Robert Carlyle Talks ‘Trainspotting 2’: ‘It’s a Beautiful Thing’
Danny Boyle recently revealed that his next project would be the sequel to Trainspotting, and now actor Robert Carlyle, who portrayed the ruthless Begbie in the 1996 cult classic, has revealed some enthusiastic details about the upcoming film. “You’re going to think, ‘Of course he’s going to say this,’ but honestly, it’s one of the best scripts I’ve fucking read,” Carlyle told NME of the sequel. “I mean, ever. What [screenwriter] John Hodge has done is just so clever.”
Hodge previously penned the script for Trainspotting. The follow-up is based on author Irvine Welsh’s 2002 novel Porno, which revisits the Trainspotting crew 10 years after the action of the first book; the film will instead pick up 20 years later, like the gap between Trainspotting and its cinematic sequel. All four actors from the original’s main cast – Carlyle, Ewan McGregor (Renton), Ewen Bremner (Spud) and Jonny Lee Miller (Sick Boy) – have signed on to reprise their roles.
Since the film picks up two decades after Trainspotting left off, the characters aren’t the only ones whose lives have changed immensely in the interim: More than likely, fans of the first film find themselves in a much different place in life than when they first viewed the 1996 film. Carlyle said the film would confront its audience about the passage of time.
“This film is going to be quite emotional for people. Because the film sort of tells you to think about yourself. You are going to be thinking: ‘Fuck. What have I done with my life?'” Carlyle said of the film. “That’s really what the whole thing is about. Have these four characters changed? Have they remained the same? Have they fucked it up completely? Have they achieved anything? And of course the audience are going to be asking themselves exactly the same questions. So it’s a beautiful thing, this film.”
Carlyle went on to praise Boyle as “the best director” he’s ever worked with and admitted he’s nervous about portraying Begbie on the big screen again. “It’s nerve-wracking to a certain extent, because I’m obviously aware of just how much people loved the original film,” the actor said. “People still quote lines to me on a fucking daily basis.”