He’s the star of Netflix’s new comedy hit Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga and Pierce Brosnan has admitted he could do those “kinds of romps” for the rest of his career.
The Drogheda born actor does an enjoyable comic turn as the Icelandic father of Will Ferrell who is competing in the Eurovision with Rachel McAdams and desperate to win.
No stranger to playing in Eurovision related materials, Pierce has of course also starred in both Mamma Mia movies.
“I was at drama school in London in 1974 when Abba won with Waterloo and I was very aware of it,” he told the Irish Mirror.
“Everyone watched it and it was gloriously grand and silly and passionate and people wore their hearts on their sleeves for their countries. Some of these acts had outrageous flair.
"This movies is an attempt to celebrate artists and living your dream and being passionate about your dreams.
"I suppose Dana did that too and so did Johnny Logan. Eurovision was always a part of the culture in Europe, whether you laughed at it or took it seriously,” he said.
“I’ve always been a big fan of Will Ferrell and of course he has long ties to Sweden thanks to his wife and her family, so when I saw the script, I thought it was tonally perfect, so it was really easy to say yes.
"It was a great romp and I could do these kinds of romps for the rest of my career, if I kept getting the offers. I’d even say yes to Deadpool, if I were asked.”
Pierce is also well-known as an accomplished painter and much of his original work was used in the movie The Thomas Crowne Affair, in which he also played the lead. He says if were ever to play a painter in a movie, he would love that to be the Austrian artist, Gustav Klimt.
This year marks 25 years since Pierce starred in Goldeneye, his first movie in the James Bond franchise, of which he was a part for four movies before being replaced by Daniel Craig.
“I remember getting the call from my agent saying “you got the role on Bond” and I remember saying “I hope this is real. I don’t want to be standing at the altar again waiting for this role to come into my life”.
"I remember the intense workload everyone carried. It had been dormant for six years, so the responsibility was enormous. I knew if I got it right, it would be a good opportunity of carrying on as an actor and having a career.”
Despite the upset he felt at losing the Bond role, Pierce works consistently on TV in the western drama The Son and in movies.
After finishing work on Eurovision in Europe, Pierce had started filming Cinderella in Blackpool earlier this year, in which he plays the King. But the pandemic shuttered filming before completion and now it’s unclear when the movies will be completed.
“Minnie Driver is my Queen and we were in the North of England and Blackpool shooting the ballroom scene where she dances with the prince and loses her slipper.
"I had gone down to London to do a big engagement with Prince Charles – I’m an ambassador for his charity – and then he got tested positive for the virus. Everything shut down and I came back to Kauai in Hawaii in mid-March and put myself into quarantine. We’ve been here ever since.”
Hunkering down with his wife and sons in Hawaii has been mostly lovely, but like with any family enduring enforced lockdown has had its challenges.
“We’re here on the North Shore of Kauai where we have a house that has been the family home for 20 years. It’s a three bedroom cottage on about five acres of land and it’s on the water’s edge, very beautiful, idyllic and pastoral. We’re generally getting on well together, but of course there are moments when we drive each other nuts! That’s par for the course.
“'Take out the garbage.' 'Take out the compost.' 'Empty the dishwasher'.
"My dear wife Keely is cooking and she’s a great cook who cooks with great passion and gusto, so there’s definitely been a bit of irritability and friction at times, but overall, it’s been a joy.
"There’s been great gratitude for being here and I keep saying, there is always a thump of anxiety about the virus, because the Hawaiian islands are small, but so far there have only been a handful of cases.”
Two of his close friends in London died from Covid-19, since the pandemic started in March.
“This virus really makes you think. Our planet hasn’t seen the likes of this in any of our lifetimes and you do find yourself confronting your own mortality,” he said.
“I lost two dear friends to Covid, Jay Benedict, who was my brother in life – I’m godfather to his sons. I also lost Andrew Jack, a dear man and a dialect coach who worked with me on James Bond and so many other movies.
"The possibilities of getting the virus and what would happen, it gives life an extra sense of beauty and brilliance and you realise and value the simple things in life. It's definitely a spiritual journey of sorts.”
