{"id":411121,"date":"2026-01-16T15:41:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-16T15:41:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/411121\/"},"modified":"2026-01-16T15:41:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-16T15:41:09","slug":"how-jack-oconnell-became-hollywoods-favorite-bad-guy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/411121\/","title":{"rendered":"How Jack O’Connell Became Hollywood’s Favorite Bad Guy"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tFrom the penultimate floor of London\u2019s luxe 45 Park Lane hotel, the capital\u2019s skyline is betrayed by dreary, grayish clouds.<\/p>\n

\n\tThis is not only extremely typical weather for the sun-starved population here in the U.K., but provides us Brits with a much-needed small talk starter (it\u2019s either that or the selection of fruit and pastries up for grabs on the coffee table).<\/p>\n

\n\tSo, the publicists, makeup team and fellow members of the press \u2014\u00a0all of us peering out of the floor-to-ceiling windows with a grimace \u2014\u00a0begin doing just that. We lament our seasonal woes and reminisce on brighter days, and while I\u2019m led into a larger room with even grander windows, Jack O\u2019Connell<\/a> throws in his two cents: \u201cI love winter.\u201d He looks the part of a man having to get on with movie press in a dull January, wearing a cream, knitted sweater and black trousers. He picks up an apple and bites into it.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI love winter,\u201d he says again, eyes fixed on the rainy horizon. An innocuous comment to most, but for a detail-obsessed entertainment journalist with a soft spot for flamboyant writing, it\u2019s something else entirely. The actor\u2019s statement is a telltale glimpse into the unpredictability of Jack O\u2019Connell, a hint of the contrarians we\u2019re accustomed to seeing him play onscreen, and a fabulous example of the off-the-wall energy with which our conversations are immediately fired up by.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe 35-year-old is having one hell of a year, catching his breath after starring in Ryan J. Coogler\u2019s slick vampire film Sinners<\/a>, which has gone on to dominate awards season. On Sunday, Coogler, Michael B. Jordan and crew took to the stage at the Golden Globes to accept the award for best box office achievement, having accrued a cool $368 million.<\/p>\n

\n\tWhen The Hollywood Reporter last caught up with O\u2019Connell, his charming, bloodsucking Remmick was just about to hit theaters. \u201cIt would have been audacious,\u201d the Brit laughs about anticipating the kind of success Sinners would go on to chalk up. \u201cIt sort of fills me with the promise about cinema-going. I think we\u2019re in quite a frightened era,\u201d he says, \u201cespecially people involved in film [who] are really desperate to know what the future is going to hold. So for people to go and watch Sinners, it\u2019s really, really reassuring. There\u2019s a resilience there. And long may that continue.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe actor\u2019s signature roguishness dates back to the \u201900s, when a Bristol-set teen drama called Skins was airing and, it would turn out, producing a young talent pool of superstars. A 17-year-old O\u2019Connell played Cook \u2014 a boisterous Jack the Lad character, you won\u2019t be surprised to find out \u2014\u00a0alongside Kaya Scodelario and Luke Pasqualino. They took over from the first generation led by Nicholas Hoult, Daniel Kaluuya, Dev Patel, Joe Dempsie, and Hannah Murray.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIt was university to us, do you know what I mean?\u201d says O\u2019Connell when asked about how formative his time on Skins was. \u201cIt taught us to turn up on time and deliver. At the age where everyone else was at university, we got to spend that period of our lives in Bristol making the coolest program ever.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tJack O\u2019Connell in Ryan Coogler\u2019s \u2018Sinners.\u2019<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\u00a9 Warner Bros.\/Courtesy Everett Collection<\/p>\n

\n\tSince then, he\u2019s constructed a r\u00e9sum\u00e9 marked by variety. This includes David Mackenzie\u2019s 2013 prison crime drama Starred Up, seductive 2022 historical romance Lady Chatterly\u2019s Lover with Emma Corrin, Michael Mann\u2019s racing drama Ferrari (2023) and Sam Taylor-Johnson\u2019s Amy Winehouse biopic Back to Black (2024). If you\u2019re more partial to watching us Englishmen on TV, maybe O\u2019Connell\u2019s most recognizable as British Army officer Paddy Mayne in Steven Knight\u2019s ongoing BBC drama SAS: Rogue Heroes.<\/p>\n

