Audience: Notoriety knocked on your door late. Do you think you would have been so balanced if you had found success at 20?
Jamie Dornan: When I was that age, all I thought about was going out. It was a period of my life that was not easy. Four years earlier, I had lost my mother to pancreatic cancer. We never fully recover.
It seems that you come from a family of doctors… Weren’t you pushed?
Science was a subject in which I was simply useless. The only A’s I got was in drama.
Is the physical important?
Of course… Shirtless in Fifty Shades, I couldn’t show up with love handles. I had to hang on, because I only had a month to be at my best physically, and I was already the father of a young child. And then I always ate a lot of crap!
What’s the weirdest thing you’ve learned about the Fifty Shades set?
I was taught the functionality of sex toys. There are even, in Los Angeles, specialized schools for that! I was a very diligent student, because I didn’t know much about it. This type of device no longer holds any secrets for me!
We often see you with a three-day beard. Allergic to shaving foam?
I hate shaving more than anything. I’m so clumsy that I butcher myself all the time. As I don’t want to show up on a red carpet with bandages on my face, I avoid!
Has Fifty Shades boosted your libido?
Sadomasochism is neither my thing nor my wife’s. I know there’s a huge market for it and there are loads of individuals and couples who enjoy this kind of sexuality, pleasure. But I’m just not one of those people.
“My parents walked around naked!”
At school, were you a serial lover?
Not really ! I was very shy. I didn’t know how to start a conversation with a girl. And when I managed to find the courage, I got thrown out. I remember a girl I told I wanted to go out with. She replied “no”. Not even “no thank you! . It was “no”. Full stop!
Do you accept the term sexy?
When I’m naked, I feel a little uncomfortable because I hate exposing myself. Sexy means that you are aware of your power of seduction. Me, I do not feel concerned!
Does nudity bother you?
Not when it’s justified in a scene. I’m by no means a prudish person, and I wasn’t brought up to hide your body. Besides, my parents walked around naked at home! (Laughter) It didn’t shock anyone. It’s just that I don’t see the point of dropping the shirt when I’m having a beer!
How did you manage to seduce Amelia, your wife of almost ten years?
We were introduced to Los Angeles by chance, and I wanted her to be my wife that very night! We didn’t kiss that night, but luckily we were on the same flight back to the UK! If it’s not fate…
What do you think he liked about you?
It was February, and I was wearing a jumper with Christmas trees and reindeer sewn onto it. It made her laugh, and I think she wanted to know what guy could be hiding behind this outfit as kitsch as it is stupid.
Are you the type to drop your girls off at school?
Yes, in turn with my wife. It’s a real obstacle course every morning, worthy of a pilot’s checklist before take-off. Cutting the fruit and putting it in a lunch box, toasting the bagels, checking that the kit is complete, that the gym kit is OK… But invariably, you notice halfway through that there is something something missing!
Are your daughters aware that you are famous?
We made the choice to live in the English countryside. As a child, my daughter thought that to earn a living I drove tractors. But since I got a small role in Trolls 2they realized that their dad had a somewhat magical job.
“My daughters laugh at me”
It is whispered that you would have a room like that of Fifty Shades…
It’s nonsense! I had every intention of painting one of the walls of my house red. But the decorator told me: “Are you sure you want a red similar to this room in Fifty Shades?” Frankly, I hadn’t made the connection. So I chose green instead.
Do you craft at home?
Rarely ! I play the guitar and I sing. And when I sing, my children laugh at me. They think I’m funny. Sometimes they ask me to accompany them on the guitar, they are learning to play the piano at the moment. The Dornan house is definitely a musical house!
Key dates
1. May 1, 1982
James Peter Maxwell Dornan was born in Holywood… in Northern Ireland. His mother is a nurse and his father, a gynecologist, had considered becoming an actor.
2. 2006
After having been a model, he landed a role in Marie-Antoinette by Sofia Coppola. This allowed him to launch his acting career.
3. 2013-2016
He plays the role of serial killer Paul Spector in the thriller The Fallet opposite Gillian Anderson.
4. 2022
Since January 1, he has appeared in the series The Tourist on BBC One. The show has already been renewed for a second season.
see also: 50 Shades of Grey: Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson finally in full action!
Interview by Frank Rousseau, in Los Angeles.