Nicholas Hoult has certainly come a long way since he first played Beast in the X-Men franchise. These days, he’s been pursuing a wide range of genres, starring in the horror rom-com Warm Bodies, the action-adventure Mad Max: Fury Road, and more recently, Hulu’s comedy series The Great where he stars opposite Elle Fanning. But perhaps, Mark Mylod’s The Menu sees Hoult play his meatiest role yet.The Menu sees Hoult play a devoted foodie who convinces his girlfriend to dine at an exclusive restaurant on a remote island, only to discover that there’s something sinister about the restaurant, particularly its executive chef. The film also marks the first time that Hoult has starred opposite actress Anya Taylor-Joy who plays the unimpressed girlfriend.
Nicolas Hoult Found His Character ‘Funny’ And ‘Obnoxious’ At First Read
For The Menu, Mylod had a specific requirement. He needed a cast that knew how to do improv and would be incredibly comfortable doing it. And so, starting with Ralph Fiennes (who plays the chef in the movie) and Taylor-Joy, he put together the cast.
With the help of casting director Mary Vernieu, the script found its way to Hoult, who found his character, Tyler, both fascinating and hilarious the first time he read it.
“I found it very funny. He was obnoxious on the page and ridiculous and entitled and a lot of un-charming things, I suppose,” the actor explained.
“I guess the fun of it was playing this character who was drinking the sauce so much and such a goody two-shoes and with this chaos going on around him, the joy and calm and peace that he can still find in the experience that he's having and believing that he's superior, I guess, to everyone.”
‘Everyone’ ultimately includes Taylor-Joy’s character, Margot. And while the co-stars (purposely) don’t portray an endearing pair onscreen, it seems Hoult and Taylor became good friends behind the scenes.
Nicholas Hoult Says Anya Taylor-Joy Is A ‘Very Open And Giving’ Scene Partner
Since most of Hoult’s scenes were with Taylor-Joy, they were together a lot throughout filming, which the actor didn’t mind at all. He also got a front seat to her brilliant acting.
“Anya’s such an incredible actress in terms of her authenticity in every moment, but also being very open and giving to you as a scene partner,” he said. “So you kind of get this ability to try things and run with things and feel completely like you're in the moment together.”
At the same time, Taylor-Joy also had nothing but praise for Hoult as a scene partner as she revealed that the actor was supportive when she wanted to try some things while filming.
“So we all did a lot of improvisation, and my improv that I’m most proud of is a bit of action. It’s a physicality element because I’m very drawn to the subject of feminine rage right now,” Taylor-Joy told The Hollywood Reporter.
“And so I went up to Mark and I said, 'This is what I think she would do in this situation. May I try it?' Nick was also down to do it, so we did it, and it was just electric. It was so much fun. And when I saw that it ended up in the movie, I was so happy. So I’ll probably recall that day and how game Nick was to just kind of take it, take after take.”
The Co-Stars Also Bonded Over Food While Filming
Meanwhile, it also seems that the two co-stars bonded over food, sort of. Throughout filming The Menu, Hoult found himself eating a lot more than usual while filming a scene.
“I ate tons because Tyler is meant to be someone who is all about the food and a bit of a glutton,” he explained. “He’s greedy and just wants to drink in this whole experience. So I ate so much.”
At the same time, Mylod’s approach to filming every scene also meant that he couldn’t stop eating.
“Mark also shot this film with roaming cameras, and I just wasn’t sure what was going to be on screen at any time,” Hoult said. “So I just had to dedicate myself and commit to eating.”
That said, Taylor-Joy was also there to help out a little with the food in case Hoult needed it. “Sometimes I'd have Nick's leftovers, if there were any,” the actress told Entertainment Weekly.
They’ve Given Each Other Some Advice On Upcoming Projects
Now, Hoult and Taylor-Joy may have never worked together before but they quickly discovered that they run in the same circles, especially when it came to their upcoming work.
Interestingly, Hoult is about to work with Robert Eggers (who directed Taylor-Joy in her breakout film The Witch and later on, The Northman) on Nosferatu while Taylor-Joy was doing Mad Max: Fury Road prequel Furiosa with director George Miller.
Knowing Taylor-Joy would work with Miller after, the actress said that Hoult was just “so beautifully supportive.” “Because he knew that I was going to do [Furiosa] almost immediately afterwards, his only words of advice were, ‘You’ve got this. You’re going to be fine. Trust me, it’s going to be great, and I, for one, am really excited to see it,’” she recalled.
Meanwhile, Taylor-Joy did give Hoult a bit of advice about Eggers. “We did speak about that a little bit. Anya said that he’s such a wonderful director to work with in terms of what he demands of you as actors, but also what he’s able to mine from you,” the actor recalled.
“So going into work with him, that’s something that I’m really excited about seeing.”
