I went through hell.. but just kept on going
New wife has been a rock for Churchill star
OSCARS: GARY OLDMAN ON
months for us, and to have her by my side has been wonderful. After the age of 50, it just got better. I met the love of my life Gisele, my wife, and I have the role of a lifetime. “She has been so incredibly supportive during this whole process. Gisele really was a key collaborator in this whole process for me, and vital in me finding Churchill’s voice.” Oldman actually considered turning down the role because the Second World War leader been played so well by other actors, such as Robert Hardy, Albert Finney and Brian Cox. But Oldman said he was drawn to the film as it showed Churchill “wasn’t a curmudgeon” but was “energetic and funny”. He said: “We think of him as an old man – who was born in a bad mood. It wasn’t an immediate yes. Because he’s
Oldman as Winston in the Commons been played so successfully, you wonder what you can add.”
The omens for Oldman are good as he has won the Golden Globe, Critics’ Choice Award, SAG, AACTA and AARP for the role. But he said the adulation had been tough: “This has all taken some getting used to. I’m quite a private person. I’ve never been any good with crowds. It’s all very nice. No complaints. But there’s an energy of people coming at you that you absorb. It’s quite frenetic. The night of the Golden Globes, I must have taken 300 selfies and it felt like I had met 1,000 people. And they’re all lovely and gracious and well-meaning.
“It’s shocking when you think about it, that that many people wanted to meet me in the first place. One should never take for granted the sound of applause.”
Oldman also reflected on getting older: “I am nearly 60. What can I say, the eyes are starting to go, the knees are a little dodgy – I make those old man sounds when I get up out of chairs.
“The great thing about being 60 is the things I have experienced and being able to say I was there when it happened. I was there the first time around.”
halina.watts@trinitymirror.com