The actor described her latest project as “therapy”.
Annabel Scholey has recalled feeling “terrified” by her challenging new role in Paramount Plus drama The Serial Killer’s Wife, which pushed her out of her comfort zone.
Inspired by the novel of the same name by Alice Hunter, the show follows Beth Fairchild (Scholey) after her husband, Tom (Jack Farthing), is arrested at his birthday party on suspicion of murdering his former assistant.
Initially confident of his innocence, Beth is forced to ask serious questions as an increasing number of deaths are linked to her disgraced spouse – and her own past comes under scrutiny.
“The character is brilliant,” said Scholey in an exclusive interview with RadioTimes.com. “She goes through every possible emotion a human can go through. And it was a bit of a challenge for me physically, with the sexual nature of the character.
“I was quite terrified by the idea of doing all of that. I thought, ‘well, I should probably do that then because it’s obviously something I need to work through there – therapy’.”
Another draw for Scholey was the cast, as the Being Human alum expressed a desire to work with Farthing, Angela Griffin and Luke Treadaway, while the enormous popularity of Hunter’s novel also won her trust.
She added: “I was really excited by that combination. The scripts are fantastic. I know the book’s hugely popular, even though it’s not the same, so I knew that we had an audience before we even started – so that’s always helpful.”
Co-star Griffin went on to explain that screenwriters Ben Morris and Suzanne Cowie have made changes that keep the show “surprising” to readers of the novel, but “the essence is still there”.
Of her own character, DI Aline Edgeworth, the actor added: “She’s very emotionless. She’s very driven. She’s got dogged determination in solving crimes.
“She’s like a dog with a bone once she gets a detail, and she will use everything to discover whatever it is that she needs to discover at the time. And it all hides that she lives a very passionless life.”
Griffin teased: “That’s probably because she’s covering something up that we might find out about.”
The Serial Killer’s Wife is available to stream on Paramount Plus. Get a seven-day free Paramount Plus trial at Amazon Prime Video.
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