\n\tBut we\u2019re at the hotel to discuss what might be O\u2019Connell\u2019s most outrageous role to date. He\u2019s about to blow minds as the bleach-blond cult leader Sir Jimmy Crystal in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple<\/a>, out Jan. 16 and again penned by Alex Garland. Nia DaCosta<\/a>\u2018s wild ride of a zombie sequel picks up right where Danny Boyle<\/a> left off in last year\u2019s installment, spinning the hit horror franchise on its head and putting the psycho-social ramifications of the infection under a microscope.<\/p>\n

\n\tOur teen protagonist Spike (Alfie Williams) has ditched the self-sufficient survivor community on an island off the coast of Northumberland, England, only to find himself at the behest of Sir Jimmy\u2019s satanic appetite for torture. Ralph Fiennes<\/a> returns as bone collector Dr. Kelson, who eventually crosses paths with Sir Jimmy\u2019s twisted ideology and his \u201cfingers\u201d \u2014\u00a0the wig-wearing minions weaponized by their charismatic kingpin.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI got sent a script, so I was left to kind of make up my own mind,\u201d begins O\u2019Connell about his introduction to the blinged-out Scot. \u201cI was reading all of these characters on the page, and I think part of me was drawn the most to Sir Jimmy. Then it was a case of going to Danny\u2019s house \u2014\u00a0Nia was there \u2014\u00a0and just discussing it. [I] gave my view on who the guy is and left and waited to hear. It was that infamous period just after an audition where you\u2019re sort of on edge.\u201d So he knew he wanted the part? \u201cOh, really badly.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tWhen asked about how he\u2019d tease Sir Jimmy to audiences coming into this film, it\u2019s a case of finding as many synonyms as possible for the word evil. \u201cHe is a vehicle through the uttermost darkest, depraved parts of us,\u201d O\u2019Connell says. \u201cHe exists in this post-apocalyptic landscape and he\u2019s therefore allowed to be completely no-holds-barred. He survived, so we have to give him some credit. But in Alfie, in Spike, he sees a new recruit \u2014\u00a0and listen, these guys are lavishing in it. They\u2019re having a really good fucking time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWe see what happens to him as a kid, how dreadful and corrupting that has been for him,\u201d he adds, referencing the beginning of Boyle\u2019s film. \u201cAnd this is how he\u2019s exercising it. This is the reality, according to Sir Jimmy, which is a very warped one.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tUpon the release of 28 Years Later, fans went bananas for the theory that O\u2019Connell\u2019s tracksuit-donning ringleader is inspired by British media personality and DJ Jimmy Savile<\/a>, who, after his 2011 death, was accused of wielding his popularity to sexually abuse hundreds of people, including young children and the elderly. Does the hypothesis have legs? \u201cYeah,\u201d says the actor. \u201cI think he sort of models himself on the memory of this figure that was always on TV.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tRalph Fiennes and Jack O\u2019Connell in \u201828 Years Later: The Bone Temple<\/a>.\u2019<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy of Sony<\/p>\n

\n\tIn the 28 Years universe, the virus outbreak occurred in 2002, and thus Savile\u2019s crimes ultimately remain buried. \u201cI think what Alex [Garland] means behind that, and I can\u2019t speak for him, but my take was unchecked power. I think it totally exists in the story to unsettle,\u201d says O\u2019Connell. \u201cI love that it\u2019s showing how popular culture just went kaput. And you see these people who were, in some way or another, just trying to latch on to what the messaging was in that era\u2026 And because me and Nia are the same age, we would constantly go back to that well: \u2018What were people up to back in the day?’\u201d he says about the infection\u2019s freezing of time. \u201cHe uses lingo like \u2018peeps.\u2019 We don\u2019t say peeps anymore!\u201d Something about the delivery suggests O\u2019Connell would love to still be throwing \u2018peeps\u2019 around.<\/p>\n

