Rami Malek has said he knew he had landed the role of Freddie Mercury after doing a shot of tequila with Queen drummer Roger Taylor and guitarist Brian May.
The American actor plays the late frontman in biopic, Bohemian Rhapsody, which follows the band from their formation in 1970 through to their iconic performance at Live Aid in 1985.
Malek, 37, had a five-hour meeting for the role in Los Angeles following an invitation to audition after Sacha Baron Cohen dropped out.
He then flew to London to take up singing and piano lessons as well as hiring a dialect and movement coach to prepare him for a performance audition at Abbey Road Studios, which saw him questioned in character as Mercury.
Malek said his heart was “beating out of my chest” after May and Taylor were later shown the footage in front of him but he knew he had the part when they toasted the performance with a shot.
He told MR PORTER: “I thought they’d seen it already!
“So they’re watching it on a laptop, and I’m standing there with them with my heart just beating out of my chest.
“But Brian May was really sweet. I think he was taken aback. He used the word ‘uncanny’.
“Shortly thereafter we went to Roger’s bar in the house and had a shot of tequila. That’s when I thought, ‘OK, I have this part.’”
Read the full interview at mrporter.com
