Nicholas Hoult Talks Kill Your Friends, X-Men: Apocalypse

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Nicholas Hoult Talks ‘Kill Your Friends,’ ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’ and More at TIFF 2015

By Perri Nemiroff

Published Sep 22, 2015

He also plays "Would You Rather" and addresses whether or not he's still in the running for 'The Crow.'

Ready to see a new side of Nicholas Hoult? He plays an especially despicable A&R rep in Owen Harris’ big screen adaptation of Kill Your Friends. Steven Stelfox is a sharp dresser, has a nice apartment and his own office, but he’s determined to surpass his rivals and climb higher up the ladder at his record label, and he’s willing to take down anyone in his way in order to do so.

While at the Toronto International Film Festival for the Kill Your Friends world premiere, I got the opportunity to sit down with Hoult to discuss the challenges of playing such a twisted sociopath and what he learned about the music industry from author and screenwriter John Niven. On top of that, Hoult also played “Would You Rather,” talked briefly about working on X-Men: Apocalypse, addressed the recent The Crow casting rumors and discussed the prep he’s done for Danny Strong’s feature directorial debut, the J.D. Salinger biographical drama, Rebel in the Rye. You can catch it all in the video interview below.

Nicholas Hoult:

00:04 - On his character’s unforgettable dance scene in the film.
00:58 - Latching onto the language more than anything when bringing Steven Stelfox to screen.
01:37 - He didn’t know what A&R stood for before reading the book.
02:05 - It’s a more realistic portrayal of the music industry in the 90s than most films.
02:22 - On his discussions with author and screenwriter John Niven.
02:54 - Similarities between the music and movie industries.
03:20 - Has he ever done anything crazy to secure a role?
04:06 - On working with director Owen Harris and the significant amount of dialogue.
05:00 - Hoult plays “Would You Rather.”
10:04 - What films would he like to see at TIFF?
10:24 - Hoult on X-Men: Apocalypse; it felt similar to making First Class and Days of Future Past.
10:50 - When he likes to be aware of the technical elements on set and when he doesn’t.
11:21 - Hoult on working with Oscar Isaac.
11:55 - On being in the mix for The Crow.
12:37 - On starring in Danny Strong’s feature debut and playing J.D. Salinger.
13:45 - On attending film festivals; the one bad festival-going habit he’s got.