Brit beauty Keira Knightley appears to have stumbled upon what could very well be her most demanding and difficult movie role to date.
Gone are the corsets, tiaras and tortured characters she’s used to playing on the silver screen, as Keira reinvents herself as a regular (even smiling!) young woman in the aptly named romantic comedy Begin Again, opening in cinemas this month.
“After Anna Karenina, I realised that I’d done five years of work where I’d either died or had something horrific happen to me!” the 29-year-old laughs.
It’s true, since her first movie role at the age of nine, Keira’s 20-year career has largely focused on period films – including an Oscar nomination for Pride and Prejudice, playing Guinevere in King Arthur, and as the ill-fated Cecilia in the 1930s and 1940s-set Atonement. And let’s not forget her portrayal of the often corset-clad Elizabeth Swann in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. Now seemed like the perfect time for Keira to try something new.
Keira with Mark Ruffalo on the set of Begin Again.
“I wanted something positive and with hope in it,” she says. “Romantic comedy isn’t a genre I usually go to – it’s one that I find quite tricky – but I thought this film was strange enough, with a sort of acerbic quality.
“A friend of mine said of my [musician] husband and me, ‘You’re a great couple because he makes people have a great time and you make people cry!’ And I thought, ‘That’s so awful. Maybe I need to do something a little bit more joyful.’”
Co-starring Maroon 5 singer Adam Levine, Begin Again sees Keira play a young singer, Gretta, who is unceremoniously dumped by her rocker boyfriend as he ascends to stardom. But it’s not long before an out-of-luck music executive, hilariously played by Mark Ruffalo, decides to mentor her.
Keira married James Righton, from Brit music group The Klaxons, last year.
It’s a role that, unlike her earlier movie parts, echoes her real life. Last year, Keira married James Righton, keyboardist in Brit music group The Klaxons, in two private ceremonies.
This personal experience, she says, helped her in some sense understand the industry in which her character lives, although she couldn’t quite relate to the “new rock star” condition.
“James had been in the band for over eight years [when we met] and they’ve won lots of awards and sold God knows how many records,” she explains. “I’ve never experienced being with somebody who is finding fame.I can’t imagine that’s much fun.”
The star says she was lucky to have her musician beau on hand to help her in the role, which calls for her to sing and play a few musical instruments. Although she admits things went seriously pear-shaped when her husband attempted to teach her the guitar.
“I nearly killed him,” she says, laughing. “Don’t get your spouse to try to teach you a musical instrument. It’s just a terrible idea!”
But while it might be assumed that this A-list actress and her musician husband have enough money to employ 50 guitar teachers, Keira says their life is a lot more down-to-earth than it sounds. Preferring track pants and takeaways to the red carpet, Keira chooses to keep life simple and spend time with her oldest friends, most of whom are not in the industry.
Keira on the set of her new film, Begin Again.
She has even gone as far as giving herself a $100,000 salary to live on, despite the hefty sums she earns.
“I think living an [expensive] lifestyle means you can’t hang out with people who don’t live that lifestyle. It alienates you. Some of my best, most hilarious times have been in the least luxurious places,” she reveals.
“Two girlfriends and I went to Paris last year and stayed in a $40-a-night hotel. One of the friends wasn’t working at the time, so we went for the cheapest place possible. We were sharing a room with two tiny single beds – you couldn’t open the door to the toilet and the door to the room at the same time. It was so much fun.”
It seems that life out of a corset is really starting to suit Keira, although she admits she wouldn’t say no if the next role called for it. “If a good corset one comes up, I’m happy to get back in one,” she laughs.
Or perhaps this really is a new beginning for Keira. ”Maybe after this I’ll be offered a musical!”
