RISING UP FROM THE DEPTHS

A MOTHER AND SON FINALLY MOVE ON FROM THEIR GRIEF

Saturday Night Live star Pete Davidson swaps comedy sketches for a more serious side in director Judd Apatow’s new comedy drama.

The King of Staten Island is a semibiographical take on the life of the 26year-old, who lost his firefighter father during the September 11 attacks and has had his own battles with depression. Screen veteran Marisa Tomei stars opposite Davidson as his character Scott’s mum Margie and is full of praise for her young co-star.

Q: How would you describe Margie?

A: In my book she is up for sainthood because of her level of patience; just like Pete’s mother Amy in real life, who has endless patience, a huge heart and is fierce about her children. Sometimes it wasn’t easy for me to do those scenes where I felt she was taking a lot of crap, but Margie doesn’t feel that way.

Q: Your character is a nurse who works in the ER. How was it to play a first responder like her?

A: I already had an enormous respect for what nurses do, but now even more. Both my character and her husband who died were heroes and natural givers. Q: And how does she balance her work with her personal life?

A: I think her inner life has kind of been numbed down, as she has fought really hard for her children to keep their education and make sure there is always food on the table; so, she hasn’t focused much on her own personal life. Margie has her sister and her cousin, but not much of a romantic life. I just believe she hasn’t had fun for a while.

Q: But that changes when she meets Ray, played by Bill Burr, right?

A: Yes, and that totally reignites her, as there is some kind of a wildness inside Margie too. The fact that she works in the ER means she knows how to handle adrenaline and even kind of likes it – which is another thing she had in common with her late husband. So all that feisty fire gets reignited when she meets Ray. That is the reason why Margie can handle a kid like Scott and maybe also why she is attracted to firemen and sort of has a type. She has that fierceness and fast pace inside her, even though it’s been shut down for a while. Q: How was it to act opposite Bill?

A.: I loved working with Bill because he made me laugh all the time, but at the same time he is this philosopher you can talk about anything with: your feelings, the perspectives of the day or even what is going on in the world. There is always something interesting to talk about with him, and that is really relaxing because it leads to a relationship that then just melts right into the scene. It was a real pleasure to work with Bill, and he cracked me up a lot.

Q: Do you believe people will get to know a different side of Pete Davidson in this film?

A: Yes, I do, because the couple of hours we spend with him watching the movie are different to what we get from reading an article about him, or even his SNL persona. I believe you will understand better why he was traumatised, and in that sense he is not alone. Q: How excited were you to work with Judd Apatow again?

A: Amy Schumer introduced us on

Trainwreck, but it was just a day, in and out. He has such a special way of working, with the camera always rolling and the improvising. Once you know the rhythm it’s a very liberating atmosphere, but on that one day on Trainwreck I didn’t really know the rhythm and wondered if I had done a good job. So I was happy to have the opportunity to be invited back. Q: Family relationships play an important role in many Apatow films?

A: Yes, he has always been really focused on families, while having wild adventures within them, and I think that continues throughout his work. In this case the subject with Pete is serious, as there was a lot of grief and pain that he was still dealing with, so I think Judd found a new mixture in The King of Staten Island. Q: How would you explain that new mixture?

A: When I talked to Judd about the film he was making I realised that he was doing something tonally different, mixing laughs and dark comedy with very emotional stuff, and that it was very hard to achieve. It’s a difficult balance to strike, and he does it very consistently during the movie. The King of Staten Island opens in cinemas on Thursday.