There are few actors as highly regarded among their peers as the incomparable Jeremy Irons. Known for his roles in such critically-acclaimed films as The French Lieutenant’s Woman, Brideshead Revisitedand Damage — not to mention his deliciously villainous turn as Scar in The Lion King — he’s one of the few people to ever win what’s known as the “Triple Crown of Acting” (an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and an Emmy Award). Now, the 76-year-old is passing on his considerable knowledge to the next generation — and fans are in awe.
In a video shared to TikTok from a recent class at the British drama school Associated Studios, Irons, 76, coached an aspiring actor as a room full of hopeful thespians observed. The star was dressed in an appropriately theatrical outfit of loose-fitting pants and a button-down shirt with leather boots and a cap over his silver hair, and his voice was just as powerful as ever as he encouraged his student to “really concentrate.”
“Don’t show us anything, just feel what you’re feeling,” he said.
@associatedstudios Students in a masterclass with Jeremy Irons! Book your tickets now to see our graduating students in Merrily We Roll Along. #acting #actor #jeremyirons #dramaschool
♬ original sound – Associated Studios
Commenters loved seeing Irons in his element, with one calling him “a true genius actor.”
“I would be a mess if I was in the same room as this man,” another person admitted, with a third agreeing, “I would literally freak to be anywhere near let alone talk to Scar.”
“Just wanted him to start saying random Scar lines,” someone else added.
“Jeremy Irons is top tier,” declared yet another fan.
In a 2021 interview with the By ClubIrons opened up about playing Scar, noting that voice acting comes with its own set of challenges.
“You’ve only got your voice, so there’s no point in doing a fabulous gesture because it won’t show,” he pointed out.
“But of course, it all comes down to the same thing, which is what you’re thinking,” he continued. “If you have an instrument, a body where the emotional passageways are clear, then if you think something and say a line, that thought should inhabit the line.”
Irons went on to say that “voice-over is all about just thinking the thought and the sound should be right. If you’re standing on a stage and you think a thought and say a line, your body should help communicate through gesture or through the way of standing or whatever what you’re thinking. Through radio, you can only do it through the voice, but it’s what you’re thinking.”
“Acting is all about thinking and listening,” he added.
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