Buckle up!
As Red Eye takes off for a second series, stars Jing Lusi and Martin Compston talk ratings, representation and filling big shoes
ITV
- Gareth McLean
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When someone tells you that they had “a moment” at London’s Euston station, you assume, not unreasonably, that it was a moment of despair, or rage, or a combination of the two, in response to some train-related tribulation. Not for Jing Lusi, who plays DI Hana Li in Red Eye, ITV’s high-octane, thoroughly daft, edge-of-your-seat-compelling thriller. Her moment at Euston was a joyful one.
“When Trigger Point [the bomb disposal drama starring Vicky McClure] came out, I remember it was all over the big billboards in Waterloo station. I took a video of it and sent it as a joke to my producer asking: ‘Can this be us?’. Fast-forward a year, and it was us, at Euston. Seeing it was quite a moment. Pretty amazing, actually.”
The amazing part wasn’t that her giant face was plastered all over billboards – although, “That is surreal,” the 40-year-old says, “especially when you don’t expect it”. What thrilled Lusi was what the billboards meant. “That ITV were doing all this marketing was a real vote of confidence. I had such a good time making it that, for me personally, I was already winning regardless of the reception it was going to get. Anything else is a bonus.”
The broadcaster’s confidence was, it seems, well-placed. Despite attracting what we might diplomatically call mixed reviews, and launching in the shadow of Hijack on Apple TV, which was a similarly-themed thriller at 35,000 feet, albeit with double the budget and Idris Elba as the lead, Red Eye was a hit.
“I’ve never worried about ratings before,” Lusi explains. “But I’ve never led a show before – I was like ‘It’s on the lead. It’s their funeral…’ With this, I cared. It probably wasn’t the healthiest habit but I was looking at ratings as soon as they were announced every week. I was so surprised and overwhelmed that the audience grew every week.”
In series one, Hana’s ethnicity mattered but series two has moved on
Jing Lusi
Red Eye’s popularity meant that chief among the “anything else” of bonuses coming Lusi’s way was, inevitably, a second series. “My exec said to me, ‘This is your sophomore year. You’ve made a hit album, you’ve set the bar high and now you’ve got to deliver’. And she was right. We do have to deliver.”
Lusi obviously believes that the second series delivers, in spades, and she makes no bones about fulfilling a lifelong ambition with the show. “My whole career, I’ve wanted to lead and I’d posit that most actors want to lead. I’ve worked with some amazing leads – Constance Wu [on Crazy Rich Asians], Gal Gadot [on Heart of Stone], Rowan Atkinson [on Man vs Bee] – and I’ve learnt so much from them. Not just about performance but about how you are setting the tone on set every day. Watching and learning for most of my career has been pivotal to then being able to have such a good time on Red Eye and to be the lead that I wanted to be.”
Jing Lusi and Martin Compston star in Red Eye season 2 ITV
The lead that she is – the person that she is – is east Asian. Born in China, Lusi and her parents moved to the UK when she was five, settling in Southampton. Up until recently, it was rare to have a lead in a returning primetime drama that wasn’t white – unless that drama was explicitly concerned with exploring race or the realities of multicultural Britain. Among the notable exceptions: Luther, starring Idris Elba, Killing Eve with Sandra Oh, and, back in 2004, Hustle, BBC One’s con artist caper, which was led by Adrian Lester. The first Line of Duty starred Lennie James but while the series returned, he did not.
But lately that picture seems to be changing with the arrival of DI Ray, starring Parminder Nagra, Ellis with Sharon D Clarke, and, of course, Red Eye. Lusi has previously talked about the importance of representation, so does she feel a responsibility to be a spokesperson? “I spoke about it a lot promoting season one and I’m so glad I did, but I have let that go,” says Lusi, who is soon due to start filming Stephen Moffat’s new political comedy drama Number 10.
Martin Compston and Jing Lusi star in Red Eye season 2 ITV
“The actor Benedict Wong, who has been very kind to me during this whole process, said to me, ‘You just need to do you’ and that if I take that [responsibility] on, it will ruin the experience. As an actor, I realised that it’s way beyond what I should be doing.”
The pro that she is, Lusi brings it back to the show. “In series one, you got to see all this amazing representation, it was a drama about British-Chinese relations and Hana’s ethnicity mattered to the story. Series two has moved on, it’s a different conspiracy, and Hana just happens to be an east Asian cop. So, she’s just being her – and I’m just gonna do me.’’
Martin Compston Photo by Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images
How nerve-wracking is it stepping into Richard Armitage’s shoes as the male lead of Red Eye?
They are big shoes to fill because he’s a big fella, and he’s a bona fide movie star — I loved The Hobbit movies. Plus, the first series was a massive success. But it’s my job to try and take it to the next level, to make it bigger and bolder.
You do a bit of running about in Line of Duty but in Red Eye, you’re practically a proper action hero.
Harrison Ford said in an interview to do as many of your own stunts as you can because when you see the jeopardy of the stunt on the actor’s face, you can relate to it. That’s why Tom Cruise is the best in the business — he does his own stunts. On Red Eye, they let you do as much as you can, which is great.
Did you start working out in preparation?
Yes, but I did anyway. I enjoy working out, but I’m very fond of a pint and a pizza, so I need to exercise a lot because my diet isn’t the best.
How much discipline does that take?
It helped that the director Kieron Hawkes is one of my best friends. He got me into Krav Maga, the Israeli martial art, so I train several times a week. While filming, Kieron and I lived in an apartment block with a gym, so we’d train at night.
How was working with Jing?
Jing is a great number one [on the call sheet]. She really cared about her show, was protective of it and wanted the best for it. I’ve been in that position and sometimes you can take too much on, so I kept saying, “Just remember, this is fun”.
Is it fun?
We’re grown-ups playing cops and robbers. Peter A Dowling, the writer, grew up on films like Die Hard, Speed and The Fugitive, which don’t make sense but are a lot of fun. As this show goes on, it gets more unbelievable — but it’s escapism. That’s what people want sometimes.
How do you feel about Line of Duty returning?
We always knew we’d work together again, but Jed Mercurio was adamant that he wouldn’t come back if he didn’t have a story to tell.
So, when are you back?
Next year, and I’m looking forward to getting back with the team. They are some of my best friends. So I can’t wait to get back over to Belfast and have Vicky McClure running our lives.
Can you say anything about the story?
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I think it’s going to be quite explosive.
Authors
Gareth McLean
Gareth McLean has been writing about television for nearly 30 years. As a critic, he's reviewed thousands of programmes. As a feature writer, he's interviewed hundreds of people, from Liza Minnelli to Jimmy Savile. He has also written for TV.
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