Mobland's Pierce Brosnan says villain character makes him 'feel alive'

Pierce Brosnan has detailed how playing villain Conrad Harrigan in crime drama Mobland makes him 'feel alive', but admits playing tough characters can also be anxiety-inducing.
Pierce Brosnan says that playing villainous characters 'makes him alive' as he opens up about his role portraying crime boss Conrad Harrigan in popular drama Mobland.
While he may be ever the gentleman in real life, Irish actor Pierce is clearly enjoying his gangster character, but says it comes with it's fair share of anxiety, too.
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'Every job is a challenge and it all comes with a thump of anxiety,' he told Radio Times in a new interview this week. Talking about the 'stress' of playing a villain, 72-year-old Pierce continued: 'because you have to do something. What are you doing on the stage? Why are you there? So that's constant. You live with that.
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"You live with that stress all the time. And that's what's so exhilarating. That's what makes you alive," the actor explained.
With the penultimate episode of Mobland - which is directed by Guy Richie - now released, the show's first series is set to wrap up on 1 June when the final episode drops. A second season of the series is yet to be announced.
While the show and Pierce's acting performance has been praised, there is one thing that has been questioned by viewers; Pierce's put-on Irish accent.
Despite being born in Ireland, Pierce is known for his dulcet English tones, with many claiming he missed the mark with his character's Irish vocals in the new series.
'Viewers have been mocking his Irish accent — which is ironic given he was born in Ireland and lived there till he was four years old. But he's always had a cut-glass English delivery," a source told The Sun earlier this year.
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As some branded the show 'unwatchable' due to the accent, the source added: "Clearly making the shift back to an Irish accent was not as smooth as expected.'
Pierce stars alongside stars such as Helen Mirren and Tom Hardy in the Paramount+ series, with the latter portraying lead character Harry Da Souza, a fixer for the crime-riddled Harrigan family.
Admitting he always finds himself in gangster roles, Tom explained to Radio Times that he often finds there is 'dark matter' behind the character's he's enlisted to play.
'The scripts that I get are fairly funny but tend to often be connected to really dark matter, which others might find unpalatable but I find absolutely normal," said Tom as he detailed the 'wicked humour' in his characters.

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