Jamie Dornan Wants to Be the Cool Dad
The actor on why he was initially reluctant to play the father in Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast.
Jamie Dornan began his year on-screen serenading seagulls with a melodramatic rock ballad in Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo’s delightfully bizarre comedy Barb & Star Go to Vista Del Mar. The performance won him praise from comedy fans and critics alike for his commitment, and helped audiences see the former 50 Shades actor in a new way. As if to put emphasis on his versatility, he ended the year in Kenneth Branagh’s autobiographical coming-of-age drama, Belfast, as a version of the director’s own father. Dornan’s performance has garnered nominations for best supporting actor from the Critics Choice Awards, the Hollywood Critics Association, and more. For W’s Best Performances issue, he talks about his hesitation to play a father, his enduring friendship with Eddie Redmayne and Andrew Garfield, and the superpower he secretly wants.
What was your reaction when you first heard about the part?
In Belfast, I play a dad, and there was a moment when I read the script where I thought, I’m a young guy—I’m not ready to play a father! Mind you, in real life I do have a wife and three daughters, but my kids in Belfast are a bit older than my actual children. Then I realized that I was playing a version of [writer-director] Sir Kenneth Branagh’s dad, and I felt better. I also grew up in Belfast, and I wanted to make the city proud.
Belfast is a tearjerker. You’d played a father before in The Fall.
Yes, but he was a serial killer. Not exactly Father of the Year!
What movie makes you cry?
Philadelphia gets me every time. I had some friends around to watch it, and I gave out tissues at the start of the film. I was weeping, and my friends just stared at me; their eyes were dry, while I was sobbing.
You started your career at the same time as Eddie Redmayne and Andrew Garfield. The three of you have remained close.
We never felt like it was a competition. We’d audition for the same roles sometimes, and we’d even help one another prepare. Somehow we all found our way and managed to stay friends.
If you could choose a superpower, what would it be?
Flying. I have a recurring dream that I’m flying over Belfast. I fly over the city and wind up home.
Jamie Dornan wears an Hermès tuxedo, shirt, and tie; Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello hat.
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