The journey that Rob went on in the first episode of season three — a new job, doubting himself, watching his lover die, having an existential crisis, then you end by shouting “I’m a man and I’m relentless!” in front of your co-workers — arguably could’ve been a season-long story arc for your character . . . but it all happens in 10 minutes of screen time.
I remember thinking the same thing when I read the first episode. Like, “Wow, there’s a lot to cover — just from Robert’s POV.” But that’s exciting. I think it also speaks to this notion that [creators] Mickey [Down] and Konrad [Kay] have often spoken about, in terms of burning your best ideas. They don’t keep stuff in their back pocket and wait to drop it in episode seven or eight . . . There are so many shows these days [where] it feels like you’re on the constant arc of building this idea or theme or character looming over an entire series — and of course that is a fantastic use of suspense, and there’s certainly a place for it — but I think this is the antithesis of that.
A big addition to the cast this year is Kit Harington as green-tech CEO Sir Henry Muck — and Rob is now his right-hand man. They’re an intriguing duo; Rob comes from a working-class background, while Muck is “to the manor born” . . .
This is a world that cares deeply about where you’re from, because there is a kind of language and a code to all of that — to the things you wear, the way you speak, the hobbies you partake in. That is all very demonstrative, and sometimes is used as a tool [against] people to make them feel “othered.” At the same time, nobody cares where you’re from if you earn money, if you can prove your worth in a very binary system . . . Rob and Henry, and their friendship, is the perfect representation of that because they’re worlds apart, and yet exactly the same. They want approval, they want success — and they’re constantly questioning whether those things go against the fibre of who they are as a person.
Is it fair to say this series has been flying under the audience radar so far?
I think we’ve always been very aware, and slightly proud of, our quirky little status as a show. We’ve always felt like a bit of a hidden gem . . . and we’ve been happy to occupy that space. It means the people that do watch the show are really, genuinely enthusiastic about it.
And yet, some pundits are calling it the new Succession. Can you confirm, on the record, that this is the new Succession?
[Laughs] I am not prepared to say that. Of course, the similarities are clear. It’s about the highest echelons of socio-economic culture — there’s jets and there’s suits and there’s money. I think we’re all flattered by the comparison. Succession utterly set the bar for what TV can be in terms of character development, in terms of the brilliance and sharpness of the storytelling — and also it set a precedent for the way a show can grow. I think they had a similar beginning [to Industry], where it wasn’t this immediate splash; it found its way to people in a really organic way.
That said, how would you pitch Industry to someone who isn’t a fan yet?
Come and have a watch if you are interested in a show that is fast-paced and has intensity, and has complex characters and unusual situations that you probably won’t have imagined before. Don’t be intimidated by the “finance” — you don’t need to know any more about
it than I do.
Industry airs Sunday, September 22 on HBO Canada
MEMORABLE ROLES:
A relative newcomer who is, most definitely, on the rise, you’ve seen this 27-year-old Brit in season two of U.K. cop thriller Marcella, as well as bit parts in big films like The Pale Blue Eye and Benediction. Yet the best is yet to come for Lawtey — and that right quick! This October, he’ll play doomed district attorney Harvey Dent in Joker: Folie à Deux. Plus, he’s just booked the titular role in Mr. Burton, a biopic about Hollywood legend Richard Burton.
CURRENT GIG:
Before all that, you can tune in to the currently airing third season of HBO’s addictively unpredictable drama Industry — wherein Mr. Lawtey plays Robert Spearing, a scrappy young banker struggling to make his way in the alluring yet cutthroat world of London high finance.