\n\tTiptoeing around spoilers, he talks about being encouraged by The Marvels helmer DaCosta to chip away at Sir Jimmy\u2019s sensitivity in one particularly memorable scene. \u201cGetting to bounce off Ralph Fiennes alone is a wonderful opportunity,\u201d he tells THR. \u201cBut I think I remember Nia nudging me to be more vulnerable and not be sure-footed. It was very easy to just assume Jimmy\u2019s in command all of the time, but I\u2019m not sure how interesting that would be.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tO\u2019Connell calls sharing a screen with Conclave star Fiennes \u201ca career highlight.\u201d He explains: \u201cYou\u2019re never done learning, and when you\u2019re working with someone like Ralph, it\u2019s gonna come at you in buckets.\u201d He recalls trying to be as attentive as possible, but much of what Fiennes taught him was in the tirelessness of his approach. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter if it\u2019s the start of the day or the end, there\u2019s an investigation going on. Interrogating the work, the scene, and trying to find newness and more inroads, which is really reassuring to see \u2014\u00a0to work with an actor at the level Ralph is at and still finding that desire to find more.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tOn the contrasting directorial styles of Boyle and DaCosta, O\u2019Connell is only full of praise for the pair. \u201cWhat they both have in common is [they\u2019re] unflappable,\u201d he says. \u201cThey never relent. They\u2019re just in it with you, which is massively fucking rewarding.\u201d Stylistically, he says, the camera was a lot more static on DaCosta\u2019s shoot \u2014\u00a0Boyle\u2019s frantic filmmaking process is slightly less traditional \u2014\u00a0but he\u2019s confident The Bone Temple has its own voice. \u201cNia\u2019s using her insights as a fan, but she\u2019s completely put her own mark on it.\u201d It\u2019s clear O\u2019Connell\u2019s also just pretty damn chuffed for his friend.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tO\u2019Connell and Nia DaCosta on the set of \u201928 Years Later: The Bone Temple.\u2019<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy of Sony<\/p>\n

\n\tAnd while a method approach wasn\u2019t necessary for Sir Jimmy \u2014\u00a0\u201cthere was no requirement to be like, \u2018Well, I\u2019m a fucking satanist. Stay out of my way!’\u201d \u2014\u00a0he does admit to having to remain a little intense. It\u2019s not quite how the 15-year-old Williams remembers it, who told THR earlier this week<\/a> that O\u2019Connell would march into the tent on set and begin to serenade his cast and crew with a guitar. He smirks. \u201cNight shoots can be long.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tDoes O\u2019Connell like playing the bad guy? \u201cIt\u2019s been a lot of fun. There\u2019s not been any conscious effort made,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019ve been rolling with the punches a little bit.\u201d Though he is trying \u201cnot to concentrate\u201d on the fact that he keeps nailing these sinister roles. \u201cListen, I love my job. I\u2019m excited for what might be next. The long and short of it is just to try and treat every role the same way I always do, with the same sort of curiosity.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThankfully, we do know what\u2019s next. O\u2019Connell has already shot Boyle\u2019s upcoming biographical drama Ink, written by James Graham. This time around, he\u2019s playing Larry Lamb: editor of The Sun and an early accomplice of Rupert Murdoch, who transformed the outlet into the notorious tabloid we know today. Guy Pearce co-stars as the Aussie media mogul.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s great writing, James Graham, like fucking phenomenal writing, and a really fascinating period of British history and our culture. A lot has changed since then \u2014 an awful lot,\u201d says O\u2019Connell about portraying the mastermind behind page three glamor models. \u201cBack then, [there was] an emphasis on newspapers to keep people up to speed, to keep people informed enough to be able to vote responsibly. Have we lost that? Does that exist now?\u201d His questions hang in the air. \u201cI\u2019m not sure. It\u2019s kind of niche now, isn\u2019t it, to have responsible, non-biased information.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tFor the next few months, though, O\u2019Connell\u2019s riding the high of Sir Jimmy Crystal\u2019s disconcerting magnetism. \u201cThere\u2019s the apprehension of never knowing,\u201d he says about hoping for turnout from cinemagoers. \u201cBut there\u2019s fun to be had in that. I really love this film. I\u2019m so proud of what Nia has done, Ralph, having worked with him and my gang. I\u2019m enormously proud. So, yes, I am biased. But I think people are going to lose their minds over it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThere\u2019s only one question left to answer. Remmick vs Sir Jimmy. Who comes out on top? \u201cAre they alone or does Jimmy have his posse?\u201d asks O\u2019Connell. He\u2019s taking this seriously.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cOne on one?\u201d No hesitation. \u201cOne winner. Remmick.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tMake of that what you will.<\/p>\n

\n\t28 Years Later: The Bone Temple\u00a0is in U.K. theaters Jan. 14, and U.S. theaters on Jan. 16.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"From the penultimate floor of London\u2019s luxe 45 Park Lane hotel, the capital\u2019s skyline is betrayed by dreary,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":411122,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[62993,33442,88,2091,81218,62994,43268,21959,1049],"class_list":{"0":"post-411121","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entertainment","8":"tag-28-years-later-the-bone-temple","9":"tag-danny-boyle","10":"tag-entertainment","11":"tag-international","12":"tag-jack-oconnell","13":"tag-nia-dacosta","14":"tag-ralph-fiennes","15":"tag-sinners","16":"tag-united-kingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/411121","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=411121"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/411121\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/411122"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=411121"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=411121"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=411121"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}