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James McAvoy reflects on some of his most magical memories from filming The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, and the people he bonded with the most on set.
While attending the X-Men Days of Future cast panel at New York Comic Con on October 12, McAvoy, 46, spoke about his time making the 2005 fantasy film, directed by Andrew Adamson and based on C.S. Lewis’s iconic novel.
In conversation, the actor, who played fan-favorite Mr. Tumnus in the film, revealed that one of his closest friends on set was actress Georgie Henry, with whom he did many scenes. Henry, now 30, played eight-year-old Lucy, the youngest of the four Pevensie siblings.
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“I feel like Andrew kind of stuck us together,” McAvoy said, adding, “He was a great guy, a great coach, and I just wanted us to get along.” He continued, “And she was a really young girl at the time. (…) I don’t think she had ever acted before. So (…) I spent a lot of time with Georgie and her family, and they were really nice.”
The Speak No Evil star continued that at the time it felt “ridiculous” to be on the set of such an epic fantasy project. “Just being on a small set is outrageous,” he told the Comic-Con audience. “You get used to things, but I was like, ‘Oh! Oh!'” You know what I’m saying, right? ”
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He also said that filming before the era of smartphones made the experience even more particularly magical. “I don’t think you texted back then. You were just kind of alone, you know? Maybe you called home once a day. But (…) you’re in New Zealand, so it’s like being on another planet,” he said.
McAvoy also gave a “shout out” to the film’s makeup department, saying it was one of the best on-set experiences he had ever had. “They were my absolute rocks, and to this day, it’s one of the funniest and closest relationships I’ve had on set because we spent so much time together,” the actor said.
McAvoy added, “I remember being in a trailer on the side of a mountain at 3:30 a.m., and I was like, ‘The AD hasn’t come yet.'” Something like “trailer not unlocked”. And I arrived early enough to get my makeup done. (…) Yes, they were a great crew. ”
