Known best for his comedic skills as an actor and screenwriter, NICK FROST has found a cinematic niche for himself in films like “Shaun of the Dead”, “Hot Fuzz” and “The World’s End” collaborating with director Edgar Wright and Frost’s longtime friend, actor/screenwriter Simon Pegg. Often in tune with the notes of British comedy, Frost has also made his way into television, most notably of late in AMC’s “Into the Badlands”, as well as recurring roles or one-offs in shows like “Dr. Who”, “It’s Kevin” and “Galavant”, or providing distinctive character voicing in films “The Boxtrolls”, “Ice Age: Continental Drift” and “Monster Family” and more. But now Nick steps into a role we haven’t seem from him; that of a loving family man named “Rowdy” Ricky Knight in FIGHTING WITH MY FAMILY.
Based on the true life story of WWE Superstar Paige and her family, dad Ricky, mom Julia and brother Zak, as Ricky Knight, Nick finds the perfect blend of husband and father putting family first with that of the life of a professional wrestling family. Alongside Nick, FIGHTING WITH MY FAMILY also stars Florence Pugh as Paige, Lena Headey as mom Julia and Jack Lowden as Paige’s brother Zak. Written and directed by Stephen Merchant, the story is well told, each character fully fleshed out, well-developed and tapestried and true to their real-life counterparts. The heart in this story is beyond genuine. There is never a false moment of emotion within the Knight family and much of that comes thanks to Nick Frost where the love of family comes across with every turn, every half-nelson, every diving chop, every body-press, every choke, leglock, and arm wrench. Comedy stems from the often over-the-top exuberance of Ricky’s pride and love for his family and the ring, and Nick finds a delicate balance that keeps the performance grounded and authentic. The meld of “performance in the ring” with the genuine love among the immediate family is beyond resonant.
Affable, in good spirits and laughing along the way, Nick spoke with me about FIGHTING WITH MY FAMILY, portraying “Rowdy” Ricky Knight, his own love of wrestling, and how it felt to have the real Ricky want Ray Winstone to play him instead of NICK FROST.
I’m very excited to be speaking with you about this role, Nick. I love what you brought to the character of Ricky; just an overgrown teddy bear with an undying love for his children.
Oh, thank you very much! Ricky’s funny. Ricky’s good for an actor, I think, to portray. It’s, I think, that sometimes as a baddy, you dimensionally only have that. It’s just, well, you’re all bad. But with Ricky, and as in real life, you can be bad and you could make a mistake, and you might be a violent, armed robber, but you’re also a Dad and a loving husband. And Ricky is everything he is because of his family. Even though that may be not how I do things, I completely understand that motivation as a father.
This is something that I haven’t seen too much from you. We’re so used to seeing you craft comedy so subtly and so nuanced, but here, you got to be this working-class guy who loves his family, but then you also got to be over-the-top with Ricky’s in the ring persona.
Yeah! That was the great thing about getting this script and reading it because I knew that people would let me improvise stuff around the character. In the ring, when he’s in the ring, you know as The Rock says at one point, “Your screen persona your, ring persona, is essentially you dialed up to 11,” so I got to really chew the scenery, and it was completely within reason of what my character would do.
Were you a WWE fan before this movie or were you aware of the family or Paige?
I knew about all of that, you know. I’d been a fan of wrestling since I was a kid and we used to have wrestling. They used to show wrestling on TV in Britain on Saturday mornings on a show called the “Wide World of Sport” and it was on an hour a week. I remember watching it thinking “Gee whiz! Look at these giants! It’s incredible!” Even then I realized it wasn’t… I don’t know…I’m not going to say it wasn’t real, but I loved the fact and I completely bought into the fact that this was a soap opera. I appreciated it for what it was. Then it kind of it lost favor and it wasn’t on TV at all really for a long time till we started getting satellite and cable in the early 90’s mid to early 90’s, and then we started to see for me, what was the original WWF which was Hulk Hogan and the Ultimate Warrior. And from that point on we watched it as a family, with my family, with my friends. I think that was a point when we’re in our mid to late 20’s when we kind of had a keen backyard wrestling bout going on and we got to have a bit of a wrestle. I loved it. I liked the theater of it, and I think people who say “Oh, it’s not real”, I think if you for a second imagine that it is real in terms of the lunacy and the ridiculousness of it then there’s something’s wrong with you. Not with wrestling.
