Directed by Thea Sharrock, Wicked Little Letters, which is based on a stranger than fiction story, takes place in a 1920s English seaside town that is rocked by scandal. The film follows two neighbors, conservative Edith Swan, played by Olivia Coleman, and the foul-mouthed Irish migrant, Rose Gooding (Jessie Buckley). When Edith and others in the town receive wickedly insulting letters full of profanity, Rose is accused and charged. However, as she awaits trial, as the women of the town, led by female Police Officer Gladys Moss (Anjana Vasan), try to find the truth, they find that things may not be what they seem.

Recently, star Coleman spoke with SciFi Vision about working on the hilarious film, where the actress talked about giggling on set as well as playing both the comedic and serious parts. “I love humor that's delivered with a straight face,” Coleman told the site. “[I] love it when the character is trying to show something, but what's coming out makes it funny. I love those juxtapositions…It's more fun, I think, to try and play more than one thing at once.”

Although the film takes place in the 1920s, it feels very relevant to today with anonymous trolling on the internet, and during the paired interview, director Sharrock talked about the human need to hurt someone. “[I]t's quite interesting to reflect on how far we've come in 100 years, and how, in some ways, it feels like we haven't learned much at all,” said the director. “…We go through moments [with] actually almost needing to hurt somebody else. It’s like, there is a need. What I'm interested in is where that need comes from, what is that about in somebody that it brings that out in them?”

For the full interview, watch the video or read the transcript below, and be sure to check out the film in theaters, in New York and Los Angeles starting today and nationwide on April 5^th.




SCIFI VISION:   Olivia, obviously, your character of Edith is very repressed. She tries to be perfect and everything, but later in the film, you're saying what's in the letters, and it’s a lot. Was it ever hard to get through some of that without cracking up? Can you talk about that, and also straddling sort of being funny and staying serious at the same time?

OLIVIA COLEMAN:   Oh, yes, well, no spoilers, [laughs] but there were so many moments when we all got the giggles, which is really nice. It can also in the back of your mind go. “Oh, God, if we're laughing, is that because - is it going to translate? Are other people going to laugh?”

THEA SHARROCK:   Does it put more pressure when you're doing a comedy, if people are laughing? If you do something that you know is meant to be a funny line, and you can feel the crew and the room is kind of with you, do you kind of go, “Phew, it's working,” or in a funny way do you feel more pressurized?

OLIVIA COLEMAN:   No, it’s so much nicer if someone laughs. I mean, if you think you're doing a comedy, and it's absolute silence, and you can see that boom ops going cross-eyed with boredom [it’s] awful. What did you ask? I'm so sorry.

THEA SHARROCK:   How did you feel doing the comedy and the drama and carrying those two parts? Did you find it hard?

OLIVIA COLEMAN:   Oh, thank you. No, I love that sort of, I love black humor. I love humor that's delivered with a straight face, or I love it when the character is trying to show something, but what's coming out makes it funny. I love those juxtapositions. I know that, Edith, she looks one thing - and there's quite a lot of gurning; I hold my hand up to that - but I love the fact that she's having a very difficult life, and her release is to do something completely different. There are so many things going on, which I enjoyed playing. It's more fun, I think, to try and play more than one thing at once.

SCIFI VISION:   Thea, obviously, this takes place in 1920s, but it's really relevant to today with internet trolling and people kind of slinging hate everywhere. Can you talk about that a bit?

THEA SHARROCK:   Yeah, it's funny, because we have talked about that a lot, and it's one of the things that people obviously pick up straight away. And it's quite easy, then, it's quite interesting to reflect on how far we've come in 100 years, and how, in some ways, it feels like we haven't learned much at all, and we haven't come very far. And the fact that it's human; it's part of who we are, that we need to do it. And when I say “we” I just mean human beings. We go through moments [with] actually almost needing to hurt somebody else. It’s like, there is a need. What I'm interested in is where that need comes from, what is that about in somebody that it brings that out in them? I'm not a huge fan of social media. I don't like the way that anyone can say anything they like about somebody else, and if they want it to go public, it absolutely can. So, in a way, the way the world has moved on doesn't help us, I think, in this sphere. At least 100 years ago, if you wanted to write a horrible thing to somebody else, you had to go to the effort of writing the letter, finding a stamped envelope and actually sending it, and in the moment of receiving it, only two people know about it, the person who's written it, and the person who read it. If I choose then to share it, then the world gets a little bit bigger…If you [send it] to me, you're in control of who it's going to. Whereas nowadays, yeah, I think it's the very negative. Obviously, there're lots of great things about social media and the fact that we can get things out, positive things out there, but it's when the negativity slips in that I think is very, very difficult. I think particularly we both have teenage kids and younger, and all the stories are there. We know that they can really struggle with how to handle that within their own lives and the pressure that they feel to be part of that world, and if they seem to reject it, what that says. I think we're in a difficult moment with that.

OLIVIA COLEMAN:   I want to encourage all our lovely young people to move away from social media and just look up, look out. Only spend time with people who make you feel good about yourself and who are loving and just get rid of sort of online unkindness. I know that's hard to say, but I'd like to take the opportunity to suggest come away from social media; you might feel happier.