while Maile Mitchell i Thomas Brodie-Sangsterchemistry is the reason why many fans love The Artful Dodgerit took a while to develop the dynamic.
“I didn’t know Thomas well (before filming). Before our first day, he had been shooting something in the States, so I showed up quickly, like, the day after I found out I booked him, I had a rehearsal day and I met Thomas,” Mitchell, 32, said exclusively. Us Weekly about his early days on the Hulu show. “The first scene of me and Thomas together was actually when I’m in my room and I’m taking off my dress.”
Mitchell recalled the “tension” between their characters—Belle and Jack—while filming their first scene. “Thomas and Maia (had) zero chemistry,” he joked. “He’s so handsome, but I was like, ‘He’s a gentleman and I’m so tall. I don’t think he likes me very much. Am I talking too much because he only talks when he has something to say?'”
She continued: “Then we did that scene and he became Dodger and it was palpable. I remember looking at our showrunner James McNamara and going, ‘We’re good.’ But you don’t really know until you’re both in these characters. The way Jack transforms with all that edge…Thomas is such a wonderful actor and such a beautiful person. He’s so generous and so great with everyone. He’s the best.”
Acting as a sequel to Charles Dickensnovel Oliver Twist, The Artful Dodger is set in the 1850s and follows Jack Dawkins (Brodie-Sangster), who is a former Royal Navy surgeon trying to establish himself as a respected young doctor. In addition to his antics outside of work, Jack quickly develops a romance with the governor’s daughter Belle (Mitchell).
The second season, which premiered on Tuesday, February 10, watch Jack and Belle’s again a crossover romance while also introducing a love triangle with newcomer Inspector Henry Boxer (Luke Bracey).
“What I love about Boxer and the way Luke played it is (that) the temptation of a love triangle is to make the new edition an antagonist. I love that, this season, we’ve stayed away from the tropes and are getting a very nuanced perspective on these characters,” Mitchell said. “There’s this really rich character development and character-driven story. Especially with the love triangle between Boxer and Belle and Jack.”
Mitchell previewed Belle’s different connections with both men.
“Boxer is kind of the antithesis of Jack. Where Jack is fireworks and passion and a tumultuous love between stars, Boxer is calm and level-headed. They’re intellectually equal, which is quite stimulating. He also has this really devastating backstory,” he noted. “He plays him with such a beautiful fragility that you can’t help but root for him and think that it would be a much simpler, maybe more comfortable, life for Belle. And Jack is really threatened by that.”
She added, “It was fun to walk that line with the love triangle and try to really get away from anything. We just get to the core of who these characters are and for Belle, it’s pretty empowering because she’s very independent this season. She’s really looking at her options and prioritizing herself. I love seeing a woman do that.”
From Bridgerton’s Kate and Anthony to Maxton Hall’s Ruby and James, fans have enjoyed some pretty memorable sex scenes between their favorite TV couples over the years. Netflix’s Regency series originally wowed with its many steamy moments between Season 1’s Daphne (Phoebe Dynevor) and Simon (Regé-Jean Page). Ahead of Season 2, creator (…)
Season 2 ends on a definitive, hopeful note, but Mitchell still has hope for more.
“It’s been a long painstaking wait to hear (about a Season 2), so we’re very happy to be back,” he told Us. “In terms of getting back into character, the break was good. It’s always nerve-wracking to go back. But it’s so easy with our sets and with our costumes, you really sink into the world. But the break was good because she would have needed that break to find a different tone in her, to do a different preparation. Especially with the dialect coaches and her voice was a little different. Hopefully we’ll get a third season, and hopefully the break won’t be so long.”
The Artful Dodger is currently streaming on Hulu.