After joining Pierpoint & Co. focusing on his natural ability as well as his convenient access to booze and drugs to schmooze clients, Robert Spearing seemed destined for success, but eventually his hard-partying lifestyle became obstacle to his ability to function at work or elsewhere.
a newly-sober Robert is attempting to re-establish himself in a changing world at Pierpoint, but now that he must rely entirely on his own abilities to succeed, he is confronted with self-doubt.
- Meet the season 2 cast: who''''s who in the banking drama
For information on Robert''s future this season, we spoke to Harry.
"I think we meet a different person from the one we met at the start of season one. Back then, he had this very stringent mask of faux confidence and charm and all of those things. In the second season, the show is post-pandemic and he''s spent the last two years on his own, but he hasn''t had much more external validation that makes him feel good about who he is, and he''s had to look in the mirror a little bit more and be a
"So I think the person who returns is a lot more comfortable in his own skin, and doesn''t feel the need to overcompensate as much. But the problem with that is, is he will be able to be the person he wants to be, and do the job he wants to do, if that person is not the one they met? "It''s a very different Robert, but it''s also a lot easier," says the author.
"The first season involved young people striving to be successful while also learning who they are, and if you follow that logic and move it into the second season, these people will discover a little bit of success, and they''ve probably learned a little bit more about who they are now, however, they must work out if these things work together, if they''re compatible, or are they going to have to change? I think that''s the question that season two addresses.
"I think Robert and Gus had a really special relationship in the first season because they were the only people that had any history, they were the only people seen to have a history that existed before Pierpoint, and a connection that we all knew was not built on any kind of mutual gain or professional advancement, it was likely the true relationship in the show.
"Like every relationship, that was tested by the industry, and by their jobs, but it was something that we really enjoyed playing because it given them the opportunity to laugh and smile and be seen and heard by someone who trusts them. "I think there are still some impressive examples of how they''ve got each other," he adds. It''s also something that they both return on during the events they need, according to the filmmaker.
"Acting and banking are very different, but they are quite competitive, and lots of people want to do it, thus this is a very high-risk, high-reward environment. I think for us, one of the easiest access points is that when we got this position back in 2019, all four of us that were kind of leading the show were very happy, and it was fantastic. We were kind of naive and slightly green, but also a little scared, because this was exactly the way our characters were feeling in the show
"In terms of banking terminology, it can be a jargon-heavy show. I think it''s important to us that we are never going to be successful bankers, but we have our great writers as a supporter for that. In the play, you''ve just got to know what it means, what the stakes, and what the consequences of the transaction are. If you understand that, then you''ll discover a way through it.
"Obviously the bank is such a strong participant in our show, and it was an area that we, as actors, understood very little about as you can imagine. It was not our world, but our guests were welcomed into it, and we felt particularly supportive because the writers of our show [Mickey Down and Konrad Kay] are really adept at making authentic and true self-expression.
"I think as much as it''s a bank drama, I think it''s actually a conversation about workplace culture and office culture, and the thing I''ve been most surprised at is that people from all ages of industries who have an office have responded to the show for that reason. Some people would come up to me and say, "Oh god, this is just like my work," and they asked them what they do, and it''s like, "God, is that happening in that industry?" You have a little
"That''s the key thing, rather than being too kind of bank-centric, whether it''s a toxic workplace culture, whether it''s a power misuse, power exchanges, how power is used for gain, and unfortunately there were a few different industries that might relate to those themes."
Season two of BBC1 in the United Kingdom starts on Tuesday, September 27, at 10.40pm, with the whole season available for download on iPlayer.
The whole season two of HBO Max is available in the United States.
