Jessica Gunning shot to fame for her startling portrayal of a troubled stalker in last year’s Netflix hit Baby Reindeer.
The Yorkshire-born actor, 39, won an Emmy, Bafta, and Golden Globe for her performance as Martha, a woman who becomes obsessed with Richard Gadd’s protagonist in the series.
Fame, however, has its downsides – especially when people confuse you for a character like Martha.
In an interview with the BBC, Gunning recalled an incident in which a stranger abused her in the street.
“I’d just parked near where I live and a woman screamed in my face!” said the actor. “But in her defence she had just finished the series, walked out of her home and there I was.”
“So that’s surreal, occasionally being screamed at,” she said.
Gunning added that everyone had “mostly been so lovely” about her role on the series.
“There’s also an incredible statistic about the difference the show has made to charities, especially ones for male survivors of sexual assault,” she continued.
“I think it shows people want complicated stories. I have had 14-year-olds come and talk to me about it, as well as 90-year-olds.”
Released last year, Baby Reindeer was adapted from Gadd’s semi-autobiographical one-man show of the same name, and spanned seven episodes on Netflix in 2024. It was highly acclaimed for its intense portrayal of stalking, winning six Emmys and two Golden Globes.
When Gadd won the Emmy for Best Writing in a Limited or Anthology Series last year, he described his victory as “the stuff of dreams”.
Elsewhere in the BBC interview, Gunning described the part of Martha as “the role of a lifetime”.
"I got goosebumps when I first read the script," she said, adding that she had undertaken five auditions for the role.
Given the intense subject matter of their shared scenes, Gunning said that she and Gadd formed a “unique bond”.
“We always checked in with each other and the producers and director made sure everything felt safe and considered,” she said.
Although Gunning had been working as an actor for almost two decades before landing the part of Martha on Baby Reindeer, she said the Netflix show arrived at the right time in her career.
“I feel like if something like Baby Reindeer happened straight after coming out of drama school, maybe I'd feel like a bit of a deer in the headlights, pardon the pun,” she said.
“Now I feel a lot more grounded and I've got a big group of family and friends. But it is kind of strange, the number of viewers that Netflix bring in, you can’t really compute. If you think about it too much it can feel a little bit scary.”
Gunning will next lend her voice to the BBC One and Children in Need animation Pudsey and the Thread of Hope, which will air on Christmas Eve at 10.20am.
What to watch over Christmas and new year, from Amandaland to Anaconda
Holiday island sees tourist numbers soar after appearing in hit Netflix show
Inside Netflix’s unhinged Christmas universe
Tess Daly makes surprise Strictly move in her final ever appearance on show
Saturday Night Live writer asks for help amid sister’s disappearance
Hugh Laurie was ‘really tricky’ on The Night Manager as he ‘wanted another role’
