Interview: Nicola Coughlan on the Message of ‘The Magic Faraway Tree’ and the Importance of Making Kids’ Films

Nicola Coughlan is bringing back the wonder of childhood with her performance as Silky in The Magic Faraway Tree, based on the best-selling novel. The film follows a family as they begin their new life in the remote countryside, and the magical tree hidden near their home ends up being exactly what they need to reconnect with each other.

“I was speaking to Greta Gerwig the other day, and we were talking about making kids’ films and why it feels really important because anyone who comes into the arts, whether it be an actor, a writer, a director, it started at childhood. It started, for me, with The Wizard of Oz,” she expressed. “I sort of felt like when we made this, if it can be one kid’s favorite movie, then what a thing to be part of. It’s so special. So it’s incredibly important, and you look at the greatest actors in the world: you look at Meryl Streep in Lemony Snicket [A Series of Unfortunate Events], you look at Dustin Hoffman in Hook, and Robin Williams [as Peter Pan]. I think as an actor, you should be going and doing those projects because they have such influence on kids’ lives that then grow up to be adults who make our next favorite movie.”

As for which had a lasting impact on her, Coughlan shared, “I really loved Roald Dahl growing up, so Matilda was just one that I read, and read, and read and just adored that character. I think in filming this movie, it really did bring me back to the joy of childhood, and that’s kind of the foundational message within it. I don’t watch kids’ movies very often. They have to be something very, very special, and I felt like this script was really special, which is why I wanted to be part of it. It’s telling that message, but it’s not doing it in sort of a cheesy way. It’s going, ‘Hey, remember when we could be fun, and we could play, and we could do this, and we were open to things before life got very difficult?’ And it certainly felt like that energy on set too.”

Watch Awards Radar’s full video interview with the actress below, where we discuss which childhood character she never forgot, the significant impact of kids’ movies, which was her favorite land to see brought to life, and more.

Vertical will release The Magic Faraway Tree in theaters nationwide on August 21.