Apple TV+’s Slow Horses | Kadiff Kirwan Talks About Marcus’ Journey with Loss And Sacrifice

Kadiff Kirwan in Apple TV+'s Slow Horses

Loss and sacrifice are common themes for spies who made mistakes in the Apple TV+ series Slow Horses.

With complex, relatable characters blended with intriguing, exciting action, the series is critically praised as one of the best streaming series to watch.

Here is the official synopsis:

Slow Horses is a darkly humorous espionage drama that follows a dysfunctional team of British intelligence agents who serve in an MI5 dumping ground department known unaffectionately as Slough House. Season four opens with a bombing that detonates personal secrets, rocking Slough Horses already unstable foundations.

For this season, the cast includes Gary Oldman, Jack Lowden, Kristin Scott Thomas, Rosalind Eleazar, Christopher Chung, Aimee-Ffion Edwards, Kadiff Kirwan, Jonathan Pryce, Hugo Weaving, Sean Gilder, Ruth Bradley, James Callis, Joanna Scanlan, Tom Brooke, and Naomi Wirthner.

LRM Online’s Gig Patta spoke with actor Kadiff Kirwan before the final episode of season four of Slow Horses, which will be streaming tomorrow on Apple TV+.

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Read the interview transcript below.

Gig Patta: Kadiff, congratulations on season four of Slow Horses.

Kadiff Kirwan: Thank you so much. It’s been an absolute whirlwind. The way the world has embraced this season has been absolutely fantastic. So thank you for that.

Gig Patta: This is one of the best series out there right now, but we must hear it from you. What do you suppose is the secret to success for Slow Horses?

Kadiff Kirwan: Gary Oldman. Gary Oldman doing TV and playing a killer character. No, the secret is the flaws that all the characters have. We constantly see them trying to overcome them and getting in their own way. It’s such a human thing. We all know what it’s like to make a mistake. When your job is highly stressed and highly skilled, you have a major F-up by seeing them try to undo that mistake for the rest of their lives. I think the secret of the show is just learning from your mistakes and trying to move forward.

Gig Patta: Now, your character, Marcus, has flaws and is learning from his mistakes. Tell us about that journey with Marcus through these seasons.

Kadiff Kirwan: So many people in the world have addictions. In many ways, Marcus doesn’t see his addiction as an addiction. Clearly, it is an addiction because it’s made him end up in Slough House for being a chronic gambler. It’s playing someone with two kids and a wife with a highly stressed job and an addiction has been [highly involved]. I did a bunch of research. It’s been amazing to find his tempo and what he allows to come to the surface. He’s a very, very laid-back person until he’s not. This season, he and Shirley keep going at each other. It’s been amazing to play that dynamic of friendship but also care. But it’s not an obvious care. It seems belligerent by both ends. It’s navigating the care for each other within the job,

Gig Patta: I’m glad you brought up the Shirley friendship because it almost seems like it’s a very, very special friendship. We wanted to see more of that friendship between Marcus and Shirley.

Kadiff Kirwan: That’s the thing. You leave the audience wanting more constantly, but that’s one of the best things about Slow Horses. It doesn’t give you what you think you want. Those scenes have been some of the best I’ve ever filmed. Aimee-Ffion [Edwards], who plays Shirley, we now due to Slow Horses have a great friendship. We speak every single day.

You never really see that relationship. A male-female relationship that’s platonic in that way in big dramas like this. It’s been amazing to keep unearthing the truth of what their relationship is. And that it’s completely not romantic as well. Men and women can be friends.

Gig Patta: That is so true. Not to mention, for this season, you see much more action for Marcus. How was that experience?

Kadiff Kirwan: Well, I’ve got the wounds to prove it was killer. No, it was amazing. Our stunt team is amazing. Our SFX team is incredible. Those fight sequences–the one in the garage and what’s coming up in the season finale were epic to shoot. Epic! The little boy inside me was so happy that he was getting to do this. All the fighting and the gun-wielding were pretty amazing.

Gig Patta: Let me leave with one last thought about Slow Horses. One of the reasons why I think Slow Horses is so good is that it’s all about loss and sacrifice. Tell us about that theme season after season, and especially to conclude this season.

Kadiff Kirwan: With loss and sacrifice, I think that that especially applies to River and his family in terms of his family dynamic this season. It’s a loss and sacrifice that all these characters are going through comes to a culmination in the season finale. And it’s unlike any sort of season finale that I’ve seen before on this scale. It takes you on an emotional journey alongside the action. Then it takes you somewhere you probably don’t want to go, but you’re so grateful by the end. I want the audience to stick with it and know that a lot of care has gone into this season.

Gig Patta: Well, thank you very much for speaking to us about season four of Slow Horses. I didn’t want it to end either but thank you.

Kadiff Kirwan: I appreciate it. Take care.

Slow Horses is now streaming on Apple TV+.

For news and interviews, contact Gig Patta at [email protected]. Follow https://x.com/GigPatta, https://www.facebook.com/OfficialGigPatta, https://www.instagram.com/gigpatta or https://www.tiktok.com/gigpatta for all his postings and musings in entertainment.

Source: LRM Online Exclusive, Apple TV+

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