BY: DINO TAKASHI

British actor Billy Howle has played different roles IN REAL LIFE that are equally exciting as his characters in film, theater, and television. From being a Prada model to playing music and doing “character voices,” Howle’s range is remarkable. This year, he is reuniting with director David McKenzie via FX’s Under the Banner of Heaven written for TV by Academy Award winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black (Milk), led by Oscar Nominated Andrew Garfield (tick, tick...BOOM!).

This limited series is based on Jon Krakauer’s nonfiction book published in 2003 about extremist/fundamentalist Mormons whose mental illness led them to the deranged Manson-esque execution/murder of several individuals in the Utah Mormon community, including their own family members. Howle is portraying Allen Lafferty, married to Golden Globe nominee Daisy Edgar-Jones’s (Normal People) character, the youngest brood of the two older Lafferty self-proclaimed prophets.

We caught up with Howle to discuss how he got this role, how he prepared to play this character and his acting process.  

Shirt: LANVIN

Hi Billy, how are you?

I'm very good, how are you?

I’m doing well! Can you introduce yourself to our readers?

I’m Billy Howle and you’ll soon see me in Under the Banner of Heaven on FX/Hulu.

How did you get this role?

I've worked with David McKenzie and we made a film together called Outlaw King back in 2017. I got a call from him saying he has an exciting project with an exciting script. It's been around for a long time been through several renditions. It was supposed to be a movie and then they decided that it will work better as a series. He told me the people who were involved include Dustin Lance Black. I had a long conversation with David about the tenets of the project and the role that he was considering me for. Then I had two separate conversations with Dustin Lance Black about the project as well, so we got to know each other sort of informally during the first chat. The second conversation was more specific after I’d read three episodes of the script. I was very interested so then it was sort of waiting game. And finally, they said we’d love you come see it and do it. And then I found myself in Calgary then we started filming.

Before accepting the role had you researched about the Mormon faith?

I am always very careful when the stories that I’m telling are about creed and religion. I want to operate in a respectful place. I wanted to understand about Mormonism as much as I could. A good starting point was Jon Krakauer’s book and then Book of Mormon and I admit it– Wikipedia.

Fair enough. And about your preparation for the role, is this the first time you had to lose your English accent?

It's not the first time. There was an adaptation of The Seagull written by Stephen Karam and the cast were all Americans.

How do you get in the headspace when you had to cry a lot for a scene?

Some of it is very experiential, what I’m really doing is mining my own experience and my own past and fully immersing myself in the story.

Let’s make this conversation lighter in relation to an extreme fundamentalist religion. Were there any extreme things that you had to change yourself and to be with somebody that you like?

I'm putting this diplomatically because everyone is always doing that. I believe that everyone is making minor adjustments to fit into social situations

Any extreme things you did to get a role that you want?

I shaved my head once. I don't know if that's extreme!

If you were a book, what would you be and why?

That is a tricky question.  I’d be The Master and Margarita because it's insanely chaotic.

Under the Banner of Heaven is now streaming on FX/Hulu