Luther: The Fallen Sun is a chance for John Luther to stretch his legs once more after the fifth season of the beloved series ended in 2019. When audiences last saw him, he was stripped of his DCI title and headed for prison after the apparent death of his lover and accomplice Alice. But when a madman named David Robey (played by the ever-fantastic Andy Serkis) begins a new reign of tech terror, it’s time for Luther to step out from under the shadows once more and take him down.
Luther: The Fallen Sun sees Idris Elba reprise his iconic role for the Netflix film, and he is joined by longtime friend and associate Martin Schenk (played by Dermot Crowley). But it’s not all familiar faces, and Ruth Wilson’s Alice is nowhere to be found. Instead, Luther must face off — intellectually speaking — against the straightlaced DCI Odette Raine, who would rather see the vigilante detective stuck in prison than on the loose hunting for a serial killer.
Screen Rant spoke to Erivo about tackling the greyscale morality of Luther-land in the face of her character’s black-and-white thinking, as well as how much fun she had filming Luther: The Fallen Sun in the cold of Iceland, and the effort she’s putting into getting Wicked right.
Cynthia Erivo on Luther: The Fallen Sun
Screen Rant: Were you a fan of Luther before taking on the role, or was it a situation where you were like, “Let me see what this is about” after?
Cynthia Erivo: I was a fan! I watched it all and was riveted by the way it was done, by the scriptwriting, by the grittiness and how London plays a character in the whole thing as well. I really liked it a lot.
As viewers, we tend to have some twisted admiration for Luther’s vigilante-style methods, but DCI Raine clearly does not. Does this animosity stem purely from her beliefs or is there anything more personal there? What is your take on it?
Cynthia Erivo: I think it’s a bit of both. I think that when you meet her DCI Raine has made a decision to try to do things differently. She wants to do things by the book, and I think she believes there is a right way and a wrong way to abide by the law. For her, the work is personal. So, when someone has done things that are not by the book; that feel like the opposite direction of good, it feels like a personal attack.
However, she also has to reckon with — as you go through the movie with her — the fact that sometimes darkness is necessary. She actually has to come into contact with her own darkness as well. Sometimes, depending on the situation that they’re in, you may be driven to take matters into your own hands. Right and wrong become gray areas, and it depends on what is necessary to get the result.
Absolutely. I couldn’t tell sometimes in the film which people were going to decide to do what, and that made me question what I would do in my own life. Does it ever make you reflect on your own life?
Cynthia Erivo: Yeah, I think I’ve always been aware that everybody has a dose of darkness and light in them. We have different measures, and how much we use is up to us. I was always questioning what would push me to go as far as both Odette and Luther. I can understand why losing a daughter, or the prospect of losing your daughter, could push you to the edge. I fully understand that. I think that we all have different reasons for allowing our darkness to come out.
You mentioned London being a character in the series, but in the movie, we get to go outside of London. Were you really in the snow in some of those scenes, and how cold were you?
Cynthia Erivo: We were in Iceland, and it was freezing. But it was thrilling. We were standing and looking out into the distance, and there’s a glacier and snow everywhere. We were there! That’s where we were; that was not a CGI place. We were in the snow, and it was cold and snowing.
There were times we had to try and shoot for it to look like it wasn’t snowing, and it absolutely was. We went through it. It was really cool that we got there. I can’t believe that we did it; it was really awesome.
I couldn’t believe while watching. It was disturbingly beautiful to witness.
Cynthia Erivo: But that was how it was! Disturbingly beautiful. We stood at the top of that peak, and the sky is blue; the ice is totally white, and the mountains go to the sky. Just crazy; it was something out of a movie. [Laughs]
You and Idris have some crazy awesome scenes together. What was it like to film them, and to get to know him as Luther?
Cynthia Erivo: I knew him before we did this film. It was just nice spending a bit of time with him, working with him, and talking with him. I loved shooting those scenes together because I think we have a really lovely rhythm, and he’s just a really kind, generous actor who creates a lot of space for other people as well. It was really cool. He works really hard, as well.
Your range of projects is amazing to me. From Pinocchio to Drift to Luther, I would never guess what you’re going to do next. What is most important for you when choosing a project?
Cynthia Erivo: It’s the character; it’s the person. I read the scripts, and if I have ever met this person before, I’m probably not going to play them. If I’ve never met them before, and I’m interested in what makes them tick, I ask myself the question, “Would you want to have a conversation with this person? Are they interesting?” Then I lean in, and I’m like, “Yeah, I’ll play this person. I want to get to know them more.”
And then you add on top who’s directing, what the script is saying, and who are you playing opposite. I put together a little recipe and I go, “I like this recipe, and I like what the food might taste like. So, I’m gonna lean in.”
There’s a moment in the film where Andy Serkis is singing himself, and I was like, “Is Cynthia gonna sing?” I was sorely disappointed, but you will be singing in Wicked, and we all have those songs memorized in our minds. How do you prepare for such an iconic role?
Cynthia Erivo: Oh, there’s a lot that goes into it. You might see me working out a lot on my Instagram, and that is a real thing, because I need to keep my brain and my body super-focused. I have a wonderful vocal coach who is the most helpful woman I could possibly wish for, and she’s been doing this with me.
There’s the conversations that we’ve been having, both with myself and Ariana and with myself and the director. Even the costume designer; hair and makeup. It’s a really collaborative effort to create these women in this world, and that’s how we’ve been prepping for it.
We’re in it right now.; we’re deep in it. We’re making it, and every little detail is thought about. Every moment is thought about, and I’m so excited for people to get their eyes on it once it’s done. I think it’s gonna be really special. It’s definitely been special to me, and we’ve had some really wonderful moments doing it.
About Luther: The Fallen Sun
In Luther: The Fallen Sun — an epic continuation of the award-winning television saga reimagined for film — a gruesome serial killer is terrorizing London while brilliant but disgraced detective John Luther (Idris Elba) sits behind bars. Haunted by his failure to capture the cyber psychopath who now taunts him, Luther decides to break out of prison to finish the job by any means necessary. The film also stars Cynthia Erivo, Andy Serkis and Dermot Crowley, who returns as Martin Schenk.
Check out our other Luther: The Fallen Sun interviews here:
- Cast & Crew at Red Carpet
- Idris Elba
- Andy Serkis
- Jamie Payne & Neil Cross
Key Release Date
Luther: The Fallen Sun
Release Date:2023-02-24
