Daniel Radcliffe Catches Up with “Miracle Workers” Costar Geraldine Viswanathan
Ever shipped an unpopular pairing that has about three fan fictions out there that have not been updated since 2012? The pain is real. We loved Emma Watson’s Belle in Beauty and the Beast, but the tale of the village beauty with a Cinderella story ahead of her and a happy ending with Prince Charming has been done to death. Lucky that the second season of HBO’s hit comedy Miracle Workers is available now in full with a modern, comedic twist on classic fairy tales. Daniel Radcliffe caught up with costar Geraldine Viswanathan (Bad Education, Blockers, The Package) to talk life in lockdown and how to use your dog to catch Hugh Jackman.
Based on the writings of Simon Rich, we have already seen Daniel as the lonely Heaven Inc. employee answering reasonable prayers one melted snowflake at a time while a disillusioned God (Steve Buscemi) threatens to blow up the Earth. Enter Eliza Hunter from the Dirt Department, who is determined to save this dysfunctional planet. This season on Miracle Workers: Dark Ages, Daniel returns as Chauncley, a spoiled prince who prefers ducks over bloodshed, unlike Dan when it comes to working with ducks versus owls on set. He quickly develops a crush on Viswanathan’s character, Alexandra Sh*tshoveler from the village. Yes, that is her real name – you will find that the clue is in the last name when it comes to the villagers’ professions in this comedic reimagination of medieval life. Check out the trailer below for a peek.
Courtesy of Interview magazine, Daniel got the chance to chat remotely with his on-screen love interest, who is a rising star of the screen. While in the past few years both actors have been working nonstop, they have safely retreated to their homes in New York and shared their concerns about the future of their hairdos in the absence of professional haircuts, not to mention remembering to get dressed for video calls. They also reminisced fondly about their time filming together:
VISWANATHAN: What’s lovely about our show is that it feels like a company that comes together once a year to have fun. Whereas with movies, it’s usually more of a sprint.
RADCLIFFE: It makes it sound really flip to say our show is like summer camp, but it does feel like that. It’s just very, very good fun.
Another common denominator in the actors’ careers is Hugh Jackman. Viswanathan had the chance to work with her fellow Australian talent on Bad Education. Daniel’s acquaintance of him is through the industry, both being fabulous musical theater stars on top of films, as well as his mother’s stealthy fangirling:
He used to walk his dog around here [the West Village], and I’m pretty sure that whatever my mom’s dogwalking route had been, she would be like, ‘Oh, I see Hugh’s going there. I’m just going to walk my dog near him today.’ When I met him, I casually apologized for that.
Although the lockdown put a slightly early end to Daniel’s most recent stage work in Beckett’s Endgame, Viswanathan said she still has some projects in the air since her career is skyrocketing fast. Daniel knows all about fame, but he was curious about what it’s like to experience it as an adult:
When I was getting famous and getting into the industry, I think it was easier because I was really young and you just sort of accept your situation when you’re that age. I thought it would always be quite difficult to have your life changed in that way when you’re older. But I could also be completely wrong.
Viswanathan said that “this collective pause has been a good time to reflect” after back-to-back jobs. On the upside, she has been living the dream, but on the other hand, she has “also been living out of a suitcase for three years.”
Have you seen Daniel in Season 2 of Miracle Workers?
