Cillian Murphy: 'I've seen the final season of Peaky Blinders, it's intense'
Cillian Murphy, as Tommy Shelby, in season six of Peaky Blinders.
The final season of will be “very intense” Cillian Murphy has said.
The Tommy Shelby actor said he has seen all six episodes of the final season and it would be a "heavy" experience for fans.
Speaking to the Cork actor was otherwise tight-lipped on what fans can expect from the forthcoming season, but revealed they were “very far” into the cut.
One last deal to be done.
— Peaky Blinders (@ThePeakyBlinder) January 1, 2022
Watch the final series of #PeakyBlinders, coming soon on @BBCOne and @BBCiPlayer. pic.twitter.com/abH8GYJdiu
The Douglas-born actor also revealed that he initially thought using contemporary artists such as The White Stripes and Arctic Monkeys on was a “terrible idea”.
“I’d seen it on other period shows, and it didn’t work: it felt earnest and forced and self-conscious.” But he changed his mind when he heard Nick Cave’s , now emblematically linked with the show.
“Nick Cave has become the musical talisman for the whole thing,” he said, “the energy and atmosphere and tone of his music.” Murphy said he hopes the connection has worked for Nick Cave as well.
“He’s one of the great living artists. If we’ve helped people discover Nick Cave, then I’m really pleased.”
The soundtrack to the series has been a key component of the show, and Murphy revealed there is a “Peaky playlist” - a Spotify playlist with his co-producers - where they try out songs for scenes while filming takes on his computer scene.
The show has featured a range of artists (and covers) from Iggy Pop to Laura Marling, Radiohead and Black Sabbath.
One of the actor's favourites has been Radiohead.
“They’re probably my favourite band in the world,” he said.
Murphy has long been a keen music fan. He used to play with Cork band Sons of Mr Green Genes before he became an actor, and has been hands-on in recent years as an organiser of Sounds From A Safe Harbour, the biennial music festival in Cork. The 45-year-old also hosts his own show on BBC 6 Music.
The sixth season of Peaky Blinders will air on BBC One later this year with Paul Anderson, Sophie Rundle and Tom Hardy all to resume their roles. The final season will also see ’s Stephen Graham join the cast.
Murphy was speaking to Rolling Stone from Los Angeles. Upcoming roles for the Cork star include playing the lead in , the big-budget biopic about American scientist J Robert Oppenheimer, head of the project to develop the atomic bomb. Directed by Christopher Nolan – who Murphy previously worked with on such films as – the film also stars Emily Blunt and Robert Downey Jr.
