Jennifer Saunders on showing off her dramatic chops in Netflix’s twisty thriller The Stranger
Jennifer Saunders has admitted that she was scared about stepping out of her comfort zone and tackling her first major dramatic role in Netflix’s thriller The Stranger.
“Comedy is what I do naturally but this is quite different. It’s terrifying!” she told us. “But I was thrilled to be asked. Thankfully no one on set shouted, ‘What are you doing here spoiling a drama?!’ Once you’ve done the first take, you think, ‘This is like normal filming, it’s fine.’ You just don’t have to go for laughs. I’d love to do more.”
MORE: Saunders: 'My daughter got me obsessed with the Moomins!'
The Absolutely Fabulous star plays cafe owner Heidi Doyle, who is left reeling as she becomes one of the targets of a mysterious stranger (Hannah John-Kamen) who delivers bombshell revelations to people about their loved ones.
“Heidi has a lovely life, her daughter Kimberley is at uni, and she’s planning a trip away. But the information the stranger gives her throws her off kilter. Her world collapses,” said Jennifer. “There’s collateral damage and so many twists - it's exciting!”
For Jennifer, one of the highlights of the filming The Stranger, which also stars Richard Armitage and Dervla Kirwan, was getting to work with Siobhan Finneran, who plays DS Johanna Griffin, Heidi’s best friend.
“She’s my favourite actress. I love her in everything she’s done. So I could barely breathe,” she said. “I had to sit down and recover!”
All episodes of The Stranger air on Netflix from Thursday 30 January.
