I worked on a movie starring Katie McGrath.You might recognize her from shows like The Tudors, Merlin, Supergirl, or Jurassic World. Her makeup artist at the time, Gerlia Groenewald, is a close friend of mine and mentioned to Katie that I was a big fan of her work. I was over the moon to meet her, but what really surprised me was when Katie heard I wasn’t feeling well and gave me a call out of the blue. How cool is that?! It lifted my spirits immediately, and we ended up chatting for a while.
Before we even met in person, she sent me a couple of sweet photos with a “Hey Justin!” message. During our conversation, she told me she was feeling a bit bored and didn’t have much to watch on her laptop. So, I noted the types of shows, documentaries, and movies she liked and put together a collection for her as a gift. When we finally met, she spent time with me on set, and I got to see her work firsthand. She’s a fantastic woman with a genuine spirit.
As a bonus, I had the pleasure of meeting Gil Bellows at the premiere of the Leading Lady movie. Most people know him as Billy from Ally McBeal, but to me, he’ll always be Tommy Williams from The Shawshank Redemption. I’ve watched that film more times than I can count—it’s still in my top 3. Meeting him in person was a delight. He’s humble and very cool; I wish I’d had my Shawshank boxset for him to sign! Gil deserves more prominent roles as an actor because he’s done incredible work, even in his brief appearances in 24: Redemption, Suits, American Gods, The Handmaid’s Tale, Smallville, CSI, FlashForward, and Falling Skies, to name a few. The guy is a legend.