A lot of times when I’m interviewing the cast of a movie I get to take the pictures of the talent. For this one I split the photo taking process with another blogger and for Richard Madden I was able to sit and listen to the entire interview. I enjoyed listening to Richard Madden talk about his role in Cinderella and how he confessed that his eyes really are that blue. Sitting across from him I didn’t believe he was telling the truth, but whenever he takes a photo and he’s wearing the slightest bit of blue, his eyes really are blue. He was a charming young man and you could tell that he was very modest and still really new to being the center of attention. Cinderella is his first major part. Here are a few bits and pieces from the interview the bloggers had with Richard Madden.

Q :So how did you get involved in what– the process of playing a Prince?

RM : I wanted to make him– I wanted to make him different. In the animation you only see him in 2 or 3 scenes. Um and also in the original animation there’s this kind of old fashioned view I think of you know a woman needing a man to come and rescue her from a terrible life and that’s kind of outdated enough.

Not a message I think we should be telling young girls and in this version it’s, it’s not that which is great. You’ve got a, a young man with all of his own problems and a young woman with hers and actually they, they bring the best out of each other. I think she rescues him as much as he rescues her and that’s why I was really interested in this, in this version.

We got to kind of see this real young man character and most importantly you know Cinderella’s this wonderful amazing woman that I wanted to make a man that was worthy of her affections.

Q : What was your initial reaction when you found out you got the role as the Prince?

RM : Well I was kind of just overwhelmed. I was in Canada shooting mini-series and I just got like a text from my Agent before and it said, you are about to receive a call answer it. I was like, “Okay.” Uh it was Branagh who’d called to tell me, I got the part.

And I was like just overwhelmed and uh really excited and then um just really terrified after that of like, “Oh God everyone’s gonna’ be like he’s wrong casting and how am I gonna’ do it? And this– and that’s not my idea of a Prince. And, and so all the feat of that, but like I just went back to the original animation and when actually somebody got 2 or 3 scenes we don’t get to know his name. I can build a character from scratch and I can do that with, with Branagh. There’s no one better to kind of take me through that then him that than him. He is like– a lot of my Prince is based on, on Kenneth Branagh ‘cause he is like a true gentleman.

Q : How did you like working with him?

RM : I loved it. Everyday it’s like you’re on set with Kenneth Branagh, and Cate Blanchett, and Stellan Skarsgârd, and Helen Bonham Carter. It’s like kind of a master class and in acting and also just in like how to conduct yourself as an Actor and you know. Um but Ken’s just amazing because the same amount of detail was put in something like this as it would be into something like MacBeth. You know I’d be on set and he’d kind of just come up and give me a big —-I think the Prince would really do anything that. ……I’ll go with that, but that’s kind of what he’s like. And that’s great because it just gives you so much ammunition so I can into these scenes with Derek and we can improvise.

And we can really play because you’ve got so much going on Ken really kind of inspires you. And that’s why you know um it brings out the best in me and that’s why we’re working together again in 2016 because we enjoyed working together.

Q : What was your favorite scene?

RM : The first scene that I show up with Lil um which is us on horseback when we first meet in the woods. I kind of– I like being outside and being on a horse. Uh it’s more fun than being in the studio most of the time. But it’s just like you know that was our first day on set. That was the first day of shooting. That was the first time with, with Lily.

So….you kind of have all, all of that going on on top of us kind of trying to play that scene. And I love what Ken wanted to do that– these, these 2 huge beasts. They were both trying to control their feelings and, and this kind of dance that they do on the horses.

Q : How hard was it to learn the dance routine?

RM : It was miserable…….Um I– I’m not a naturally gifted dancer. Uh so I had to kind of train for like 2– 2 or 3 months to like 3 or 4 times a week to get myself up to scratch so that– I mean there was 2 months before they let me near Lily’s dress….. and because I would just destroy it. I went through like 2 practice dresses that looked like a bunch of cats have destroyed them and–

But yea I wanted to make sure the– I think the Prince would enjoy dancing. So I wanted to make it look as if he was enjoying it and also that I could just act with Lily and not be thinking about what I’m doing with my feet.

Q : Were there any scenes that made you cry?

RM : Yeah the scene with Derek uh playing the King……..that was an emotional day and– but a really good one. I love, I love working with Derek. Um it was kind of an icon to me. Um and that was kind of a really moving scene. He plays it so beautifully it’s– it was hard not to get caught up in that.

Q : For that scene um you were almost like in a fetal position with her and that was just so touching and it just like breaks your heart. It was kind of ……when Cinderella was with her father. So was that kind of directed that way?

RM : Yeah it was directed that way, but I think that’s– I had chats with Ken at the start and we wanted– it was important I think how we see these two characters. You know I think first and foremost Cinderella’s a daughter and the Prince is a son and they’re so influenced by their parents. And I think that’s how we get to know them and get to know their personalities and what they’re like.

And they really wanted to kind of you know get that relationship going. And I wanted to have– I really wanted to have uh a sense of humor to this Prince. And, and Derek plays the King so well with that kind of sense of humor. I wanted the Prince to have that and, and for them to kind of be influenced by each other.

Q : If there were a blooper reel. What would be the one that would be the highlight?

RM : I don’t know. I mean that first scene is quite a lot of like– it’s you know if you see the B-Roll stuff there’s like marks on the ground that you’re supposed to have on the horses hooves. I mean it’s hard enough just gettin’ the horse to run a straight line sometimes. So and like this endless footage where there’s just nothing …and you’re kind of coming in and out of the shot on the horse trying to get it right.

Q : How does it feel to be a role model for young men?

RM : Um well the Prince is the role model not me. And, and the Prince is the role model not me, but that was important. I grew up with these Disney films and I have 2 sisters. So we– they watch these films and say that. And I think that’s just where you first deal with first thing came to. Um death, and love, and uh good and bad, and that’s what I really wanted to do with this Prince.

Was, was make someone, as I said at the start, that’s not that old fashioned view of you know a girl needing a guy. And I think I wanted to, to try and make a Prince that young men would have to look up to that– a Prince that you know has a, a built in respect for women uh and a compassion to the people around him, an awareness of his privilege. And so if there’s– there’s little boys that, that grow up and are… by then uh I’ll be really honored by it.

Cinderella is now in theaters!