After a schedule clash Ashleigh Cummings thought she would have to forgo new Binge drama Run, but then a call came through just days before filming commenced.
Ashleigh Cummings very nearly didn’t make it into the cast of new Foxtel / Binge drama, Run.
Originally unavailable during early casting, she became a last minute choice for the role of Jackie Lewis, the girlfriend of notorious WA bank robber, Brenden Abbott -otherwise known as The Postcard Bandit.
“I signed on about four or five days before we started filming, so I had next to no time to prep,” she tells TV Tonight.
“I was in America, and I think the scripts had come through in January but I didn’t know Ben (Young) was directing it.
“At that time there were some scheduling conflicts, so it wasn’t an option for me. Then later on, I was talking to one of my best friends in the world, Christian Byers, who’s been my best mate since I was about 15….. we’d been dying to work together again since Puberty Blues and then the offer came through about two days later out of the blue so it was very serendipitous.”
Did that mean she was replacing another actor for the role?
“I do think they had possibly had someone in mind, or had multiple people in mind and it wasn’t kind of working. Then at the last minute, all the stars aligned, and they sent an offer through, and I was available. It was a dream, because I think Ben had originally had me in mind for Jackie and we’d been wanting to work together for a really long time.”
The role of Jackie is fictitously created, and portrayed as someone who is pulled in two directions – toward the boy she once loved and the man he’s become, and towards a future with the chaos and danger Brenden brings, played by George Mason.
“There is a real Jackie, but we don’t know a great deal about her, and didn’t want to ascribe a false emotional journey to a real person’s life. So we changed her name to Jackie Lewis. I think she’s a pretty tough young woman with a creative spirit that grew up in a bit of a rough environment,” she explains.
“I had zero time to prep. I skimmed the books and what material was available, and then I really leant a lot on George, who’s brilliant and such a generous and attuned actor. He’d done a lot of research. He knew the world inside out as did Bonnie (Moir), the other director, as well. Sarah Walker the writer was wonderful but we kind of had no choice but to dive in the deep end and make her our own. Because there wasn’t that much information, there was more liberty to trust instincts and do what the story needed.”
Abbott is a notorious West Australian bank robber, reported to have stolen and hidden millions of dollars, and believed to have been responsible for “40 to 50” bank robberies across Western Australia, South Australia and the Gold Coast. He is also the only prisoner to have escaped from Fremantle Prison twice.
The six part drama also features Keiynan Lonsdale, Robyn Malcolm, David Howell, Mia Artemis, Christian Byers, Roxie Mohebbi, Oscar Redding, Anthony Hayes and Jayden Popik.
This isn’t the first drama on Abbott, with Nine having screened the telemovie The Postcard Bandit in 2003, starring Tom Long.
“I’ve actually never seen that one and I intentionally didn’t, but I will watch it after I’ve finished this, because I really didn’t want that to influence my choices in the show,” says Cummings. “I wanted to stay as present to this process and this iteration of it as possible, even during press. I want to watch it with fresh eyes and not comparatively. I’m looking forward to seeing it and comparing the pair.
“But it’s nice doing press on this job, because I’m not terrified of spoiling anything. Everyone knows or can find the information about what really happened.”
Binge / Foxtel will also screen the documentary The Postcard Bandit which explores the complex relationship between Abbott and his son, James, who has known his infamous father only through prison bars.
“We saw a trailer for it and it was quite interesting because neither party had any real interaction with the other other than the fact that James Abbott and his partner were on set. We’ve actually become really close with them. They’re beautiful beings. I really adore them,” Cummings insists.
Run also features a brief reunion for Cummings with her former Miss Fisher’s Murder Mystery beau, Hugo Johnstone-Burt.
“Hamish Lewis, the producer, is one of his best friends and he thought it would be an absolute laugh if he brought Hugo over, and we play lovers again in a very different context. So any Miss Fisher fans should stay tuned for a reappearance of ‘Dot and Hugh’ in a very different era and with very different spirits! It was such a dream to reunite with him.”
Since finishing on Miss Fisher and her other big Aussie success, Puberty Blues, Cummings has been working internationally including The Beast Within, Long Bright River and Citadel.
“Next year I’ll have Citadel Season Two coming out, and I’m just juggling a couple of things on the horizon with that, but hopefully Season Two of Run, because it was one of the most joyful filmmaking experiences I’ve had in my career,” she maintains.
“The story’s just begun. Brendan Abbott escapes jail twice, and we’ve only covered the first time. So there’s a lot yet to be uncovered.”
Run screens all episodes Thursday 1 January on Binge / Dbl 8:30pm Showcase.
The Postcard Bandit Wednesday January 7 on Binge / 8:30pm Showcase