Tai Freligh chats with Seniors actor Paris Brosnan…
John Rhys-Davies knew Pierce Brosnan before the world knew him as James Bond. Now, decades later, the Lord of the Rings and Indiana Jones star is working with Pierce’s son, Paris Brosnan, in Seniors, a film about unlikely friendships and connections across generations.
The film follows a troubled teenager whose community service at a retirement home leads him into a secret treasure hunt.
I chatted with Paris Brosnan about carving out his own identity as an actor, working with Rhys-Davies, and the advice from his father that continues to shape his career.
Your feature-film acting debut was The Unholy Trinity, where you worked alongside your father and your brother. What did you learn from that experience that you’ve carried with you into Seniors?
Being on that set with my father and my brother made it a very personal introduction to filmmaking. But it also helped me understand the discipline involved. Watching my father, I paid attention to everything around the performance: his preparation, his patience between takes, and the respect he gave every person on set.
I carried that into Seniors. I wanted to know what my character wanted in each scene, what he was withholding, and why certain things were difficult for him to say. My degree in film production and screenwriting gave me a foundation, but being on set taught me how much happens when you stop analyzing and actually listen to the person opposite you.
What was it like working with John, knowing that he had worked with your father early in your father’s career?
There was something quite moving about that connection. John knew my father at a different stage of his life, and then here I was, at the beginning of my own career, getting to work with him.
Of course, that history meant something to me, but I also wanted to build my own relationship with John. He has such presence and experience that it would be easy to feel intimidated. Instead, I tried to stay curious and receptive. Sharing scenes with him gave me a much clearer understanding of how an experienced actor can shape a scene simply through attention and timing.
You’re entering the acting world with a surname that already carries a lot of history. How conscious are you of creating an identity that feels distinctly your own?
I’m conscious of it, and I’m also grateful for where I come from. I’ve had access to an extraordinary example of what a life in this profession can look like. That comes with opportunity, and I feel a responsibility to take the work seriously.
My identity will develop through the choices I make and the work I do over time. Painting and studying film have already helped me understand what interests me creatively. In acting, I’m drawn to characters whose behavior you might question but whose feelings you can understand. I want to earn the audience’s belief in each role.
Is there anything your father taught you about acting that you’ve deliberately carried with you, and anything you’ve deliberately chosen to do differently?
The biggest thing I’ve learned from my father is how to conduct yourself. Be prepared, be punctual, treat people well, and recognize that everyone is contributing to the film. I’ve watched him maintain that approach throughout his career, and it’s something I want to carry with me.
Creatively, I’m still discovering my own process. I tend to work through a character on the page first: what happened before the scene, what they need from the other person, and what they’re afraid of revealing. I haven’t made a conscious effort to do the opposite of my father. I’m learning from him while giving myself room to find what works for me.
The relationship between your characters in Seniors (Ori and Albert) is built around two people from different generations learning from each other. Did you find that happening between the two of you (Brosnan and Rhys-Davies) while making the film?
Yes, although I wouldn’t pretend our experience was equal. I had an enormous amount to learn from him. What I could bring was my own perspective and an honest response to what he was doing.
That also helped me understand the relationship in the film. Two people can have very different amounts of life experience and still offer each other something valuable. I tried to approach our scenes with that openness. If I decided in advance exactly how every moment should go, I would miss what John was giving me.
What is something you learned from John Rhys-Davies?
The value of taking your time. As a young actor, you can feel pressure to demonstrate that you understand every emotion in a scene. Working with John helped me appreciate how much you can communicate by allowing a thought to happen before you speak.
That’s something I’m continuing to work on: preparing thoroughly enough that I can be present, listen, and trust a quieter moment. Sometimes the most revealing part of a scene is the moment a character is deciding whether to say something at all.
Many thanks to Paris Brosnan for taking the time for this interview.
Seniors is out October 23rd in select theatres. You can find them on their website, Instagram, and Facebook.
Tai Freligh writes about entertainment and pop culture for Flickering Myth from sunny Huntington Beach, California…just a hop and a skip from Los Angeles. He can be found on LinkedIn, Threads, TikTok and his website.
