Bryan Cranston

Joe Brody in Godzilla

What’s Gareth Edwards like as a director?

He’s wonderful, because he has a perfect demeanour for being a director. He has a very specific idea of how he wants something to be yet he doesn’t extend that to being belligerent or demonstrative. He allows his actors to create their environment and then guides them. The other factor that I found very refreshing is that when he didn’t have an answer, he volunteered that. He said, “I’m not quite sure of the best way to play this moment,” and you don’t often hear that. It makes the actors rally round. Do you recall watching any monster movies with your own family?

Yes. In fact, my dad was an actor in one – The Beginning

Of The End. It was about giant grasshoppers, and my dad was playing an army man perched on top of a building with binoculars, looking in one direction and sending in his report. Behind him you see these antlers coming up, then hear him say, “I don’t see…” and he’s attacked. So SF and monster movies were all part of it. My favourite is

Night Of The Lepus.

Why is that?

It’s giant bunny rabbits! It’s the most hysterical thing you’ve ever seen because they take these bunny rabbits and build these miniature buildings. And the bunnies are hopping along and knock down these little fences and things. Then they get some food colouring and put it on their lips as if they’d eaten some people. You’ve got to see this movie. It’s hilarious!