We had the pleasure in speaking to Saoirse Ronan, one of the very best working today, ahead of the release of her latest film Bad Apples. Alongside a chat we had with the film’s director Jonatan Etzler, we marked the release of this deliciously dark comedy by delving into the tonal challenges of the narrative.

Ronan tells us that the script was unlike anything she’d read before — one that pushed her to question her own morality while making her laugh uncontrollably. The former child star also speaks about the responsibility of guiding young co-stars Eddie Waller and Nia Brown, and who tells us who helped her most significantly during the early stages of her own career (unsurprising spoiler alert, it’s Stanley Tucci).

Meanwhile Etzler reflects on directing Ronan through the darkest, funniest film of his career — and to confess that pitching a story about a teacher who locks a pupil in her basement played very differently in Stockholm than it did in the UK. Making his English-language debut, the Swedish filmmaker walks us through the culture clash of British classroom life, the instant certainty he felt casting Ronan, and why Party Rings became an unlikely on-set education. You can watch both interviews in their entirety below.

Saoirse Ronan

Jonatan Etzler

Plot

Maria, a devoted primary school teacher, is pushed to breaking point by one disruptive pupil who threatens to derail her class and her career. In a moment of panic, she makes a catastrophic mistake — locking the boy inside her own home — only to find that his absence makes everything, and everyone, suddenly thrive.

Bad Apples is in UK cinemas on September 18th