As he prepares for role in new Irish film, the comedian has some advice for Barry Keoghan
As he chatted about his ups and downs during roles across several films and TV shows, McSavage had only good things to say about the James Bond star after he appeared with the Meath man in the 2016 tech thriller I.T.
“Pierce Brosnan is the sweetest, coolest, most charming guy and he’s exactly where he should be in terms of his success as there’s no cynicism about him,” McSavage said.
“On the set of I.T., he strolls over to me as I was rolling a cigarette and asks for one. We get talking and he says, ‘So, where are you based?’ And I thought, ‘Well, that’s a rich man’s question’, so I told him I wasn’t based in Dublin, I was stuck in Dublin. So, then I asked him, ‘Where are you based?’ And he simply said, ‘Malibu’. I’ll never get there, but it’s nice to meet somebody who lived there.”
With acting, it’s not my area of expertise. Actually, I don’t know if I have any area of expertise
Back to the here and now, the comedian has been cast in a new thriller, The Sandy Banks, which stars Susan Lynch, Pat Shortt and Gary Lydon. The film marks O’Donnell’s directorial debut, and production has begun in Ballycastle, Co Mayo.
Set during Christmas in a remote area in the west, the story is about the discovery of a woman’s body 16 years after her disappearance, “reigniting tensions between neighbouring families and pushing her brother towards a reckoning”.
Acting is not something McSavage relies on to make a living, and he admits it is not quite his forte — he has only a collection of small parts to his name.
McSavage (60) previously appeared with Christopher Plummer in the historical drama The Man Who Invented Christmas, George Clooney in the satirical anti-war TV mini-series Catch-22 and Ralph Fiennes and Jessica Chastain in epic drama The Forgiven, among others.
David McSavage says Pierce Brosnan is a ‘sweet and cool’ man. Photo: Getty
“The acting jobs are so few and far between, and if I had to rely on acting as a way to make a living, I’d be truly f**ked,” he said. “I have an agent in the UK and occasionally they send me for auditions. I never get them, but it’s nice to be considered.
“I auditioned way back in the day for Game of Thrones, and I didn’t get it. With acting, it’s not my area of expertise. Actually, I don’t know if I have any area of expertise.”
McSavage is on the road every weekend doing comedy gigs and says it has finally become financially rewarding.
“I do a tour once a year, around 40 or 50 dates, and most of them have been selling out,” he said. “Thank God for Instagram and for the ability to connect with an audience.”
Discussing the recent comments by Barry Keoghan about how people can be hurtful on social media, McSavage is somewhat dismissive.
“I don’t understand what he’s talking about, as he’s a very successful actor, so just don’t read the comments,” he said. “People overestimate their importance as actors. Ultimately, you didn’t write the thing, you’re learning words. Just go in, do the job and don’t bump into the furniture.”
Just because you don’t like something, you can’t make a decision to withdraw a sketch on behalf of other people
In terms of TV comedy, McSavage’s only appearance in the last decade was on Amazon Prime show LOL: Last One Laughing Ireland, and he says the television landscape is different from his heyday.
“When we were doing The Savage Eye, you could say stuff, knowing that people were going to get offended, but nothing was done about it. Nowadays, people are a bit more militant about it if they don’t like something,” he said.
“It’s quite condescending. Just because you don’t like something, you can’t make a decision to withdraw a sketch on behalf of other people. Good comedians know where the line is and we can tread it.”
McSavage is 23 years sober, and said: “I haven’t had a drink since 2003 and thank God, as I know people who had died due to alcoholism.”
On his love life, he said: “I haven’t had a relationship in a good while, but I’m open, very open. It’s trying to find the right balance, as I don’t know if I would ever live with someone again. My house is very much a man cave.”