A Good Girl's Guide to Murder star Henry Ashton opens up on "intense" scenes

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder star Henry Ashton has opened up on filming some of the more intense scenes as the cruel Max Hastings.

The actor joins the cast of the book adaptation as Max, whose entitled attitude gets him on the wrong side of a suspicious Pip Fitz-Amobi (Emma Myers) as she investigates the murder of school girl Andie Bell.

Believing Sal Singh, Andie’s boyfriend, was innocent in the crime he was accused of, Pip starts retracing his steps – and lands on the doorstep of Max, who had a gathering that evening with Sal in attendance.

Closed-off and snarky, Max and Pip quickly find each other in a battle of wits – starting with Max making the young Pip neck shots and escalating when she breaks into his room.

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Speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com, Ashton reflected on the scenes and their intense nature, and how he and co-star Myers played them out.

"That first scene, I think, is my favourite scene of the show," he said. "I think there's an element of verbal sparring with Pip and Max, and I think the power changes constantly throughout that scene.

"She walks in with a star outfit, and I'm very, you know, wolf-like, and I've got the power, but then that shifts throughout the scene.

"Though Pip finds her confidence more later on in the show, you almost see a little bit in that bit of it, in that scene."

He added: "We got to rehearse that scene a lot thanks to Dolly [Wells, director], which is why I think it works on camera. I loved that scene. I loved acting with Emma. She's such a pro, but I'd say the most uncomfortable scene would be episode 2, when she sneaks into my bedroom."

In the scene, which airs during the second instalment, Pip makes her way into Max’s bedroom to find a revealing photo of Andie taped to the back of a photo frame on his nightstand.

But she’s quickly caught by Max, who emerges from the shower and is furious at her for invading his space and finding what could be considered incriminating evidence.

"That scene was a bit awkward because, you know, you see Max in a different light, and I am just coming out of the shower, so it's a little bit more revealing," Ashton explained.

"And I remember being aware of the kind of intensity, and what Max is showing in that scene is quite a bit different than the first scene.

"Emma and I were high-fiving in between takes and making sure we were OK, because it was quite an intense scene."

While Max (spoiler) didn’t turn out to be the killer of Andie, or Sal, that doesn’t make him any less of a horrid person – with the character drugging and raping Becca Bell, Andie’s sister.

Later learning Andie was distributing drugs – including the ones used to rape her – Becca and Andie got into a huge fight, leading to Andie’s death.

When Ashton discovered the dark nature of his character, he admits he felt like he had to figure out why he acts the way he does, and why he’s hidden so much of what he’s done.

"That was the biggest challenge with Max, was trying to find a level of... not justification, but understanding of why he does what he does," he said.

"Because I think if you want to play anyone truthfully, you need to find a deeper reason than just, 'He's evil.'

"Privilege, but I think a lot of the time, privilege can breed entitlement. And I think entitlement is where I found a really good kind of strong foothold for Max as a character, and then everything kind of comes from there in the way he reacts and acts and his actions and his thought process."

He added: "I've had to kind of softly warn family members of what the show kind of contains and stuff. [The book’s] got such an amazingly enthusiastic fan base, and part of me was curious at the best of times, a little nervous at the worst of times, about their reaction to Max.

"But it has been amazing the reaction, and although people really don't like Max, I now, you know, see that as a good thing. It means that I've played him how I think someone like that should be played.

"If you walk away from the show really liking Max, then I've not done my job."

For support and advice on matters raised in this article, please visit www.rapecrisis.org.uk, call the 24/7 Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Line on 0808 500 2222 or chat to Rape Crisis online 247sexualabusesupport.org.uk.

A Good Girl's Guide To Murder is available now on BBC iPlayer.

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