INTERVJU / INTERVIEW
desert to save children T
I don’t know why Hollywood keeps sending me to the
here’s something deeply poetic in the fact that the most in-demand actor on the planet right now has be- come a global phenomenon
thanks to a role in which he almost never shows his face. In the series The Mandal- orian, Pedro Pascal, the man whose smile and boyish energy seduced Hollywood, portrays Din Djarin, a lone bounty hunt- er who wanders the outer rim of the Star Wars galaxy. However, what was intended to be a story about a cold-blooded warrior transformed into one of television’s most moving stories about parenting, belonging and a moral compass. As we sit opposite him, Pascal radiates the same warmth he manages to penetrate even through sev- eral layers of fictional armour each week- end on the Star Channel. Humble, witty and incredibly grateful for the moment he’s living through, he is happy to reveal his artistic process for Elevate. Din Djarin is a character defined by his helmet, which means that you need to convey a sense of duty, heartbreak and tenderness without using facial expressions. How much does that change your acting technique? - That was a totally new level of act- ing discipline and a really fascinating professional challenge. When your pri- mary tools are taken away from you as an actor - the eyes, the micro-mimicry, lip movements – you suddenly feel com- pletely exposed, even though you’re ac- tually completely physically protected by armour. You realise just how much you rely on facial expressions to convey emo- tion in classic roles. Here, everything had to shift to the voice, to a specific rhythm of speech, barely perceptible sighs or the way you tilt your head just one millime- tre. The helmet has its own weight, both physical and metaphorical. My task was to ensure the audience constantly feels the beating of the human heart and the conflict between duty and empathy un- der that cold, impenetrable steel. That is, of course, top teamwork. Amazing stunt- men and doubles bring fascinating phys- ical expression to the suit on the set it- self, while I combine all those layers into one coherent soul through voice acting and joint rehearsals.
The man who is currently one of the world’s most sought- after actor talks about the epic saga The Mandalorian and the challenges of acting under a helmet, but also why he most loves portraying deeply imperfect heroes
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