Everything Richard Gadd has said about Jessica Gunning’s captivating Baby Reindeer performance

Despite being made up of a whole cast of incredibly talented actors, Martha and Donny’s performance in Baby Reindeer undoubtedly carried the whole series and made it the masterpiece it is today. Not only is it a harrowing true story, but the journey both characters go through is really quite gripping. From the moment Martha tearfully walked through the door to Donny’s on stage breakdown,the show had us all gripping the edge of our seats from start to finish.

But despite the series following the Donny’s narrative, Baby Reindeer star Richard Gadd has praised Jessica Gunning for her equally talented performance as his stalker.

Richard recently revealed that he had always been impressed by the roles Jessica had played in the past, notably in hit TV shows such as White Heat, Law & Order UK and Back. Speaking to Variety, he said that he know that he wanted Jessica to be his Martha in the show before she was given the part.

“I’d always seen Jess in shows and thought she was criminally underutilised — always playing the comic relief character. There was an essence of something there that I could tell was bursting to get out.”

via Netflix

He added that there was a lot of back and forth to ensure that the part was casted just right, but that she landed the part after showing off her talents during the audition process.

Richard said: “I fought for her against the tide, but then one day she just came in and knocked everyone away.”

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If that isn’t sweet enough, the Baby Reindeer star also admitted in an interview with GQ that he thinks Jessica is “the best actress around.”

Speaking about how she was able to encompass all of Martha’s different personalities, Richard said the production was “lucky” to have landed her in the part due to her ability to express Martha as both vulnerable and dangerous at the same time.

“She played it with cuteness, vulnerability, fear, anger, she just captured all the emotions at once. It lived and died on Martha and we couldn’t have been luckier”

Most recently, the co-stars appeared on Lorraine to speak about the show, where Richard spoke about the moment he knew that Jessica was his Martha.

“I always thought that every role you did, you brought this kind of amazing nuance to it. [You] always elevated everything you were in, it was just something about your essence on camera that made me think ‘this is Martha, we have to get her in'”.

Jessica previously explained that she believed it was important not to see Martha as a “villain”, instead explaining that she actually felt a sense of commiseration towards her. She said: “I really cared about Martha, you know. As soon as I read episode one I was drawn in by her.

“I never saw her as a villain. I don’t think you can do if you’re playing that kind of part. I always saw her as multifaceted and complicated.”

Both Jessica and Richard have since spoken out about viewers’ efforts to find the real individuals the show is based on. Richard posted on Instagram where he asked his followers not to look into his past, explaining that many people are being wrongly accused.

Jessica echoed his message in an interview with Glamour where she “urged” people not to look for the characters the show is based on, explaining that it only means that viewers haven’t watched the show properly.

Baby Reindeer is available on Netflix now. For more like this look at what Baby Reindeer actor Richard Gadd said about Jessica Gunning and all the latest Netflix news, drops, quizzes and memes like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook. 

Related stories recommended by this writer:

• What disturbing plot points are fact and fiction in Richard Gadd’s Baby Reindeer series?

• A look inside the wholesome life of Jessica Gunning who carried Baby Reindeer as Martha

• Richard Gadd reveals how he felt reliving his traumatic experiences filming Baby Reindeer

Featured image via Netflix