Natalie Dormer has landed herself a truly Dreadful role… and she couldn’t be happier.
The actress is about to hit our screens once more playing a character who has not one, not two, but three identities.
A little bit like the Hollywood favourite herself.
There’s shy Natalie – the girl who suffered bullying at school.
Determined Natalie – the actress who pushes the boundaries with each and every role.
And global star Natalie – the Brit who is worth £5million after starring in mega series Game of Thrones, the Hunger Games movie trilogy and now Penny Dreadful: City of Angels.
The latter – a highly anticipated spin-off of the cult horror series starring Eva Green – goes out on Sky Atlantic in July.
Natalie, 38, plays Magda – a “supernatural goddess” who takes three forms.
It’s yet another strong role, which suits Natalie down to the ground.
She even admits that she relies on her characters to help her become sexier in real life.
Natalie reveals: “I’m fascinated by powerful women who transform their strength into sensuality.
“I’m very shy in real life and I think there’s a side of me that hopes that by taking on these roles, I can become a great seductress.
“But I also want to be part of stories that show how women can lead interesting, engaging lives apart from their romantic relationships.
(Image: PA)
“We need to keep sending that kind of message to young audiences, and young women in particular.
“I keep gaining confidence every time I play these kinds of women.
“That’s why I want to find projects that frighten me in many respects, because I know at the end of it, I will be much more confident.
“It’s the old saying, ‘What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger’. I believe in pushing myself whenever I can because I know that’s the best way I can grow as an individual.
“I’m constantly trying to challenge myself.
“I suffered a lot of bullying in school and, ever since, I’ve made it a point not to back down and to rise up to every situation and become a stronger person.
“That’s a key aspect of my personality and how I try to live. I needed to work on my confidence level in my 20s until I became more forceful.
“I’m much more open now and I’m pretty straightforward.”
In her new role, Natalie’s character Magda takes the form of Elsa, a dispirited German immigrant, Alex, a duplicitous adviser, and Rio, a ruthless, bisexual Chicano gang leader.
It is set in 1930s Los Angeles and poses questions which Natalie says are pertinent to today.
She says: “It was a delicious kind of thrill to be able to take on all these different iterations of Magda.
“She’s the ultimate agent of chaos who is trying to stir things up and expose the flaws in humanity.
“She’s very cynical about human nature and in the very first episode she explains her perspective: ‘I give human beings a choice, but they choose time and time again to be seduced by the more base, selfish roles’. Her argument is that mankind is its own worst enemy.
“There’s been an incredible political polarisation that has been going on in recent years – the demonisation of the other, the resurgence of nationalism, pointing the finger at others, and this nasty brand of identity politics.
“I personally find that terrifying. What has happened to the world?
“There are very uncomfortable parallels between the state of things today and the kind of things happening in the mid-to-late 1930s and the lead-up to the Second World War.
One of the big philosophical questions the series poses is whether mankind is innately selfish and prejudiced, or whether there is something fundamentally good about being a human being.”
Natalie’s success comes after a tough time at school. Bullies made life hard for her – yet she became a high achiever and went on to be head girl.
Cambridge University beckoned but Natalie missed out on top grades after misreading a question in her A-level history paper. She enrolled for drama school instead and the rest, as they say, is history.
Raised in Reading, Berks, she learned her craft at Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London.
(Image: BBC)
Her grandfather had sparked the idea that she might make an actress.
Natalie explains: “A lot of it comes from my grandfather. When I was a young girl, he was very interested in my desire to tell stories and transform myself. I had a huge imagination and I was constantly pretending to be characters and putting on little shows.
“He really appreciated that about me and in his spare time, he built me a portable wardrobe where I kept my costumes and things for my shows.”
Natalie’s big break came in 2007 when she played Anne Boleyn in The Tudors, opposite Jonathan Rhys Myers, 42, and Henry Cavill, 37.
Through the Hunger Games trilogy she became great pals with fellow
star Jennifer Lawrence, 29.
The pair famously accidentally kissed on the lips at The Hunger Games premiere in 2015, with Jennifer joking afterwards: “Oh my God, we just kissed on camera – and I liked it.”
From 2012 to 2016 Natalie starred as Margaery Tyrell in TV juggernaut Game of Thrones.
But there was heartache in 2018 when she split from her Irish actor fiancé Anthony Byrne, who she met on the set of The Tudors
The pair wrote and produced 2018 film In Darkness and Natalie admits it led to friction in their relationship. She says: “Couples say terrible things to each other that you would never say to your best friend. We learned very quickly that we couldn’t write in the same room.
“Doors got slammed at various points and I wouldn’t necessarily rush into writing with Anthony again.”
She now lives with actor David Oakes, 36, who she met when they performed in the David Ives play Furs.
The pair were recently spotted sharing another lead role… walking their dog Indy in West London.
