Diana Rigg became a screen icon back in the ’60s, when she starred as Emma Peel in the TV show The Avengers. She killed it for decades after, and found a new whole new generation fans when she appeared as the deliciously witty Lady Olenna Tyrell on Game of Thrones, when she was in her 70s.
Unfortunately, Rigg died last year, inspiring an outpouring of love from those who knew her, whether from Game of Thrones or elsewhere. But she’s still blessing us with her work; you can see her final performance in Edgar Wright’s movie Last Night in Soho, which is in theaters right now.
Naturally, her Last Night in Soho colleagues were just as impressed with Rigg as everyone else. “I’ve loved Diana Rigg since I was a kid watching repeats of The Avengers on TV in the U.K., and also I just admired her as an actress ever since, in terms of her work on the stage, and on TV, and in film,” Wright told SyFy Wire. “So when the idea of her being in the movie came up, me and my producers all thought, ‘Oh, she’ll be brilliant.’ We were all very excited by the idea of working with her. And luckily, she read the script and she just wanted to do it. The first time we met, she said, ‘Well I love the script, and I’d love to do it. And then she said, ‘Some people are scared about dark stuff, but I’m not.’ And when she said that, I said, ‘Oh, this is gonna be fun.’”
Rigg definitely wasn’t afraid of the dark stuff. Poisoning King Joffrey to death at his own wedding feast, anyone?
Diana Rigg taught her fellow actors how to stand up for themselves
In Last Night in Soho, Rigg plays Ms. Collins, who rents aspiring fashion designer Eloise (Thomasin McKenzie) a flat in her Soho home. “It was amazing working with Diana, I was really honored to work with her, particularly because she was and is such an icon, especially in the ‘60s, in that time period, when she a household name, she really had such an effect and moved so many people around the world,” McKenzie said. “Observing her, and seeing the joy that she was able to bring to the set, even when we’re dealing with darker subject matters… the enjoyment and laughter that she brought with her was really wonderful, and it was a reminder to enjoy myself… even when you’re really tired, and your legs hurt from all the running, and your throat hurts from all the screaming, to be able to have a good time as well.”
"I wish she was here with us now to be able to see the final product, but I think she would be very proud of what she achieved. The fact that she’s no longer here, and the fact that she didn’t live to see the film come out is obviously terribly sad … but I have to just be happy and grateful that I got to know and work with her at all. So my memories are happy memories. Even the last time I saw her, which was only a couple of weeks before she passed away, was a happy memory because she was so funny and fabulous, and I walked away smiling. I’m so proud of her in the movie. I’m just very happy that she’s in it."
The movie involves Eloise imagining herself as a singer named Sandie (Anya Taylor-Joy) in the ’60s. So having an icon like Rigg in the movie helps to link it back to that time.
McKenzie continued talking up Dame Diana with The A.V. Club. “She was incredibly kind and generous,” the actor said. “I remember her bringing bags of chocolate to set for everyone to dig into and during rehearsals, rather than rehearsing, we’d watch funny videos on her phone. Everyone crowded around her and she’d be she’d be cracking up.”
That said, once the cameras started to roll, Rigg was a true professional. “Once we got down to business, she was there to get the job done and she did such an incredible job.”
"If she had an opinion or an idea, she would speak out whether it was picked or whether everyone agreed or not. She contributed and she wasn’t shy. [From her] I learned just being able to assert yourself and be engaged in the conversation and not feel like your opinion isn’t worthy."
Last Night in Soho is playing now. All hail Diana Rigg.
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