Between the Harry Potter film franchise and the most recent Star Wars trilogy, there probably aren’t too many general audiences who don’t know who Irish actor Domhnall Gleeson is. Yet despite having an occasionally difficult-to-pronounce first name and a famous actor father, Brendan Gleeson, that hasn’t stopped the 35 year old from making much smaller fare, like The Little Stranger. For that reason, Gleeson is doing a lot of press at the moment, but that doesn’t mean he’s avoiding questions about his fantastical film pedigree, let alone how to pronounce his name.
Considering the particularly nasty vitriol that Star Wars: The Last Jedi, especially for writer/director Rian Johnson and actress Kelly Marie Tran, has received as of late, Gleeson’s comments about dealing with potentially awful fan reactions were especially interesting. Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, the actor revealed his work in the Harry Potter films did much to prepare him for the occasional perils of fandom. “Harry Potter was the best possible training for that,” he explained. “I felt a little worried about fan reaction, but you can’t control that; all you can do is your job.”
Gleeson didn’t talk specifically about the hateful rhetoric directed at The Last Jedi, Johnson or Tran, but the relevance of his comments remains. As for all the troubles with his first name, GQ‘s interview with the actor literally began with a concise explainer for everyone who has ever struggled with it. (Including this writer.)
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(Via Entertainment Weekly and GQ)