Russell Tovey spills some surprising tea on ‘Looking’, Jonathan Groff & a possible reboot 10 years later
Russell Tovey ran the gamut of our emotions as Kevin Matheson on HBO’s Looking –– from getting us hot and heavy, to pissing us TF off.But things could have gone very differently for the 42-year-old actor.At a recent Q&A following a screening of Looking director Andrew Haigh‘s new film All of Us Strangers, Tovey revealed he originally auditioned for Jonathan Groff‘s character Patrick.Subscribe to our daily newsletter for a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.It all started with a discussion around selecting All of Us Strangers‘ leads, with Haigh admitting he’s never had a “bad experience” casting a project.
For his part, Tovey recalled there was a bit of vacillation after his first audition for Looking.“I remember there was two days where I knew it was between me and Jonathan Groff,” he explained. “And I would go in with a Ritchie or I’d go in with a Dom or whatever and then he’d go in with all the others and it’d be back and forth.”A post shared by Russelltovey (@russelltovey)The worst part?
Tovey learned he ultimately lost out on the part alongside everyone else.“I found out via Twitter that I hadn’t got the role because they put it out online and I was having a wee in the middle of the night,” he confessed.
Awkward!Still, Haigh made it clear that he wanted Tovey to be a part of the project, even if it wasn’t as the show’s sensitive (and emotionally complicated) lead.“I remember [Andrew] saying to me ‘If it goes to series [after the pilot] we’ll write you in,'” he said.A post shared by Russelltovey (@russelltovey)Thankfully, it seems like the show turned out the way it was supposed to.
