Ursula Corbero of ‘The Day of the Jackal.’ Photo Credit: Arturo Holmes, Peacock
Spanish actress Ursula Corbero chatted about starring in the new upcoming series “The Day of the Jackal,” which premieres on November 14th on Peacock.
Theodore Roosevelt once said: “Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground.” This quote applies to Ursula Corbero.
‘The Day of the Jackal’
The synopsis is: A ruthless assassin, the Jackal (Eddie Redmayne) makes his living carrying out hits for the highest fee.
Following his latest kill, he meets his match in a tenacious British intelligence officer (Lashana Lynch) who starts to track down the Jackal in a thrilling cat-and-mouse chase across Europe, leaving destruction in its wake.
On being a part of ‘The Day of the Jackal,’ she remarked, “It was a long journey. I enjoyed it so much. I remember the first day I met Eddie Redmayne and Brian Kirk when we were doing our first rehearsals, and I noticed something was good.”
“I felt confident with them and also, they really wanted me to feel like I was a very special part of the project. They wanted my thoughts and input on what I thought about the whole show, and not just character,” she noted.
“Working with them was an amazing experience, to be honest,” she exclaimed. “We suffered, of course, because shootings are tough sometimes, but we also had fun. I was very happy with it.”
Playing Nuria in ‘The Day of the Jackal’
On playing Nuria, she said, “To be honest, I was a little bit worried in the beginning because I had the feeling that my character was too needy, but then I realized that was the most important thing about the character. I think Nuria has a very important arc throughout the season.”
“In the beginning, she is very pleasant and a little bit needy, and she is not ambitious. Then, I think, she starts to find herself, and the new Nuria is stronger, and it’s about survival. It was different… I think Nuria has a very nice arc through the season,” she elaborated.
“I’ve worked so hard to achieve that ‘badass’ vibe that Nuria has. I felt that was important,” she admitted.
Lessons learned from ‘The Day of the Jackal’ screenplay
On the lessons learned with the screenplay, she expressed, “I fell in love with the story.”
“I must admit that I had never heard about the ‘Jackal’ before, and they told me that there were previous versions of it,” she said. “Even though I didn’t know it, it was very new to me. I think the ‘Jackal’ in this version is very human: he has two parallel lives and different worlds which revolve around his job, his secret life, and then, his personal life.”
“So, I thought that was cool because I don’t think we are used to seeing these kinds of humanized characters in this kind of genre,” she acknowledged.
“I loved it, even though I wasn’t very sure about my character; I had some doubts about her. It was very important to me to make sure that there an evolution of Nuria,” she added.
Working with Eddie Redmayne in ‘The Day of the Jackal’
On working opposite Eddie Redmayne (who plays the Jackal), she exclaimed, “Oh my God. Eddie is the best! He is so sweet, so talented, he is generous, and he has everything.”
Corbero on Eddie Reymayne in ‘Cabaret’ on Broadway
She also complimented Redymayne’s Tony-nominated performance as the Emcee in the musical “Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club” on Broadway.
“I went and saw Eddie in ‘Cabaret’ this past June, and he did an amazing job; he is very talented,” she said.
“Also, I was so shocked because his character in ‘Cabaret’ has nothing to do with his character in ‘The Day of the Jackal,’ so I thought ‘okay, this is a completely different person.’ I enjoyed it so much,” she elaborated.
Superpower of choice
If Corbero were to have any superpower in her life, it would be knowledge of “martial arts.”
“I don’t know why but I think martial arts are good for you mentally and physically. That way you, don’t need anyone to protect you and you can protect yourself so that would be dope,” she exclaimed.
Stage of her life
On the title of the current chapter of her life, she said with a sweet laugh, “A messy life but a fun one.”
Advice for hopefuls in acting
For young and emerging actors, she encouraged them to be patient, to work hard, and to be consistent, as well as to be nice. “Don’t give up; trust yourself, that’s the most important thing,” she underscored.
“Even though there will be people that will tell you that ‘you can’t do this,’ or ‘you are not strong enough’ and ‘you are not talented enough.’ The most important thing is to trust yourself and don’t give a s**t about what other people think about you,” she elaborated.
Success
Regarding her definition of the word success, Corbero said, “To do what you want. Freedom, perhaps, and enjoying what you do. That would be success for me.”
Closing thoughts on ‘The Day of the Jackal’
For fans and viewers, she stated about “The Day of the Jackal,” “This series is thrilling. It’s a captivating show. It will keep you at the edge of your seat. I think that’s what we want from shows, right? We want more and more. That happened to me when I first watched it. I instantly became a fan of the show.”
“I think it’s important to be surrounded by a good team,” she admitted. “I felt like we were all going together in the same direction, and that’s important.”
“I also felt very free and listened to; that’s very important too. I felt very proud to be a part of it because I wanted more,” she concluded.
To learn more about Ursula Corbero, follow her on Instagram.