Tom Hardy rounds off a stellar year playing not one but two lead roles in crime drama Legend, based on The Kray Twins, the notorious British gangsters of the 1960s.
The British actor had already built his big-screen reputation, but this year has really secured well-deserved place among the Hollywood elite.
A regular fixture as the lead in independent films – such as Bronson and Locke – Hardy took on his biggest lead role to date in Mad Max: Fury Road. Taking over the title role from Mel Gibson, the film was a huge hit, critically and commercially.
Anticipation is high, then, for his latest project, Legend — in which fans old and new have been looking forward to twice as much of the star. Directed by Brian Helgeland, the ambitious project sees Hardy play both Reggie and Ronnie Kray, the real life gangland kings who ruled East London in the 1960s.
Were you aware of The Krays before signing up for the film?
Growing up, I was very aware of the infamy of The Krays. There were so many stories surrounding them, they were icons of sorts, and I certainly read about them growing up, in books and on TV. That world, the world they created in a sense, is so cloaked in rumours and hearsay that when we came to work on the film, it became our focus to sort out what was fact and what was fiction, as far as we could.
Did anything surprise you when researching the roles?
It didn’t surprise me but a lot of the stories were anecdotal. Over time, these myths spread that either weren’t true or had been distorted, and led back to sources that couldn’t be relied upon. Although we’re not making a documentary, it’s a dramatisation of real life events – it was important that [the film] didn’t wander off into fantasy.
Was there any trepidation about working with Brian Helgeland, an American, on the project?
No, not at all, because I knew from Brian’s previous work, and subsequently from meeting him, that he was someone who had the same intentions that I did. Neither of us wanted to glamorise the story or gloss over who these people were. It’s his approach to the source material that made me want to tell this story with him.
What made you want to play both of the twins?
I was attracted to the challenge of it. They’re both very interesting roles to play and I wanted to see if, as an actor, I could do something where I was playing two characters [in one film]. Brian wanted me to play Reggie, but I was more interested in playing Ron, and eventually we came to the conclusion that it would be interesting for me to play both. I was initially drawn to Ron because there’s so much to work with, because he’s a more volatile, unpredictable character, but as we worked on the film, both characters presented their own challenges that, in many ways, were equal to each other.
Was that difficult, moving between one role and the other?
Not really – it was something that became easier because of the process we put in place. Make up, certain changes we made to the appearance and voice, made switching an easier process. Working together with Brian, it turned out to be quite a fun thing to do, because we could make the “effect” work while also making the relationship between the brothers feel natural.
You also have two very different on-screen relationships with Emily Browning, who plays Reggie’s wife, Frances.
Emily was wonderful, to work with and in her performance. She’s an innocent brought into this world, caught between two men – one of whom she loves – and sees the disorder and danger that surrounds them at all times. Without that perspective you don’t get the same emotional investment, so her performance is so important to the whole story.
It’s been an incredible year for you as an actor, how do you build on that success?
I want to be involved in opportunities that stretch me as an actor. It’s brilliant that people respond to this or other films in a positive way, it vindicates the choices we all made. But it’s about each individual experience, so I focus on the next thing and not how it all fits together.
• Legend is in cinemas now
artslife@thenational.ae
Company profile
Date started: January, 2014
Founders: Mike Dawson, Varuna Singh, and Benita Rowe
Based: Dubai
Sector: Education technology
Size: Five employees
Investment: $100,000 from the ExpoLive Innovation Grant programme in 2018 and an initial $30,000 pre-seed investment from the Turn8 Accelerator in 2014. Most of the projects are government funded.
Partners/incubators: Turn8 Accelerator; In5 Innovation Centre; Expo Live Innovation Impact Grant Programme; Dubai Future Accelerators; FHI 360; VSO and Consult and Coach for a Cause (C3)
The Beach Bum
Director: Harmony Korine
Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Isla Fisher, Snoop Dogg
Two stars
Company%20Profile
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
What is a black hole?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
England squad
Joe Root (captain), Alastair Cook, Keaton Jennings, Gary Ballance, Jonny Bairstow (wicketkeeper), Ben Stokes (vice-captain), Moeen Ali, Liam Dawson, Toby Roland-Jones, Stuart Broad, Mark Wood, James Anderson.
SPECS
Engine: Two-litre four-cylinder turbo
Power: 235hp
Torque: 350Nm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Price: From Dh167,500 ($45,000)
On sale: Now
What is Genes in Space?
Genes in Space is an annual competition first launched by the UAE Space Agency, The National and Boeing in 2015.
It challenges school pupils to design experiments to be conducted in space and it aims to encourage future talent for the UAE’s fledgling space industry. It is the first of its kind in the UAE and, as well as encouraging talent, it also aims to raise interest and awareness among the general population about space exploration.
COMPANY%20PROFILE%3A
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If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
