Carey Mulligan: I avoid period drama but original female roles are rare

She has starred in the screen versions of novels from Pride And Prejudice to The Great Gatsby.

But Carey Mulligan says she tends to take on literary adaptations because of a lack of decent original parts — and is actually “pushing against” costume drama.

“The characters most of the time in original screenplays for women, or 70 per cent of the time, aren’t well-drawn characters,” she said. “The costumes have always been secondary, it’s always been the material.”

Her latest film, Mudbound, is based on Hillary Jordan’s 2008 novel about struggling farmers in Forties Mississippi. She will also appear in Wildlife, based on the 1960-set novel by Richard Ford.

She told So It Goes magazine: “There are fewer female screenwriters — and I haven’t investigated this problem like Emma Watson and others but I feel that if you have a solid base to work from like the Hillary Jordan book or Wildlife, the characters are so strongly written that on screen the characters are often brilliant.”

The actress, 31, made her breakthrough in 2005’s Pride And Prejudice and has starred in adaptations of Northanger Abbey, Far From The Madding Crowd and Bleak House. Her films based on original screenplays include Shame.

“I don’t gravitate towards costume drama, I almost push against it which is the reason why Mudbound presented an issue,” she said. “I thought, ‘Aw man, I’m going to look rough in another period film.’ I tend to do very dramatic period films.”

Mulligan said Mudbound was the first film she had worked on since becoming a mother to Evelyn, her 18-month-old daughter with husband Marcus Mumford. She said: “It’s really hard to find time to prep.

“I knew it would be difficult to be away from her when I went to work, and Mudbound was my first job back, leaving her with my mum and not being around all the time.”

Mulligan was interviewed by Mudbound co-star Garrett Hedlund, who asked her about the most fun person she had worked with. She replied: “Emma Thompson... she remembered every person’s name on set after an hour. In the middle of acting she was writing gags. At the end of the scene she’d pop them to the prop master and he’d be in fits of laughter. At the end of the day she ordered pizza and beer for the whole crew.”

So It Goes Issue 9 is available for pre-order at www.soitgoesmag.com and across the capital on April 13.