This Is Why Charlie Hunnam Feared That Accepting The Role Of Ed Gein Was A 'Horrible Mistake'

Charlie Hunnam at the premiere of Monster: The Ed Gein Story last weekCharlie Hunnam has admitted he had somewhat mixed feelings about portraying Ed Gein before his work on Monster began.The British actor plays the lead in the third season of the hit anthology series, which is the most-watched show on the platform right now, but has also sparked plenty of controversy, with many viewers accusing the show of sensationalising Gein’s heinous crimes.Speaking to GQ Hype about the show, Charlie opened up about his decision to play Gein, and also spoke about his thought process when it came to preparing for the role. In the interview, Charlie described how he likes to prepare for his roles very thoroughly, but when it came to researching for his performance as Gein, it all became a little overwhelming. “I just went, ’I don’t have the skill set and the knowledge of the human condition, or any reference point or the talent to be able to pull this off,” he explained. “And yet, I had to go to work.” The Newcastle-born actor read books, news stories, medical records and court transcripts relating to Gein in his Hollywood-based office, before filming started.Charlie recalled: “The whole thing just turned so dark and impossibly bleak. I thought I’d made a horrible mistake, frankly. Maybe I shouldn’t say all of this, but fuck it.”However, Charlie went on to say that he came around to the idea after two “eureka moments”.Charlie Hunnam in character as Ed GeinThe first came when he remembered a visit to the Body Worlds exhibition as a young man, and connected it to Gein’s own rumoured fascination with the human body.He recalled pondering: “How much of this was a fascination with anatomy and wanting to see what’s underneath, and how much do we all in some way or what percentage of us have that in common?” The second was when he nailed the voice of Ed Gein, which came after managing to get his hands on an audio recording of the notorious killer.Season three has been the most divisive season of Monster yet, following previous seasons dedicated to Jeffrey Dahmer and the Menéndez brothers.Charlie has repeatedly defended the show, including during a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, in which he said: “If people are compelled to talk about it and think about it, hopefully they’ll actually be compelled to watch the show.“What I would hope and feel really confident in is that it was a very sincere exploration of the human condition and why this boy did what he did.”Charlie is also reportedly due to return to Monster for its upcoming fourth season.Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story will star Ella Beatty (daughter of Warren Beatty and Annette Bening) in the titular role, while Variety has reported that Charlie Hunnam play her dad, Andrew Borden.Read Charlie Hunnam’s full interview in GQ Hype.View this post on InstagramA post shared by GQ (@gq)READ MORE:Thought The Stars Of Monster Season 3 Looked Familiar? Here's Where You've Seen The Cast BeforeCharlie Hunnam Hits Back At Claims That Monster Season 3 'Sensationalises' Ed Gein's CrimesMonster Season 3 Has Set An Unenviable New Record For Netflix

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