Jude Law has revealed he took keeping his new film Firebrand authentic into his own hands, revealing the “stinky method” he used to stay in character.

The movie follows Law‘s portrayal of Henry VIII during the final months of his rule over England, delving into the conflicts between him and his wife, Katherine Parr, played by Alicia Vikander.

However, it seems playing the king’s love interest might not have been an easy feat for Vikander.

Speaking to People at Firebrand‘s Tribeca Film Festival premiere, Law detailed that he doused himself in a perfume comprised of blood and faeces scents — A.K.A. the “stinky method”.

Gross!

Why did Jude Law wear the perfume?

According to the actor, the film’s director Karim Aïnouz “creates what [he] call[s] a 360-degree environment to acting,” which allows the actors to feel completely immersed in the “world” of the film. 

“The scent was a big part [of the world-building],” he explained.

“I learned that Henry had this stench because of his rotten legs and I just thought it’d be an interesting addition for those around me who had to fawn over him and do his every desire [while] also sort of holding back this retch.”

The Holiday star first mentioned the perfume technique in May 2023 at the Cannes Film Festival.

At the time, he said he began wearing small doses of the stench. However, “when Karim got ahold of it, it just became a spray-fest”.

What other ways was the Firebrand set kept authentic?

Aside from Law’s perfume, the Firebrand set was kept authentic to the time period in several other ways.

He explained to People that they would leave windows open so the set would become “very cold, so we’d wrap up in our furs”.

Plus, there were “always animals present, which was true to the time”.

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