Acclaimed British director Joe Wright has opened up about his latest project, Mussolini: Son of the Century, detailing some of the challenges he faced when making the eight-part drama charting the rise of the Italian fascist leader, reports the Manchester Evening News.
The series was adapted from the novel M: Son of the Century by Antonio Scurati and filmed entirely in Italian, including the title character breaking the fourth wall to give an uncomfortably up-close and personal portrait of Mussolini.
In an exclusive interview with Reach Screen Time, the 53 year old filmmaker behind Darkest Hour, Atonement, and Pride and Prejudice, said: “It was a big challenge but I remembered that Danny Boyle had done Slumdog Millionaire, much of which was in Hindi, and I thought, ‘Well, if he can do Hindi, I’m sure I can do Italian.'”
Wright went on to hail the “great” team surrounding him on the drama, praising the actors, including Luca Marinelli, Francesco Russo, and Barbara Chichiarelli as “sublime”.
He added: “I think I figured it out really,” explaining how he had the Italian and English scripts positioned next to each other whilst directing the series.
The BAFTA-winning director was initially contacted by producer Lorenzo Mieli to helm Mussolini: Son of the Century.
The project proved particularly relevant given the resurgence of fascism across the globe. Wright elaborated: “I remembered the 80s when I was a teenager and going around calling the police fascists and school teachers were fascists, and I realised that [with] the reemergence of that word around the world that I didn’t really understand what it meant and perhaps we’ve trivialised the word.
“So I felt it was a responsibility of mine, to myself, to try and understand what it meant and where it came from.”
He concluded that it was “evasive” but at the centre of it was “an emptiness, a vacuum or a void”.
“It doesn’t believe in anything. It’s anti a lot of things, but in terms of a belief system, it’s more of a kind of mechanism.
“I think one of the things I realised, especially in the depiction of its central character, it seemed to me to be a politicisation of toxic masculinity.”
Reflecting on a possible second season, Wright said: “I think I would be interested in telling the story of his relationship with Hitler, but beyond that I’m not sure.”
Mussolini: Son of the Century aired earlier this year in the UK, receiving a strong reception from critics and audiences alike, and is now being broadcast in the USA and the rest of the world on streaming platform Mubi.
Teasing the finale to the show, Wright cryptically said: “It gets pretty dark” and urged audiences to watch and experience the show for themselves.
Mussolini: Son of the Century is streaming on Mubi now in the USA and on NOW in the UK
