Tom Hollander on transforming into 'mythical' Truman Capote for Feud
From The White Lotus to La Côte Basque.
Tom Hollander has discussed his transformation into Truman Capote for the second season of Ryan Murphy's Feud – including his approximation of the showbiz legend's distinctive voice.
Capote Vs The Swans examines how the author and screenwriter bitterly alienated his high-society friends by including thinly veiled stories they had told him in his ultimately unfinished novel, Answered Prayers.
Fresh off his acclaimed and attention-grabbing performance in The White Lotus season 2, Hollander is front and centre in another glossy US drama, with the first challenge being to capture Capote's essence without drifting into caricature.
On finding his voice, Hollander said at a press conference: "Honestly, I just listened to it a lot. And I was helped enormously by the most brilliant voice coach called Jerome Butler, who was there with me every day.
"And then Truman himself was on my phone, in my ear, before every take, and so I could be with him whenever I wanted to, and remind myself what he sounded like."
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British talent Hollander went on to say that working on his Capote accent was an ongoing process throughout the entirety of filming, as opposed to something he could ever rest easy about.
He continued: "You just keep scratching away. It's not something that you get, and then you've got it and then you can hold on to it. You have to keep going. Keep working at it."
That said, The Night Manager and Rev star wasn't overly concerned with delivering an exact recreation of the real man, describing the show's interpretation of Truman Capote as "mythical".
"Rather than become Truman Capote," he explained, "I tried to find the bits of me that could be him, or the bits of him that were like me, and then you somehow try and meet the character somewhere in the middle – not quite in the middle, a little bit further towards him, I would say."
Hollander added: "Ryan [Murphy, producer] was very helpful and said, 'Get the flamboyant, classic stuff in early so that the audience feels reassured that they're seeing the person they imagined they were going to see. And then later you can start being your version more.'"
Feud: Capote Vs The Swans is the long-awaited second edition of the anthology drama, which began back in 2017 with Bette and Joan, recounting the rivalry between Bette Davis (Susan Sarandon) and Joan Crawford (Jessica Lange).
Feud: Capote Vs The Swans is coming soon to Disney Plus UK. Sign up to Disney Plus for £7.99 a month or £79.90 for a year.
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Authors
David Craig is the Senior Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest and greatest scripted drama and comedy across television and streaming. Previously, he worked at Starburst Magazine, presented The Winter King Podcast for ITVX and studied Journalism at the University of Sheffield.
