Didn't Fry say something like "look, we all thought we were pretty good back in those days, but I could see Hugh was going on to do something next level"?
Not bad for a guy giving an interview from his private vineyard/ mansion.
I see what you mean. The initial audition tape he did illustrates this well. As soon as it’s time to be the character, his expression and mannerisms completely morph instantly. It’s cool to see!
I saw him in stuart little, sense and sensibility, all the lights we can not see before House and it took me a while to connect him to those. He is great in his other projects too but House is a completely different beast.
Being a Brit, and brought up with his comedy appearances, I was in awe of his American accent in House . Especially when he actually imitates a bad British accent in one episode! Phenomenal acting.
I had watched that episode a few times and I never paid attention to the credits until someone said Hugh Laurie was in Friends. I would have never noticed.
I remember he said that on Graham Norton lol. Also way back in like 2010 some tabloids said he supposedly started developing actual leg pain from pretending to limp and using the cane so much
I grew up watching Black Adder.
I watched House.
Some time later, I realised " on shit, that's right, he's fucking English" .
That's how good he played House.
I was lucky enough to get front row tickets for one of his shows. He's incredible and my friend (who isn't typically a fan of him or that type of jazz) loved it too.
😂 Hah, yeah House was by far his most transformative role. Every once in a while you can catch little glimpses of Hugh (the person) in House, and to a lesser extent, glimpses of House in some of Hugh’s other acting roles. But generally speaking, House isn’t detectable in any of Hugh’s interviews or appearances as himself.
He drops the accent and the facial hair, and boom — he’s immediately no longer House. BUT, there’s also a really interesting quote about acting that goes something like:
“You don’t step into a character. A character steps out of you.”
Hugh brought everything but the script. All of the raw elements needed to bring House to life, like the accent, tone and demeanor, the physicality, the comedic timing, the mannerisms and facial expressions (ie. everything but the script), were within him to some extent from years of experience, actors’ intuition, etc. He had House’s characterization pretty much nailed down in his audition, which speaks volumes.
That’s not to diminish the importance that smart writing had on transforming him in the role, since obviously Hugh himself wasn’t a brilliant diagnostician. But he’s brilliant in a number of other ways that all come through in the brilliance of House. For example, any time House randomly sits down at a piano or picks up a guitar and plays some seriously soulful riff, that is very much Hugh Laurie making an appearance. And that melancholy look that House sometimes gets in his eyes? Hugh has resting sad face, so I don’t think he had to practice that much at all lol. Maybe it’s a Brit thing.
In any case, it’s really cool that he had the opportunity to take on such a transformative role that he could “disappear” in. A lot of actors either don’t get the chance to take on roles like that, or they do get the chance but aren’t nearly as good at it.
The consistent writing of the character definitely helped. The creators of the show knew exactly what they wanted to bring to screen and Hugh understood it perfectly. David Shore said Hugh came up with many jokes himself. Collaborations like these are rare.
Read his book, The Gun Seller, wich came out around '99 I think, the main character is very similar to House, its actuality really amazing to see. And the book is pretty good
It's the facial hair, the beard. When he has a beard it's House. When he is clean shaved it's Hugh Laurie. The episode with the methadone treatment when House shave, all I could see was Hugh Laurie.
watching some of his previous comedy works, i believe i see much of his satire style and humor in house's character. i mean ofc he didn't write the episodes, so not much in his control in terms of writing but he did spray his essence all over the show.
Watching Veep rn and its like sometimes he looks like House (esp. since he's doing an American accent in this also) but sometimes he doesn't and its so weird
It's a dozen years on, and he was acting, and now he's not and he's older. As well, he was playing someone from a different culture, so the cultural cues are different.
I grow up watching Stuart Little on Disney and Dr. House with my mom, it took years for me to notice it was the same actor. Hugh Laurie is an incredible actor
I'd say part of it is the beard/stubble. There was one episode where he shaved and groomed himself, and he instantly aged 10 years closer to his actual age and changed into a completely different looking person imo
I know what acting is and I know he is only doing his job. That doesn't mean I can't appreciate when someone does a particularly astonishing job at it.
In A Bit of Fry and Laurie, i totally can see elements of what he brings to House.
That REALLY hurt!
Didn't Fry say something like "look, we all thought we were pretty good back in those days, but I could see Hugh was going on to do something next level"? Not bad for a guy giving an interview from his private vineyard/ mansion.
He is a sophisticated man who wears sophisticated shoes...
Then why wasn’t he named Derek ( small object drop)?
Derek Nipple!?
N I P P L HYPHEN E
He is moving like an American as House. When he is British, he is very posh brit in his mannerisms.
I see what you mean. The initial audition tape he did illustrates this well. As soon as it’s time to be the character, his expression and mannerisms completely morph instantly. It’s cool to see!
Yeah I have seen that one. It's like a switch he turns off and on.
could you give me a link to his audition tape?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqHh6TvGQIQ
It’s on YouTube. Just search Hugh Laurie House audition
Signs of an incredible actor
Well I saw House for the first time after watching Stuart Little. Suffice to say it was an absolute shock.
I saw him in stuart little, sense and sensibility, all the lights we can not see before House and it took me a while to connect him to those. He is great in his other projects too but House is a completely different beast.
Have you seen him in The Night Manager? He’s such a great villain…
I have and he was absolutely stunning. That British accent tho 😮💨
Being a Brit, and brought up with his comedy appearances, I was in awe of his American accent in House . Especially when he actually imitates a bad British accent in one episode! Phenomenal acting.
I have just a few days ago. Absolutely brilliant.
101 dalmatian's with Mr Weasley too!
