Some TV writers do edgy relationship comedies. Some do slick espionage dramas. Not a lot do both. In fact, it’s hard to think of anyone besides Phoebe Waller-Bridge, the 32-year-old British actress-playwright-showrunner behind BBC America breakout Killing Eve, starring Sandra Oh as a secret agent chasing a psycho female assassin, as well as Amazon's Fleabag, in which Waller-Bridge plays a sort of darker, more twisted Bridget Jones (season two starts shooting in London this August). "I’ve kind of been in a Killing Eve-Fleabag sandwich,” she tells The Hollywood Reporter of her busy year. “I’m mostly in my pajamas under the duvet with my laptop trying to figure out what to write next.” Actually, she gets out from the duvet on occasion; she found time to play what sounds like a pivotal part in Solo: A Star Wars Story, though you won’t actually see her face on screen. “I play a droid called L3,” she says. “I do the movements … [Read more...] about Phoebe Waller-Bridge Is Having Her Moment With ‘Killing Eve’ and ‘Solo’
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How Phoebe Waller-Bridge is popularising the female gaze
Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Killing Eve is arguably a world apart from her highly acclaimed Amazon series, Fleabag, and her hilarious, sadly short-lived sitcom, Crashing. And yet her signature flair for diving into the most vulnerable parts of her strongest characters has turned this comedy-spy series into something entirely her own. The premise is as simple as the storyline: MI5 agent chases Russian spy; Russian spy chases MI5 agent. The characters who drive it, however, are layered, surprising and extremely self-aware. And, crucially, they are women. MI5 agent Eve (Sandra Oh) and her assistant Elena (Kirby Howell-Baptiste) do not call for (male) backup when they find themselves in a dodgy situation; Villanelle (Jodie Comer) and Nadia (Olivia Ross) would have been perfectly capable of carrying out their assignment without Diego (Edward Akrout) – and this feels completely natural even in a TV landscape that does not yet trust its female characters to convince audiences of their … [Read more...] about How Phoebe Waller-Bridge is popularising the female gaze
With Killing Eve, Phoebe Waller-Bridge Smashes Every Rule of Spy Series
New episodes of Killing Eve air on Sundays on BBC America.We meet Villanelle (Jodie Comer), the aptly named villain of Killing Eve, in a charming Vienna cafe in which Wes Anderson would feel right at home. A radiant, glamorous young woman with high cheekbones, long, flowing hair and giant hazel eyes, Villanelle spoons ice cream into her mouth while staring at a little girl who does the same. She shoots the girl a serene smile, then checks her watch, rubbing out a tiny red spot on the glass of the watch face. Finally, she stands up, gathers her things, and on her way out the door casually tips the half-eaten dish of ice cream onto the girl’s lap. This is the sinister-sweet opening of Killing Eve, which premiered April 8 on BBC America and has already been renewed for a second season — an auspicious start to a terrifically surprising series. Adapted from Luke Jennings’s novels by British playwright and TV creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Killing Eve is confounding in the … [Read more...] about With Killing Eve, Phoebe Waller-Bridge Smashes Every Rule of Spy Series
Phoebe Waller-Bridge Comedy ‘Run’ Lands HBO Pilot Order
HBO is going into business with Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Two months after being taken out into the marketplace, the premium cable network has handed out a pilot order to comedic thriller Run. Packaged by Entertainment One, Run is a romantic comedic thriller about ex-lovers who made a pact 15 years ago that if they ever needed to escape life, they could send each other a simple text message — "RUN" — and impulsively disappear together. Run is their story. DryWrite co-founder and co-artistic director Vicky Jones will pen the script and exec produce alongside Fleabag and Killing Eve creator Waller-Bridge, with the latter set to recur as Flick. Wigwam Films' Emily Leo will also exec produce the potential series, which is now a co-production between HBO and independent production company Entertainment One. eOne's Carolyn Newman and Polly Williams will oversee for the Mark Gordon-led company. Run comes as Waller-Bridge is fresh off rave reviews for BBC America's Killing Eve, which … [Read more...] about Phoebe Waller-Bridge Comedy ‘Run’ Lands HBO Pilot Order
Sandra Oh Has Found Her New “Person” in ‘Killing Eve’ Creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge
"Sandra Oh has the offer." That became a regular phrase muttered over the course of the past four broadcast pilot seasons. The actress would pass on everything. Instead, Oh opted to wait four years after wrapping her decade-long run as Grey's Anatomy's beloved Cristina Yang before she would land on BBC America's Killing Eve to mark her return to series regular television. Created by Fleabag breakout Phoebe Waller-Bridge and already renewed for a second season ahead of its debut Sunday, Killing Eve is based on the novellas by Luke Jennings and revolves around a psychopathic assassin (Jodie Comer in a breakout role) and the woman charged with hunting her down, Eve (Oh). Oh's character is a far cry from Grey's Anatomy's confident and career-focused Yang. Eve, while equally whip-smart, is a low-level security services operative whose desk-bound job doesn't fulfill her fantasies of being a spy. Below, an admittedly "more confident and more chilled" Oh talks with The Hollywood … [Read more...] about Sandra Oh Has Found Her New “Person” in ‘Killing Eve’ Creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge