Rainbow Crew is an ongoing interview series that celebrates the best LGBTQ+ representation on screen. Each instalment showcases talent working on both sides of the camera, including queer creatives and allies to the community. Next up, we're speaking to A Night Like This stars Alexander Lincoln and Jack Brett Anderson.
Two men who meet suddenly in A Night Like This form a surprise connection that spans sunset to sunrise.
The classic romance explored in Before Sunrise and Before Sunset are obvious touchstones here, but Liam Calvert's directorial debut walks its own path still, much like Oliver (Alexander Lincoln) and Lukas (Jack Brett Anderson) as they get to know each other across one wintery London night.
Yet as the pair warm up, despite the bitter cold, A Night Like This takes unexpected turns with these two seemingly mismatched, star crossed lovers. It's a "one night stand without the sex" as they themselves put it, although the heat between them is undeniable still.
Ahead of the world premiere of A Night Like This tonight at BFI Flare, Digital Spy caught up with stars Alexander Lincoln and Jack Brett Anderson to discuss the unique connection their characters form, challenges they faced on set, and that ethereal silent disco kiss.
Even though this is a queer-led story, Oliver is reluctant to define himself at first. He even goes so far as to deny being queer at all. What did you think of that approach in relation to what his connection with Lukas becomes?
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Alexander Lincoln: I hate labels – but Oliver is, I guess, a bisexual man. What Diego and I spoke about before shooting was the idea that he's... I mean, he's a trust fund kid, so presumably there's been some sort of private school shenanigans. Probably rugby stuff as well. He's explored it a little bit, I think, but not really in a relationship sort of space.
Me and Diego haven't really got an idea, I don't think, if he has experienced that before, but I personally like the idea that Oliver hasn't, and then meets this really intriguing character that Jack plays, Lukas. And from that, there's this spark of something.
I don't believe that Oliver is necessarily thinking about that the whole time. At least, from my point of view, both of them are not really looking for the romantic in this. It's more like two people being very lost and quite broken, finding solace within themselves, not within that partnership, and then from that, from the way that it develops, it brings this thing.
Jack Brett Anderson: As much as Lukas's character is gay and is into men, he doesn't really know where Oliver stands. As much as that is a part of his character, I don't think it's the full him that the story follows. It's so much about two people talking, regardless of their sexual orientation.
It was just two people where one happened to be gay and one might be gay, but they are having this beautiful conversation and almost being fearless with it, whilst being fearful. It's more than a kind of a secular part of a relationship, which could be sex or attraction.
Spending that time with anyone is... you get to see so much more than a fleeting moment of sex or whatever it might be. It just so happens that one of these characters is gay. It shows what can occur amongst men when you don't necessarily make it always about sex. Our characters can be whatever they want to be, in a way, but the interaction is important.
That reminds of a key line in the film which describes their connection "as a one night stand without the sex". It's quite a unique dynamic in terms of what we see on screen. But there is some physicality that comes when Oliver and Lukas kiss in the silent disco scene. It's a clever twist on the club meets we often see in films like this. Can you talk me through what it was like to shoot that scene and what its impact is on the film as a whole?
Lincoln: I remember there were two alternatives for the dance scene, a dancey one and a slower one... Working with Jack was just amazing. We hit it off immediately, which I hope you can see in the film. That scene in that club – apart from when it started flooding halfway through the day, which was hilarious.
Anderson: We were shooting in almost like an abandoned warehouse, old building, vibe that was revived. That kind of thing.
Lincoln: Gradually the water levels just started rising. There were bits we couldn't walk on... We were in the back bit where there wasn't any water. But then once you finish the scene, you're jumping over stuff, trying to get out.
Anderson: I kind of forgot about that, to be fair. I was more worried about getting the moment right, and he was worrying about the water, shit [Laughs].
Lincoln: The moment was always gonna be right, Jack. Always.
Anderson: Looking back at that scene, it felt like it was an important part of the characters. It was also quite a fun thing to explore in terms of the dynamic of the silent disco, trying to find this moment that is supposed to resonate, something that we worked for, that the characters worked for and that meant something to them.
It did feel very like ethereal vibes because we didn't just rush into it, did we? I think it comes across as really beautiful and simplistic. It was almost like, is it a romantic kiss or just a necessary kiss? That's what I got from it. It's still ambiguous with these two.
Lincoln: With that kiss, it's almost like it was fate, it was written in the stars when they first met, even though neither of them knew it. What you said about it being necessary is interesting, if you look at the idea of where their relationship goes throughout the film, seeing them get closer and closer and further apart with this relationship developing.
And of course, as you say, echoing a lot of queer films with the club scene, I think it's just a perfect moment for them. But we kept messing up our takes, didn't we Jack?
Anderson: Argh yeah. You definitely kept going for that scene. I didn't know what I did wrong, but I just kept being told something went wrong [Laughs].
"One more time please?" Honestly, my lips are dry. I need you not to be kissing me anymore, because you're not gonna like me after [Laughs].
Aside from the flooding, was there anything else you found particularly challenging about working on this film?
Anderson: The cold nights.
Lincoln: Oh my god, yeah.
Anderson: It came up when we were filming, to never do a film with the word "night" in it [Laughs]. You're gonna be freezing, your sleep pattern changes, you kind of get detached from the normal world. You're going to sleep as people are waking up, going to work. When you're in it, you kind of forget that you're cold, but it's just the bits in-between.
Lincoln: You say that, but with Oliver... So my costume was a white t-shirt with a leather jacket, which looked great. And then, towards the end of the film, I give my jacket away.
So we shot that scene, and I shot it with just my white t-shirt. That scene was relatively sheltered. And then when we were on the bridge. It's a very emotional scene. In between, it was like, "Brrrr". The team were on hands, giving us coats and jackets and stuff, but it was a challenge, for sure.
Always staying in the scene when you're absolutely freezing, it's always a killer. On most things I've done, there's always been a scene like that. Maybe it's me [Laughs].
You mentioned that there's always this ambiguity around the pair and their connection. Even at the end, things are left open ended as to what could happen next. What do you think the future holds for Oliver and Lukas, or what do you hope could happen next for them after the credits roll?
Anderson: From my experience of Lukas, I just hope he finds a decent companion in being a friend or whatever it is, because, he made it clear that he throws himself into the best part of the idea of someone. And normally, if it's a bisexual guy or someone closeted, it doesn't ever go his way. So I think he has no expectation because of the letdowns.
I mean, Oliver turned up again at the end. It's just, "F**king hell, someone's just come back for me." The fact he's there at this stage... I can see that it's something special, it shows that something like that exists, so don't give up.
Lincoln: I think there's a real similarity between what Oliver and Lukas feel at the end. They're both very lost, and by the end, they sort of found something. Whilst I love the idea that they get together and walk off into the sunset and live a beautiful life, I always love the realism.
What I think is beautiful about queer relationships is when there's a lack of sex, when it's just two people really finding each other. Whether that becomes a relationship or not, I always prefer the friendship. I think there's a purity to it which sort of transcends the lust and sex and all of that kind of stuff.
That being said, I do think there are similarities between them. They're polar opposites, but there's also a lot of flexibility, especially within Oliver, where I think he is pining for that sense of relationship. I don't think he's ever had that.
Anderson: It's closeness, isn't it? That sense of closeness, that silent camaraderie.
Lincoln: I think both of them have been lacking that in their lives. Oliver's estranged from his family. It's all very much like, yes, he's lived a privileged life, but he's lived a lonely one. Lukas is similar.
For me, what drew me into the characters and the film is the beauty of loneliness and finding someone, especially in London as well. London can be such an empty, lonely city, even though it can also be complete opposite. But if you're in a place where you struggle to find friendships and closeness, it can be a difficult city, no matter where your background is from.
What do you hope people take away from watching A Night Like This?
Lincoln: It's this idea of experiencing your own loneliness, allowing yourself the ability to meet a complete stranger and have that connection.
So often now in the UK and in London, especially, when you go on the tube or literally anywhere, no one looks at each other, no one smiles. There's a lack of human connection that's grown, that we feel ourselves in. I only speak to London because that's where we are, and that's where the film is set, but there is a sense of individualism.
What I love about this film, there's these two characters here who are quite broken individuals, maybe they've never let anyone in, and then through circumstance, through both of them being at their lowest ebb, they've got on, deciding let's do this thing. Let's try something. And there's no risk in it, because they're complete strangers.
Anderson: In the world, there's a sense of don't talk to strangers. Be careful. There are bad people. I feel like this is a moment of, "No, do take a chance in life". It's as important to be careful, but open.
If neither of them had been open, the situation that night, would not have happened. There's so many strands of life that then wouldn't have birthed either. It's about taking that risk.
But also, the whole film makes you feel so nostalgic. It makes you think about moments in your life, and then the way Diego has written it, it's quite profound. I want people to think and relish in their memories and make more from seeing how that moment, that night, will never happen again, but it has happened, so from that make it worth something.
A Night Like This has its world premiere tonight at BFI Flare: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival, which runs until March 30 at BFI Southbank.
After teaching in England and South Korea, David turned to writing in Germany, where he covered everything from superhero movies to the Berlin Film Festival.
In 2019, David moved to London to join Digital Spy, where he could indulge his love of comics, horror and LGBTQ+ storytelling as Deputy TV Editor, and later, as Acting TV Editor.
David has spoken on numerous LGBTQ+ panels to discuss queer representation and in 2020, he created the Rainbow Crew interview series, which celebrates LGBTQ+ talent on both sides of the camera via video content and longform reads.
Beyond that, David has interviewed all your faves, including Henry Cavill, Pedro Pascal, Olivia Colman, Patrick Stewart, Ncuti Gatwa, Jamie Dornan, Regina King, and more — not to mention countless Drag Race legends.
As a freelance entertainment journalist, David has bylines across a range of publications including Empire Online, Radio Times, INTO, Highsnobiety, Den of Geek, The Digital Fix and Sight & Sound.
