‘The Umbrella Academy’: Robert Sheehan and Tom Hopper Say This Actor Is Most Like Their Character
Find out which cast member from The Umbrella Academy has the most in common with their character, according to two stars from the series — Tom Hopper and Robert Sheehan.
Season 2 of ‘The Umbrella Academy’ will debut on July 31
Season 1 introduced viewers to the Hargreeves siblings, a family of adopted children who each have a unique superpower. Trained under the command of Sir Reginald Hargreeves (Colm Feore), the siblings unknowingly prepare for the end of the world.
Throughout season 1, viewers learned that Vanya Hargreeves (Ellen Page) was responsible for bringing on the world’s end. As the White Violin, Vanya’s powers caused meteors to plummet to Earth.
Fortunately, Number Five (Aidan Gallagher) was able to transport his siblings to another date in time that we now know to be November 1963, just before John F. Kennedy’s assassination.
That’s where season 2 will pick up on July 31.
‘The Umbrella Academy’ features a lot of talented actors
In casting The Umbrella Academy, casting directors took their time to match the actors to their parts carefully. “I did a bunch of chemistry reads with some early Allison choices because I was the first to be cast in the show,” Hopper recalled to Metro.co.uk.
“They couldn’t find an Allison for a long time, and we were doing all these chemistry reads,” he added, demonstrating how careful directors were in choosing the right people for the right part.
During his auditions, Sheehan had several conversations with showrunners about where the series was planning to go.
“[Those conversations were] important because you have to make the decision with care,” he explained. “Especially because when it’s a success, you’re committed for quite a few seasons, and that’s what you want.”
Fortunately, both of the actors agreed to sign on for their respective parts. Many fans are glad they did!
Colm Feore has the same ‘intellectual authority’ as Sir Reginald Hargreeves
According to Sheehan and Hopper, Feore is most like his character, Sir Reginald Hargreeves.
“Colm Feore is a lot like his character,” Hopper said in a Netflix video of he and Sheehan riding the Tube around London.
“He’s old enough,” he added, laughing.
“[Colm] has this sort of intellectual authority,” Sheehan explained. “He kind of knows a bit about everything.”
But Hopper and Sheehan say Feore isn’t the only cast member who shares similarities with their role.
Cameron Britton and Hazel have ‘Teddy Bear’ charm
“Apart from the killing part, I think Cameron [Britton] is quite like Hazel in a lot of ways,” Hopper mentioned. “There’s a certain charm to him that’s similar. Cameron’s more like a Teddy Bear, and so is Hazel, really.”
Before he could become this Teddy Bear-like assassin, Britton had to audition for the role. He told Metro he went into it blindly.
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“When I auditioned, I had this comic book of these adorable maniacs, and I read the script and it wasn’t syncing up to that,” he said. “I did the rare thing of asking the director, ‘Can you tell me a little bit about this character?’ and they said: ‘We have no idea. We don’t know what they’re doing.'”
Whichever way Britton chose to read for the part, it was what showrunners wanted. “[The directors] stayed open and looked at the list of actors and felt like they liked the direction I was taking it,” he added.
In fact, Britton’s audition greatly influenced the role of Hazel. It makes sense, then, that he’s so much like his character!
