Cillian Murphy, who played Tommy Shelby in Peaky Blinders, put in extensive preparation for Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man. Before filming, he went back and watched the series to reconnect with the show’s energy, emotions, and characters. But one of the film’s newest stars, Tim Roth, chose a very different approach. Instead of diving into the world of the Shelby family, he avoided watching the show.

Now, after the filming of the movie is wrapped, Roth finally revealed why he made that surprising choice.

During an interview with Discussing Film, Tim Roth was asked about his experience joining the famous franchise. The actor explained that he had not watched the series and needed to make a decision on whether to watch it before the filming of Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man. He explained that his character is someone who does not know Tommy Shelby either, so going in without that knowledge actually felt right to him. 

“I had to make a decision,” he said.

“Do I watch the show, or do I not watch it? Because my character wouldn’t know these guys. And that’s the road I went down with it was to wait.”

It might have seemed like a tricky call, but considering the other bold choices he made for his role in Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, it could turn out to be a safe bet. So, yes, this was not the only major decision Roth made while shaping his character. After facing enemies like Luca Changretta and Oswald Mosley, Tommy Shelby is now set to encounter one of his most dangerous and complex enemies yet. 

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Much of that intrigue could well come down to one creative choice Roth made for his role in Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man.

Tim Roth plays the role of Beckett in Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, a character who originally belonged to the aristocratic class. However, Roth pushed for a major change, urging creator Steven Knight to reimagine Beckett as someone from a working-class background instead. The shift was approved, and it ultimately made the character feel far more layered and compelling than before.

"I asked him if I could flip it and make him working class and give him a kind of schoolteacher vibe and all that stuff,"

“I asked them if I could flip it and make him working class so he could actually talk to these people, as opposed to coming at them from a perch," Roth told MovieWeb.

This shift in his character’s arc places Tommy Shelby and his adversary on equal footing. However, the tension deepens when two men standing on the same ground begin to clash over opposing visions. That dynamic not only adds depth to Roth’s character but also heightens the anticipation for what is to come in Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man.

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