You’ve worked so much with Edgar [Wright]. You work a lot with Simon [Pegg]. And now you’re working with Stephen Merchant. I’m curious as to his dynamic in collaboration with you as an actor. Does he allow for a lot of improvisation? Does he like to adhere to the script? What is that dynamic like?
I’ve known Stephen for a long time, and socially we’ve known each other and we’ve hung out and laughed, and he came in in a bit in “Hot Fuzz.” I was kind of thrilled that he got in touch and said, “Do you want to be in this film?” I really like Stephen as a person. I think there’s a pecking order on the set despite how many years you’ve been doing the job, or how successful you are. I think Stephen’s the boss and he’s the director, and I did everything I could to facilitate what he wanted; not just as Ricky but for the whole thing. But I think being mates with Stephen and being very successful in my own right, it gives you a voice on set and a voice for me to say “Hey, could we try this?” Or, once you cover everything that’s written, then often there’d be a halt and we’d have a little another go here or be bit looser. That’s the time to bring your own bit in. But I’m always aware that just because I know you I shouldn’t take advantage of a friendship. Just that when you’re on set I think there is a pecking order. Stephen set out to make a film and I think that needs to be respected as a process.
Were you surprised when he came to you with this script?
In terms of the comedy-drama film actors’ Venn Diagram of big men who potentially could be wrestlers in one circle and funny people in the other, it’s me and Kevin James. I don’t think they could afford Kevin James. So it was just me in the end. [laughing]
Was there anything that struck you in particular when you read the script, on the whole, given the fact that you did know about the whole family and you have followed wrestling for years? Was there something in the script that struck you be it authenticity, be it straying from the “soap opera” of the sport?
There was a great balance in it. I think it is a film with wrestling in it. It’s not a wrestling film. I think reading the script I was aware that I think wrestling could have been pulled out and it could have been canoeing or brass bands or ceramic making. It’s a film about a family which is why I really liked that aspect of it. But I think I really liked the fact that in the script Stephen kept in Zak’s journey. If this had been a big studio film from the get-go, there could have been an exec somewhere that suggested that Zak’s story ends on a high and he gets called and he gets another crack at the WWE, but I’m pleased that Stephen and the Rock and Kevin Misher were all brave enough to make his story. He doesn’t succeed. He’s told flatly at the end that you don’t have what it takes. And in terms of the disappointment, it’s kind of cool to watch because you don’t get to see it that often. But I think also that what Stephen is saying is being a good dad and having a family and having all those kids from the WAW love and look up to you, that in itself is its own reward and I think that’s pretty cool to watch.
Now the big question for you, Nick. Paige has made no secret talking about how her father wanted Ray Winstone to play her father and not you. Have you had a chance to talk to the real “Rowdy Ricky Knight” since he has seen the film? Is he happy with your performance?
Well, I have not seen Ricky yet. I’ve never met Ricky yet. But, I’ve got to say if I was going to have a biopic made of my life I would want Ray Winstone as well, so I agree with Ricky in that respect. And you know what? He apparently didn’t know who I was beforehand, which is fine Since he has seen it he really really liked it, which is great, because it means that I can go to the premier and with the gala screening next week in London and not fear that I’m going to have my shoulders pulled out of their sockets.
You always take something away from a project depending on the type of the project, who you’re working with, etc. What did you personally learn about yourself stepping into this world and this character of Ricky, that you can now draw on as you go into future performances?
I don’t know. I mean, I think there’s a lot to be said for being yourself constantly. I’ve heard that a lot on this press tour and maybe I never really thought about that, maybe it’s just something that I do naturally, is just to be yourself. Maybe that’s why I got to where I am. I think Paige said today earlier on a conference that that was her secret weapon, just being yourself. I think it’s really important and I think it takes people a long time to find that out. I don’t know if there’s any right or wrong answer in terms of when they do, but if you can find that and harness that then I think that’s pretty important.
by debbie elias, exclusive interview 02/10/2019
