that I don鈥檛 think the cops are as pleased with film production on the streets of London as perhaps they are in Los Angeles or Canada.
"Room For Rent" is out in UK cinemas on Friday 22nd June 2001.
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