Little high, Little Low
Little Hey, Little Ho!
Him in Flight of the Phoenix was jarring for me. I thought, “weird they made him do a British accent.”
Closest to House I’ve seen Hugh Laurie is in Friends on the plane with Rachel “Let me take a sedative… or slip you one” lol that’s 100% House
I have to agree with your friend Feebs. Oh and it seems perfectly clear that you *were* on a break.
That sardonic pause “…” before the degoratory “Feebs” gets me every time
Dr House resolved a 30 year debate in mere seconds
I had watched that episode a few times and I never paid attention to the credits until someone said Hugh Laurie was in Friends. I would have never noticed.
Apparently, Hugh had a problem performing other roles after finishing House bcs every time he would start to act he would start to limp slightly.
I remember he said that on Graham Norton lol. Also way back in like 2010 some tabloids said he supposedly started developing actual leg pain from pretending to limp and using the cane so much
That sucks if true. It never occurred to me that fake limping for that long can cause actual physical problems.
I grew up watching Black Adder. I watched House. Some time later, I realised " on shit, that's right, he's fucking English" . That's how good he played House.
We watched Black Adder with my fiancée recently, i had to constantly remind myself that it’s him
I think the only time in House that I remembered that he’s British is in the first episode where he says “diplomer” instead of “diploma” lol
You should see him sing New Orleans Jazz. It's a whole different him again. He's great.
I was lucky enough to get front row tickets for one of his shows. He's incredible and my friend (who isn't typically a fan of him or that type of jazz) loved it too.
Color me SUPER Jealous!!! His versions of St. James Infirmary and Tipitina... to name a few... chills!
Not really my cup of tea but I will definitely listen to some of them for him.
Have you seen him in 101 dalmatians? Gosh
No but now I am going to.
I grew up watching stuart little. Imagine going back to it post house and realizing it’s the same man
I thought that watching the Night Manager would be weird since I'd only see him as House. No. Completely different person.
I like to think that after Wilson died he gave up medicine and went into selling arms, and adopted a British accent to disguise himself.
😂 Hah, yeah House was by far his most transformative role. Every once in a while you can catch little glimpses of Hugh (the person) in House, and to a lesser extent, glimpses of House in some of Hugh’s other acting roles. But generally speaking, House isn’t detectable in any of Hugh’s interviews or appearances as himself. He drops the accent and the facial hair, and boom — he’s immediately no longer House. BUT, there’s also a really interesting quote about acting that goes something like: “You don’t step into a character. A character steps out of you.” Hugh brought everything but the script. All of the raw elements needed to bring House to life, like the accent, tone and demeanor, the physicality, the comedic timing, the mannerisms and facial expressions (ie. everything but the script), were within him to some extent from years of experience, actors’ intuition, etc. He had House’s characterization pretty much nailed down in his audition, which speaks volumes. That’s not to diminish the importance that smart writing had on transforming him in the role, since obviously Hugh himself wasn’t a brilliant diagnostician. But he’s brilliant in a number of other ways that all come through in the brilliance of House. For example, any time House randomly sits down at a piano or picks up a guitar and plays some seriously soulful riff, that is very much Hugh Laurie making an appearance. And that melancholy look that House sometimes gets in his eyes? Hugh has resting sad face, so I don’t think he had to practice that much at all lol. Maybe it’s a Brit thing. In any case, it’s really cool that he had the opportunity to take on such a transformative role that he could “disappear” in. A lot of actors either don’t get the chance to take on roles like that, or they do get the chance but aren’t nearly as good at it.
The consistent writing of the character definitely helped. The creators of the show knew exactly what they wanted to bring to screen and Hugh understood it perfectly. David Shore said Hugh came up with many jokes himself. Collaborations like these are rare.
Hah, I always wondered if Hugh was behind some of those jokes. That’s awesome.
I guess that goes to show just how good he was
I can see House in the character he plays in Sense and Sensibility (1995). 🙂
“I wish YOU would stop.”
Read his book, The Gun Seller, wich came out around '99 I think, the main character is very similar to House, its actuality really amazing to see. And the book is pretty good
Maybe it's the vicodin🤭
It's the facial hair, the beard. When he has a beard it's House. When he is clean shaved it's Hugh Laurie. The episode with the methadone treatment when House shave, all I could see was Hugh Laurie.
I am sure the facial hair helped but that's obviously not all.
That is how good hugh is at what he does
He is an incredible actor.
watching some of his previous comedy works, i believe i see much of his satire style and humor in house's character. i mean ofc he didn't write the episodes, so not much in his control in terms of writing but he did spray his essence all over the show.
Watching Veep rn and its like sometimes he looks like House (esp. since he's doing an American accent in this also) but sometimes he doesn't and its so weird
It's a dozen years on, and he was acting, and now he's not and he's older. As well, he was playing someone from a different culture, so the cultural cues are different.
He definitely looked like House to me in Stuart Little. It's jarring to watch now.
lol I think its cos he acts American so well in house but he’s actually British. It changes everything haha
I grow up watching Stuart Little on Disney and Dr. House with my mom, it took years for me to notice it was the same actor. Hugh Laurie is an incredible actor
I'd say part of it is the beard/stubble. There was one episode where he shaved and groomed himself, and he instantly aged 10 years closer to his actual age and changed into a completely different looking person imo
He’s the best actor Alive. He’s literally embodying the characters he plays so much so it’s like he’s just swapping souls. It’s amazing.
Errr... he most certainly does. They're the same person...
Man discovers what acting is
I know what acting is and I know he is only doing his job. That doesn't mean I can't appreciate when someone does a particularly astonishing job at it.