Sophie wears CHANEL Metier Des Arts 2021
SOPHIE COOKSON
Stars in film
INFINITE
Photography Liam Bundy
Fashion Director Deborah Ferguson
Sophie Cookson, English actor, landed a major film role as Roxy Morton in the critically acclaimed Kingsman series not long after graduating from The Oxford School of Drama. Cookson’s credits span several mediums from film to TV to theatre. At only 10 years old, she became part of the “British Youth Music Theatre” and toured Japan with a theatre company. All of her success so early into her life makes us wonder whether she too has lived many lives like her character, Nora Brightman, in Infinite. Cookson stars alongside Mark Wahlberg in Infinite on Paramount+ as Brightman (Cookson) guides Evan McCauley (Wahlberg) to discover his identity as an infinite to help save the world from destruction. Cookson talks to us about her time in drama school, her previous roles, passions, and experience working on Infinite.
Dress and Shoes: Alessandra Rich, Earrings: Vintage Yves Saint Laurent haute couture (4Element)
Jacket: Preen, Shirt: Esaú Yori, Leggings: Chanel, Shoes: Jimmy Choo, Earrings: Preen x Florence Tétier
You graduated from The Oxford School of Drama, can you recall a memorable piece of advice that you received that you take with you in your career now?
During my first job, a well-respected actor said to me, “Remember you have the power to say no.” That’s always stuck with me because, particularly when I was first out of drama school, I definitely felt the need to please and a pressure that if I said no to anything, including things that made me uncomfortable, I wouldn’t continue to work. His advice still now helps me to remember that I have a power and a voice. It’s my career not anyone else’s, so I define what I do.
Top: Miló Maria, Blazer: Esaú Yori, Shoes: Jimmy Choo, Necklace: Vintage Yves Saint Laurent haute couture (4Element), Tights: ƐƚLJliƐƚ͛Ɛ oǁn
Dress and Shoes: Alessandra Rich, Earrings: Vintage Yves Saint Laurent haute couture (4Element)
Not long after you graduated, you landed a leading role in the Kingsman series as Roxy. What was your internal monologue like at that moment? For example, many people have a bit of imposter syndrome when success is immediate- did you feel this way at all?
Ha ha! I have imposter syndrome all the time! I think it’s common with a lot of actors. We are constantly being thrown into new unknown situations and I regularly think, Crumbs, how am I gonna pull this one off?!! particularly if prep time is limited. Kingsman was brilliant because I was so green and naive I didn’t have anything to compare it to, so I was just very hungry to learn and work with all those amazing people. I knew that there was nothing at drama school that could have totally prepared me for that experience, so I was just happy to be along for the ride!
Dress and Shoes: Alessandra Rich, Earrings: Vintage Yves Saint Laurent haute couture (4Element)
Jacket: Preen, Shirt: Esaú Yori, Leggings: Chanel, Shoes: Jimmy Choo, Earrings: Preen x Florence Tétier
You have worked on TV series The Trial of Christine Keeler and Gypsy, films Red Joan and Greed, and have made your theatrical debut in Killer Joe; which medium feels most comfortable to you?
Gosh, I’m not sure I feel “comfortable” in any of them! I find them all incredibly enjoyable and the essence of them is all the same; reflecting life back at the audience, creating a three-dimensional living, breathing person, with hopes or fears that people watching hopefully can relate to in some way. However, in all its forms, acting scares me and I think that not being comfortable is an asset, stops you from getting complacent and means you have your wits about you and can be present. I’m very self-critical so I really love the one-off nature of theatre. It creates an addictive electricity!
Jacket: Preen, Shirt: Esaú Yori, Leggings: Chanel, Shoes: Jimmy Choo, Earrings: Preen x Florence Tétier
Dress and Shoes: Alessandra Rich, Earrings: Vintage Yves Saint Laurent haute couture (4Element)
Other than acting, what are some things you are passionate about?
Food! My happy place is the kitchen. I get so much joy cooking for my friends and family and loving them through food! You can learn so much about society, politics or history from a country’s cuisine, I find that fascinating.
Dress and Shoes: Alessandra Rich, Earrings: Vintage Yves Saint Laurent haute couture (4Element)
Jacket: Miló Maria, Bag: Chanel, Shoes: Jimmy Choo, Earrings: Vintage Christian Dior (4Element) , Tights ƐƚLJliƐƚ͛Ɛ oǁn
You play Nora in Infinite, who is on a bit of a quest of her own in the film. How were you able to connect with a character that does not just exist in one lifetime?
Nora is an interesting conundrum, steely on the outside and deeply emotional and raw on the inside. She’s trying to keep it together in the face of adversity and grief. I think we can all relate to that. I tried not to think about all of her many different lives in too much detail as it would have taken a lifetime (!) but I definitely wanted her to have gravitas and worldliness. She’s seen it all before and has been hardened by that.
Dress and Shoes: Alessandra Rich, Earrings: Vintage Yves Saint Laurent haute couture (4Element)
Jacket, blouse, leggings, skirt, boots, necklace: Chanel, Earrings: Vintage Christian Dior (4Element)
In The Trial of Christine Keeler, you play the titular character, a real person, however in Infinite your character is based on the writing of D. Eric Maikranz in The Reincarnationist Papers; how does preparation change when you are referencing a real story, a fictional novel, or a script?
Every job is totally different and the prep reflects that. For The Trial of Christine Keeler, it was so important to make sure I got under her skin and we could tell the story from her point of view, which meant reading her autobiography and finding out who she was beyond what was represented in the headlines. For Infinite, Nora’s physicality was very important. She had to feel like a warrior. I was cast quite late so had little time to prep. It was an intense whirlwind of boxing, fight training and weapon training.
Top: Miló Maria, Blazer: Esaú Yori, Shoes: Jimmy Choo, Necklace: Vintage Yves Saint Laurent haute couture (4Element), Tights: ƐƚLJliƐƚ͛Ɛ oǁn
Jacket: Miló Maria, Bag: Chanel, Shoes: Jimmy Choo, Earrings: Vintage Christian Dior (4Element) , Tights ƐƚLJliƐƚ͛Ɛ oǁn
In Infinite, the film explores the idea of knowing how to do something without ever being taught because of skills in a past life. Do you have any talents, other than acting, that you were always a natural at?
Mmm I’m not sure I’m best qualified to answer this! I’ve always enjoyed singing!
You have worked alongside Judi Dench in Red Joan, Naomi Watts in Gypsy, Orlando Bloom in Killer Joe and you star alongside Mark Wahlberg in Infinite. Have you ever felt star-struck by a co-star of yours?
Of course, a little! You try to keep professional, we’re ultimately all there to crack on with the job.
Jacket, blouse, leggings, skirt, boots, necklace: Chanel, Earrings: Vintage Christian Dior (4Element)
Jacket: Preen, Shirt: Esaú Yori, Leggings: Chanel, Shoes: Jimmy Choo, Earrings: Preen x Florence Tétier
What should we look forward to from you in the future? Any imagined dream roles?
More surprises! I tend not to focus on specific dream roles, I just hope to be continually challenged and to play complicated, real women which fortunately is much more likely than it was when I first started.
Photographer
Liam Bundy
Fashion Director
Deborah Ferguson
Interview
Tessa Swantek
Makeup
Liz Pugh @Premier Hair and Makeup
Hair
Halley Brisker @The Wall Group
Fashion Assistant
Sanda Bell
Web Layout
Victoria Smith
View the trailer for “Infinite” here:
