Yahoo News Josh O'Connor admits he joined a band to try to score a date with FKA Twigs in school
Like many schoolboys before him, Josh O' Connor has gone to embarrassing lengths to impress a girl. Unlike many schoolboys before him, his crush went on to become an world-famous musician.
In a new interview with GQ Hype, the Challengers star, 33, looked back on his days studying drama, when he acted alongside Tahliah Barnett — better known as FKA Twigs. After starring together in a production of Bugsy Malone, O'Connor tried to woo his schoolmate with his musical prowess (though he acknowledged that her talent clearly surpassed his own).
"I really shouldn't be saying this, but it's hilarious," O'Connor told the outlet with a laugh. "I was in a band called Orange Output basically to try and get Twigs to go out with me."
As the band's lead singer, O'Connor sang lyrics like "I'm addicted to crack, motherf---er," even though, he admitted, "The closest thing I'd had to crack was Coco Pops."
Andreas Rentz/Getty Images; Samir Hussein/WireImage Josh O'Connor and FKA Twigs
At the time, Twigs didn't respond to his attempts to get her attention. In fact, the actor said, "I don't think she knows who I am."
However, Twigs confirmed to GQ that she does in fact remember O'Connor. "I'm very flattered that he tried to do that because I was definitely not cool and not particularly popular," she said in an email.
Twigs went on to find success as a recording artist with such genre-bending tracks as "Cellophane," which earned her a Grammy nomination for Best Music Video. As for O'Connor, he delivered a breakout performance in God's Own Country before winning an Emmy and a Golden Globe for his role as a young King Charles on The Crown. He'll soon be seen opposite Zendaya and West Side Story standout Mike Faist in director Luca Guadagnino's sultry tennis drama Challengers.
Of O'Connor's performance in the film, Guadagnino said, "Every great actor delivers on the day. But only the masterful ones like Josh make you discover all the details, all the subtleties, in their physical performance when you sit in the editing room and watch the material."
Challengers is slated to hit theaters April 26, 2024.
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