With former cover stars Naomi Ackie and Letitia Wright learning they’d received acting roles on their front door step and waiting at the bus stop, respectively, it’s refreshing to hear Hollywood stars aren’t immune to the absurd situations many of the rest of us find ourselves in.
But we think Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story actor Arséma Thomas might have the best – and grossest – story about how she found out she’d nabbed a role in the hit Netflix show. In a recent game of Ask Me Anything with ELLE UK, the newcomer shared that she’d received her call-up for the role while working in a butcher’s shop in Notting Hill, London.
‘I was elbow-deep in beef guts, if we’re going to be honest,’ she shared. ‘And my phone was buzzing in my pocket, and before I could answer it because of the blood and the gloves I missed the call. So, I quickly had to go on break, call my agent and that’s how I found out.’
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Thomas, who was born in Atlanta, US and grew up in several countries across the world - Tanzania, Kenya and India (her parents were diplomats) - plays a young Lady Agatha Danbury in the new period drama. A version of the character at a different age is also played by actor Adjoa Andoh in Bridgerton season one and two. Discussing the prospect of taking on Andoh’s role in the prequel, Thomas noted: ‘There is pressure because there is this formidable actor who has brought this character to life for two seasons and here I am, this ingénue walking onto a set for the first time.’
If her co-stars India Amarteifio and Corey Mylchreest’s insight into how the show's actors goofed around on set is anything to go by, it sounds like the cast and crew had endless fun shooting the new series. Reflecting on one of her most memorable moments from being on set, Thomas recalled: ‘Towards the end [there] was a very long filming session and we were doing this dance over and over again with this period classical music. And then all of a sudden our director Tom [Verica] was like “you know, we’re just going to change the music so follow your instincts”, which I was scared of – I’m not an improv actor. And so we were dancing and suddenly on the speakers “Who Run The World – Girls” by Beyoncé comes on and immediately all of us break out of character.’
When the cast weren’t dancing to Beyoncé and throwing tennis balls at each other’s heads (watch Amarteifio and Mylchreest’s Knowing Me Knowing You video to find out more on that one), they would relax with a couple of 'tinnies' and have heart-to-heart conversations. ‘A lot of times, it sounds strange because it’s very normal, we’d just sit on the side of the road and have a couple of tinnies and just chat – really air out our insecurities with one another. You know that moment of [when you say to someone] “am I going crazy, is this ok?” and they’re like “no, no, this is crazy and weird”.'
As for the costumes, despite struggling to fit into portaloos with her dress at times, Thomas would still choose a corset over a bustle. ‘It’s good for your posture… plus they’re beautiful. There’s something timeless about a corset. There’s something poetic when fashion and symbolism kind of meet like that and there’s something about a corset that’s reminiscent of a patriarchal society, when women had to be aesthetically pleasing and not comfortable. I find owning that quite revolutionary. Like, "I will wear it if I want to, and I do."'
While some actors like to take tokens used by their characters from a set, or the odd piece of clothing, Thomas admitted that she took a lot of bobby pins home after shooting – and the copious amount of food, of course.
‘I was the number one scavenger on set,’ she joked. ‘A lot of the baked good and fruits you see are real, so I would obviously bring Tupperware and shovel the entire table into my extra large litre bin and take it home to me and my flatmates. At some point they started putting rat poison on it because they thought they were eating it... but it was just me.’
Despite the show airing just days after King Charles III’s coronation, it sounds like Thomas wouldn’t be rushing to take the Monarch’s place on the throne any time soon, if she had the chance. ‘If I was queen for a day, I would probably do a away with the entire thing of royalty,’ she told us.
‘I personally have never understood the idea of hierarchy between human beings. It sounds cliché but if we’re all human beings then what’s the point? Yeah, that would be my one thing – I’d be a very short reigning queen.’
From the biggest Bridgerton super fans she’s met to her love of fish and chips, you can watch the rest of Arséma Thomas’ Ask Me Anything interview at the top of this article.
Katie O'Malley is the Site Director on ELLE UK. On a daily basis you’ll find Katie managing all digital workflow, editing site, video and newsletter content, liaising with commercial and sales teams on new partnerships and deals (eg Nike, Tiffany & Co., Cartier etc), implementing new digital strategies and compiling in-depth data traffic, SEO and ecomm reports. In addition to appearing on the radio and on TV, as well as interviewing everyone from Oprah Winfrey to Rishi Sunak PM, Katie enjoys writing about lifestyle, culture, wellness, fitness, fashion, and more.
