Nova Scotia boy makes good on HBO’s Big Little Lies
TORONTO — Nova Scotia native James Tupper says being among the group of A-list stars on HBO’s hit Big Little Lies is the best thing that’s happened to his career.
And he credits a fellow Canadian — Quebec’s Jean-Marc Vallée, who directs the show — with giving him the opportunity.
Tupper plays the easygoing ex-husband to Reese Witherspoon’s acerbic character in the darkly comedic murder mystery, which creator-writer David E. Kelley based on Liane Moriarty’s bestselling novel.
Other cast members on the limited series include Nicole Kidman, Shailene Woodley, Laura Dern, Zoe Kravitz, Alexander Skarsgard and Adam Scott.
“I’ll always be a small-town boy from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia,” Tupper says from Los Angeles, noting his East Coast family is practically speechless over his success on the show.
“But just to be in that group of names is obviously the best thing that’s happened to my entire career. When you get up to that level, I call it the NBA level, like the top level — everybody is very, very good at their job and very open about working with people. They want the thing to work and they’re supportive and give it every reason to succeed.”
The former star of Men in Trees, Revenge and Aftermath says Vallée was his advocate from the beginning when he auditioned for the role of Nathan on Big Little Lies, which follows the complicated lives of three mothers after a murder in the seaside town of Monterey, California.
“Jean-Marc is one of the most open and giving human beings and I feel like when I went in and auditioned for this, he was one of the really big reasons I got it,” says Tupper, “because people in Hollywood tend to want to cast a big star or a big name and he was just like: ‘No, you’re perfect for this and this is exactly right for you and I want you to do it.’ ”
Vallée’s other directing credits include Dallas Buyers Club, for which he got an editing Oscar nomination, and Wild, which earned Witherspoon and Dern Oscar nominations.
“I’ll tell you frankly, and I’m not exaggerating: he’s one of the humblest, kindest, most intelligent people I have ever met,” Tupper says of Vallée.
The show is making headlines for its realistic portrayal of domestic violence, based on a storyline involving the characters played by Kidman and Skarsgard.
“You get a chance to delve into the psychology and that’s one of the things I’m probably proudest of,” says Tupper.
“If you get to participate with a group of artists and make something that’s really truthful, that’s about the highest you can go, in my opinion. They don’t skim the surface … It’s really gnarly.”
The seventh and final instalment of Big Little Lies airs Sunday on HBO Canada and Tupper — who would only reveal that he and Kravitz sing in the episode — will be watching.
“It’s the only time I’ve had a viewing party,” he says. “Every Sunday a bunch of my friends come over and we order pizza and watch it.”