When director Simon Stone first read the script for Netflix’s latest psychological thriller, The Woman in Cabin 10, it was like being transported back in time.
Stone told Variety that the film, which is based on Ruth Ware’s 2016 novel of the same name, “was really interesting to me because it felt like a movie from a time when they weren’t making movies anymore.” “The script itself is very Hitchcockian. It’s from the era of thrillers, made in the last politically crazy period of the world after Watergate.”
The Woman in Cabin 10, currently streaming on Netflix, follows Ro Blacklock, an investigative journalist aboard a mysterious billionaire’s luxury cruise ship who believes he witnessed a passenger being thrown overboard. As Law approaches the truth, paranoia sinks in and everyone else on the ship tells her that she is losing her mind. The driving force behind this tense film is none other than Keira Knightley, who gives a multi-layered performance as a woman who refuses to back down even when she is treated unfairly.
Author Ware was shocked when he learned Knightley was joining the project, but said the Oscar nominee really got to the “core of Law’s character.”
“On the one hand, she has a fragility, a kind of vulnerability, but on the other hand, she has a real inner strength: a core of steel and an unwavering sense of what’s right, and I think Keira embodies that wonderfully,” Ware says.
In preparation, Stone asked Knightley to watch a series of iconic thrillers. “The Parallax View” with Warren Beatty. Robert Redford’s films “The President’s Men” and “Three Days of the Condor.” Knightley, who has recently fallen in love with the genre thanks to Netflix’s hit series “Black Doves,” wanted to try another cutting-edge project.
“I’m a huge fan of the thriller genre, I love it, and all the movies he mentioned are movies that I’ve always loved,” Knightley says. “So I had the opportunity to play that lead character — who is usually a man — and I thought, ‘Oh my God, this is exciting.’ You don’t necessarily look at me and think I’m a Gene Hackman type, right?”
Keira Knightley and David Ajala in “Woman in Cabin 10.”
Parisa Taghizadeh/Netflix
Knightley says he drew inspiration from the “gentle” performances of Hackman, Redford and Beatty, but also made it his own by intensifying the paranoia. “I was like, ‘Warren Beatty doesn’t do anything in Parallax View,'” Stone recalls with a laugh. “And I said, ‘Maybe I can give you a little more than that.’ And Keira picked up on this particular nuance.”
“What they’ve chosen is a relaxed, cool path that’s very interesting when you’re dealing with tension. That’s basically what a thriller is, how you respond to that kind of tension,” Knightley added. “They’re leaning against the wall, they’re constantly chewing, they’re always thinking and observing other people, but the reality is that the behavior is happening with everyone around them.”
Guy Pearce convincingly plays the billionaire in question, Richard Bulmer, and Knightley’s Law is aided in his search for the truth by his photographer ex-boyfriend Ben, played by David Ajala.
“What I really enjoyed about this story was that it felt claustrophobic and intense in the right way,” says Ajala. “There was a thrilling energy to it, when it was done right on camera. And I don’t mind getting caught up in a crime syndicate murder mystery, because then we’d all be armchair detectives trying to figure out who the culprit was.”
The character of Bloomer adds another questionable character to Pierce’s repertoire. Pierce was nominated for an Oscar last year for his unforgettable performance as another filthy rich man in Brady Corbet’s The Brutalist.
Guy Pearce “The Woman in Cabin 10”
Parisa Taghizadeh/Netflix
Pearce says, “I think the reason I’m drawn to characters who have darkness within them or characters who are facing themselves is simply because they’re interesting to play.”
“It’s more than playing a romantic leading role,” he added. “I’m not very good at that kind of thing anyway…but yeah, you have to be careful not to be too conventional.”
Pearce will next star in Ridley Scott’s post-apocalyptic sci-fi film The Dog Stars, while Knightley will be releasing the second season of Black Doves on Netflix. The streamer is also developing a new series based on Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Knightley is no stranger to the role, having co-starred with Matthew Macfadyen in the hit 2005 film.
Asked if he had any advice for the new cast, led by Emma Corrin who plays Elizabeth Bennet and Jack Lowden who plays Mr. Darcy, Knightley said with a smile: “I can’t wait to see it. I mean, look, I don’t need any words of advice. With that cast, you can’t go wrong. What could go wrong with that cast, that book? It’s going to be great.”
