BBC Essex
EPAAn Epping-born actor said being cast in The Thursday Murder Club movie was a “dream job”.
Daniel Mays, 47, plays alongside actors such as Pierce Brosnan, Ben Kingsley and Helen Mirren in his role as DCI Chris Hudson.
After getting the part, Mays said he was “pinching myself” as “the actors are massive heroes of mine”.
The film is about four pensioners who solve cold case murders for fun, but then find themselves with a real whodunnit on their hands.
Mays said he was in a hospital ward in Belgium when he got a call to say he had the part.
While in the country filming, he had been bitten by a mosquito and had to be treated for an infected arm.
“My mobile phone went, and it was my agent who suddenly called to tell me I got the part,” he said.
“So I had gone from a horrendous situation in an A&E ward to absolute jubilation, it was surreal.”
The character DCI Hudson is a middle-aged divorcee, longing for love, who investigates the murder, and Mays said he was made for the role.
“That for an actor was absolute gold dust. I felt great ownership of the character before rehearsals had even begun.
“I would love to go back to the character and develop it as he eventually goes to the gym and finds love.”
The film is based on a 2020 novel by British television presenter Richard Osman.
Mays called it his “bible”.
He added: “The reason it’s such a global bestseller is because it’s so well written. I have never felt this level of expectation with a project before.”
The film is now available on Netflix.