Pillion is a Scottish Gaelic word for a seat behind a motorcyclist. It is also the title of a powerful new queer film.
Actor Harry Melling plays Colin, the pillion rider sitting behind Alexander Skarsgård’s Ray in a story adapted from the book Box Hill by Adam Mars-Jones. In the film, Colin and Ray explore what it means to be in a relationship surrounded by kink culture and judgmental outsiders.
Gay Englishman Harry Lighton adapted and directed Pillion. Audiences may recognize Melling from portraying cousin Dudley Dursley beginning at the age of 10 in the Harry Potter franchise.
The duo brought the dom-com to town for an early screening on Feb. 10 at AMC Newcity in Chicago. From the microphone, Lighton jokingly called Pillion a “BDSM Wallace & Gromit” during the question-and-answer portion of the evening.
The two Harrys met at the Ritz-Carlton with Windy City Times earlier that day to talk about their erotic project together.
Windy City Times: What did you know about the S&M scene prior to Pillion?
Harry Lighton: I knew about it, but I was certainly no expert. Part of the excitement of finding this book and adapting it into the movie was getting deeper into the subject.
Harry Melling: Hanging out with the GBMCC (Gay Bikers Motorcycle Club), which is the biggest gay bikers convention, was incredible. I rode pillion on the back of their bikes at Cambridge Pride, which was very exciting.
WCT: You must have met a wide representation of the leather community while making Pillion.
HM: Absolutely, and we learned so much from talking to members of the biker community, such as the best route to Cambridge. People might think it’s all about kinky sex stuff the entire time, but that’s a very narrow road.
WCT: The Colin character is crucial for viewers to identify with. Was it hard for you to find him?
HL: I thought it was going to be hard to cast. I was writing the end of the script and I randomly watched The Ballad of Buster Scruggs. I thought Harry’s performance in the film would be interesting if applied to Colin.
I didn’t have to go on a massive hunt because Harry was my first choice and he signed on quickly.
WCT: What was it like working with Alexander Skarsgård?
HL: I met him not too long before we started shooting. We hung out and talked about the character.
HM: We had done a week of shooting prior to Alex coming on with the family scenes. We had to rehearse the wrestling scene to prepare to shoot that later in the week.
Getting frisky was our introduction to each other and it was a great way of literally jumping into it. There wasn’t much talking about the backstory for months, as we discovered it in the space together at the same time.
It’s an interesting way to work when you don’t have everything before shooting because it allows flexibility to happen.
WCT: In the book, the parents were not as accepting of Colin being queer compared to the movie. Why was this changed?
HL: The parents in the book, I felt, are quite a familiar stereotype in literature and film. When Colin said he’s gay in the book, they sweep it under the carpet. I was more interested in starting from a point of extreme acceptance.
Once Colin finds a boyfriend, what happens when the boyfriend doesn’t meet the mother’s expectations? She then withdraws her acceptance because of Ray being a mysterious character she doesn’t trust.
That generates a debate on whether she is right about Ray, or if she is mapping her own ideas of a heteronormative relationship onto her son.
WCT: I noticed that paper firecracker gifts that were in one scene of Pillion. Isn’t that a popular present to give out in Europe around the holidays?
HM: Good observation…
HL: Yes, it’s a classic Christmas present that you get in your stocking in the UK and abroad. We have a lot of scenes where we shot for 30 minutes like that one, and it was totally improvised.
WCT: Were the names Wendy, Ellen and Rosie tattooed on Ray’s chest supposed to be names of his past pets?
HL: Yes, but also a gay quiz show test. They are dogs, but what are they named after?
WCT: Possibly talk show queens?
HL: That’s a good way of putting it. I will say this: I wanted it to be a sign that Ray is gay without a capital G and possibly be the names of ex-girlfriends. I like the fact that Ray is throwing people off his scent while being low-key gay.
WCT: How was your experience with [Scissors Sisters Co-Lead Vocalist] Jake Shears as Kevin?
HM: He’s an absolute legend.
HL: He’s lovely. I was in a Scissor Sisters tribute band when I was in school. This was a full circle moment, as they say…
WCT: What was the name of the band?
HL: We had the worst name ever. It was called Buzz. It reminds me of bees and I was in it when I was 12. It was like School of Rock. I said a tribute band, but we only had two songs. The only song I remember is “Take Your Mama.” My dad came to watch us and told me that I had zero stage presence. [all laugh]
WCT: Your dad sounds like a harsh critic.
HL: He was, but look at me now. Jake was sweet and it was his first onscreen acting role, so it was a baptism by fire for him. He approached it full of gusto.
WCT: I hope Jake makes more musicals in the future.
HM: He did Cabaret in London and I saw it. He was great.
HL: When we finished filming, he went on tour.
WCT: He came to Illinois with Kesha on that tour.
HL: Did she sing “Praying”?
WCT: She did and sang over 30 other songs as well. For the section in Pillion where there’s a day off from regular activities, could that be interpreted as a dream?
HM: When I was in the scene, I felt it was very much happening. Looking at it now in the context of the movie and where it was shot in Bromley, with people roaming around, I can see how that gave it an otherworldly quality, maybe a dream.
HL: You are the second person who has brought this up as a potential fantasy. In a way, their relationship could be seen as a fantasy. It exists in a very stark world and Ray is like a fantasy creature. He has no background and is exceptionally good-looking.
That day is when they behave most normally and in some ways, the fantasy wears off. For Colin, it’s the opposite of fantasy.
WCT: What is one thing you learned about the leather community while making this project?
HM: I learned how to lick a boot. I was taught that the side of the boot is important to have good contact with because the leather is thin.
HL: I learned so much, but one thing is, if there is someone in a cage, be careful with the key. I learned my lesson because one of the characters was locked in and there was a mad chase to find the key.
HM: I remember someone running across the set in a panic.
WCT: You have a twin brother, Harry Lighton. Is he gay?
HL: No, he is straight, but I identify as gay.
WCT: And you?
HM: I would rather not talk about it.
WCT: What are you both working on next?
HL: I am going to a writer’s residency in Paris for six months and I am planning on writing my next film there. I am excited about it, but I can’t say what it will be yet.
HM: I have just finished a movie, Stuffed, with Jodie Comer. It’s a musical where I am singing about a taxidermist who wants to stuff a human being. It’s both strange and wonderful.
Pillion opens in Chicago theaters on Fri., Feb. 20, before a nationwide release on Fri., Feb. 27.