Jude Law revealed that he stayed in character as Captain Hook for the duration of shooting the upcoming film, Peter Pan and Wendy, acting “really scary and mean” even towards the child actors on set. But, he made it up to them in the end by finally breaking character and driving an ice cream van onto set for everyone to enjoy.
“It sounds kinda awful,” Law laughed, sitting in the guest seat on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Thursday night. He explained: “David Lowery, our wonderful director, had the idea of trying [to have the children] not see me when I wasn’t Hook, so I just stayed Hook the whole time… I didn’t want to be talking to a little 6-year-old [as] Jude, and then suddenly be like, ‘Right, you hate me, I’m Hook.’ So, instead, I just stuck as Hook.”
While it may be a bit of a silly approach, Law supposes Lowery’s idea helped elicit even stronger performances. “A lot of the reactions you see in the film are their reactions to me for the first time, or as the man himself,” he told Fallon.
Though, of course, Law didn’t let his terrifying presence last too long. “They met ‘Jude’ at the end,” he said. “I did what every adult should do to bribe children: I rented an ice cream van, drove it on-site, and gave out ice cream. There’s nothing like chocolate ice cream to persuade a child that you’re alright.”
While it’s hard to even recognize Law as Captain Hook, the 50-year-old actor has been doing more character work recently. He portrayed Albus Dumbledore in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore and Yon-Rogg in Captain Marvel. He’s also set to star in the upcoming Disney+ series, Star Wars: Skeleton Crew.
Peter Pan and Wendy debuts on Disney+ tomorrow, April 28th. Watch Law’s interview on The Tonight Show below.