Mark Bonnar has insisted it was “very important” to have the real-life figures caught up in the Alexander Litvinenko case involved in a new ITVX series that dramatises those events.
While true crime programming remains a popular genre with audiences, the approach to portraying traumatic, violent events on screen can vary wildly and sometimes attract criticism, with Netflix’s Dahmer a recent example that proved controversial when relatives of the victims alleged they had not been consulted about the series.
By contrast, ITVX’s Litvinenko – which stars David Tennant in the title role – was made with the blessing of Alexander Litvinenko’s widow and son and with the involvement of key figures including the police detectives who investigated Litvinenko’s murder.
The four-part drama chronicles Litvinenko’s poisoning and the 10-year investigation that followed, with Alexander’s widow Marina Litvinenko (Margarita Levieva), DS Clive Timmons (Mark Bonnar) and DI Brent Hyatt (Neil Maskell) all acting as key figures.
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Speaking at a recent press screening, Marina Litvinenko said that watching the TV drama “wasn’t easy,” but added: “I realise with this drama, [there] will be more understanding for what happened.
“There’s still some questions [from people]. ‘Are you sure it’s happened like this? Are you sure he was poisoned?’ – when they watch this episode, I think more and more people will realise what happened.”
Speaking afterwards exclusively to RadioTimes.com, Mark Bonnar suggested that the involvement of Marina and the real Clive Timmons is part of what helps the series to be as “powerful as it needs” to be.
“The level of detail, depth of character… when you’re referring all that back to the real person who can say, ‘No, it wasn’t like that’ or whatever… it helps invest it with everything that it needs, to be as powerful as it needs [to be],” he said.
“So yeah, [it was] very important to have them all on board. I’m very, very grateful to them for their time and continued support as well – I still get emails from Clive. He’s a fantastic bloke.”
Bonnar met with the real Simmons prior to filming and admitted he had a “split focus” during their conversations. “On the one hand, you’re going to be playing them so half of your mind is watching them, watching what they do, any little thing that they give away that you might be able to nick, at a base level. You’re playing them, so you want to kind of be true, and portray them truthfully…
“I tried to get Clive’s walk a little bit in – just things he said as well, and the way he said things was very interesting. But also you’ve got everything that he’s saying and the substance of what he’s telling you. So you’ve got a split focus, trying to take all these details in and store them somewhere, but also physically and vocally as well try to get a little handle on the man himself.”
Read more:
- Litvinenko review: A compelling story, competently told
- Meet the cast of Litvinenko
- Litvinenko true story: Cast and director explain how closely ITVX drama follows reality
- Litvinenko is a “feat of acting” from David Tennant, says Neil Maskell
- Litvinenko writer explains change of lead actor and genre each episode
Litvinenko arrives on ITVX as a full boxset on Thursday 15th December.
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