Slow Horsesis an Apple TV+ television adaptation based on a book series by Award-winning author Mick Herron. Slow Horses Season 4 is adapted from the fourth book of the series. This show follows a team of British intelligence agents who serve in a dumping ground department of MI5, calledSlough House.
Kadiff Kirwan joinedSlow Horsesin season 2 as Marcus Longridge. He has been in many television shows but is perhaps most well-known for his roles as Pete Wilson inDodo, Aaron inChewing Gum, and Jason inTimewasters. All six episodes ofSlow Horsesseason 4 are now available to stream on Apple TV+. The series will return forseason 5.
James Callis Talks Slow Horses Season 4 & The “Fun Dance” Of Scenes With Gary Oldman
James Callis discusses being “late to the party” with Slow Horses, his character Claude, and the joy of working with Gary Oldman in season 4.
Screen Rantinterviewed Kadiff Kirwan, discussing the trials and tribulations that Marcus has gone through during season 4 ofSlow Horses. He spoke about doing his own stunts, what he was most excited to explore this season, and how it has felt for the series to be embraced by an audience. Kirwan also reveals what it is like working withGary Oldman and the rest of the incredible cast.
Kadiff Kirwan Does A Lot Of His Own Stunts On Slow Horses
“The fight sequence in the garage? I think I’ve still got a couple of bruises from that.”
Screen Rant: What were you most excited to explore this season?
Kadiff Kirwan: The Shirley and Marcus dynamic being ramped up with the amount of pressure that they’re both under. And then the surprise nature of who is after the horses this season. That was pretty amazing. And the level of skill that the bad guys have come with. Marcus has been through the ringer. The fight sequence in the garage? I think I’ve still got a couple of bruises from that.
Screen Rant: Do you do a lot of your own stunts?
Kadiff Kirwan: I did a lot of the stunts myself and I also had a brilliant stunt double. But my stunt double, he was like, I think maybe 20 years older than me. So I was like, no, no, no, I’m going to do this. No, no, no, no, no, no. It was great pushing myself and pushing my body in any which way I could. But yeah, those fight sequences were amazing. Really great.
Screen Rant: Is there something that you were most excited to film this season?
Kadiff Kirwan: For me, it was the shootout in Slough House in the season finale. Those two weeks when we shot, that was just like, I didn’t realize it was the little boy’s dream to do that. But it turned out it was because I felt so powerful and so slick.
“It’s been a really beautifully collaborative season.”
Screen Rant: Have you read the books?
Kadiff Kirwan: I have read the books. And what’s been nice is Will Smith, our showrunner, is always on set, but also this season, Mick Herron was around a lot more. So we were able to really pick their brains about motivations and things we love. “Can we get more of this?” or “What do you think about this?” and “What do you think about this offering?” It’s been a really beautifully collaborative season.
The Slow Horses Cast Has A Group Chat
“Literally, I saw Chris Chung, who plays Roddy Ho, 25 minutes ago. We speak every day.”
Screen Rant: What has it been like working with this cast?
Kadiff Kirwan: Literally, I saw Chris Chung, who plays Roddy Ho, 25 minutes ago. We speak every day. There’s a group chat. Obviously, we see each other on set and everything, but it’s been beautiful, and it’s been top down. Gary, he’s known for playing a wide spectrum of characters, but actually he’s just a really big cuddly bear. He’s very, very funny. He’s very kind. He gives great advice. And he tells a good anecdote.
We all learn from each other, and we’re constantly trying to top each other with stories and really make what’s on the page sing. So all of that off-screen stuff really helps when we’re doing those big group scenes in Slough House. It’s been really special. The question I get asked constantly is what does Gary smell like? Because he looks terrible as Lamb. My response is always, he smells like he’s got an Oscar, so he smells beautiful.
Kadiff Kirwan Has Learned A Lot From Gary Oldman
“Often we can throw stuff away, but he really pays attention to the punctuation of a sentence in a script. It’s been beautiful to be up close and see that.”
Screen Rant: What have you learned from working with Gary Oldman?
Kadiff Kirwan: I’ve got a notebook of things I’ve learned from Gary. I mean, there’s so many things I can dive on, so many things I can’t. It’s been just the up close and personal relationship with him and seeing how it works. The detail he squeezes out of every word, the looks. He just inhabits the character from top down, like fully. He’s constantly trying to unearth the motivation of things. He attacks the dialogue with such pathos and such clarity.
It’s just seeing that everything means something. Often we can throw stuff away, but he really pays attention to the punctuation of a sentence in a script. It’s been beautiful to be up close and see that. He is genuinely one of the best people I’ve ever seen up close and personal act. He’s just phenomenal.
Kadiff Kirwan Loves The Wide Range Of The Slow Horses Fan Base
“You’re getting sons and dads and daughters and grandmothers and aunties. It’s just beautiful.”
Screen Rant: Slow Horses has a constantly growing fan base. How has it felt to be fully embraced like that?
Kadiff Kirwan: Honestly, it’s incredible. The fans are so amazing. It’s seeing what kind of fans we have. Often you may tell based on your work or when someone’s coming up to you, like, that person likes Chewing Gum, or they’re like, This Is Going To Hurt. But with Slow Horses, it’s everyone. You’re getting sons and dads and daughters and grandmothers and aunties. It’s just beautiful.
And being at the Emmys a few weeks ago, it was seeing the scale of famous people who wanted to come and talk to us and try to find out spoilers. We were like, “No, sorry, can’t tell you that.” That was insane. I was like, whoa, I’m genuinely having a conversation with Stephen Colbert about Slow Horses. This is insane. And he absolutely loves the show. Oh wait, over there, there’s Reese Witherspoon. I think she likes our show as well. It’s mad. It’s been a joy because everyone is trying to do their best. It’s constantly a joy. No one goes back to their trailer.
Kadiff Kirwan Was Surprised By A Lot In Slow Horses Season 4
“As a fan of the show, aside from Marcus, it was finding out the trajectory of River’s family and who means who to whom in the family.”
Screen Rant: Is there something that surprised you most this season?
Kadiff Kirwan: There were lots of things. As a fan of the show, aside from Marcus, it was finding out the trajectory of River’s family and who means who to whom in the family. That was like, whoa, what? And then the shootout inside Slough House, and what happens in that sequence? When I read the scripts, I was like, “How are they going to do this? ‘Cause this set is insane. This set is purpose-built. Are they really going to be able to blow it to bits?”
And we did. You feel the intention that’s on camera. Like, you’re sweating because there are so many lights on you, and you know there are explosives 10 meters away from you. It’s all safe and above board, but the beauty of it is knowing that every single department is trying to top themselves. So you’re going, I’m going to top myself too. It’s been bloody brilliant.
About Slow Horses Season 4
Slow Horses is an adaptation of CWA Gold Dagger Award-winning Mick Herron’s first novel in the “Slow Horses” series, which follows a team of British intelligence agents who serve in a dumping ground department of MI5 – Slough House. Gary Oldman stars as Jackson Lamb, the brilliant but irascible leader of the spies who end up in Slough House due to their career-ending mistakes.
Slow Horses
Cast
Slow Horses follows a dysfunctional team of MI5 agents led by the notorious Jackson Lamb. Set against the backdrop of the espionage world, the agents must navigate complex operations and defend England from sinister forces, all while dealing with internal struggles and their abrasive boss.
