Back to Black star Marisa Abela has revealed the most “nerve-wracking” moment of filming the new movie.
Abela plays Amy Winehouse in the upcoming biopic which also stars the likes of Eddie Marsan, Jack O’Connell and Lesley Manville, and alongside her dramatic performance, she also provides vocals for the entire film.
Speaking exclusively to Digital Spy, the actor picked out a moment during production that was particularly scary to film, where she performed as the late songstress.
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“There were days I was really excited about,” she said. “I guess the first day that I knew I was going to have to sing on set, I was quite nervous about it. I had been singing for so long in the privacy of my singing teacher’s room or even Abbey Road Studios or in front of Sam [Taylor-Johnson, the film’s director].
“There’s something about singing in front of a room full of other actors and the whole crew, there is a certain pressure to deliver. You kind of know everyone is secretly like: ‘What’s she going to sound like?’ That was nerve-wracking, yeah.”
Director Taylor-Johnson revealed that while she always knew the actor would be able to deliver, there was a contingency plan in place for if Abela’s vocals didn’t work out – but even she was surprised by just how well everything unfolded.
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She said: “I had a sense [Abela] was going to deliver something extraordinary. Going off and working with a voice and singing coach, I had this sense it was going to work. At the same time, you think it’s such a far reach, what if it doesn’t? In my mind, I kept thinking: ‘It could, it might, it will’.
“If it doesn’t, I had it in my back pocket to dub, but I just had this innate feeling that the work she was doing would get us to an amazing place. I didn’t know we’d get to this amazing place where she sings the whole movie.”
Back to Black is released in UK cinemas on April 12.
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Sophie Anderson, a UK-based writer, is your guide to the latest trends, viral sensations, and internet phenomena. With a finger on the pulse of digital culture, she explores what’s trending across social media and pop culture, keeping readers in the know about the latest online sensations.
