Sam Claflin reveals he tried not to ‘fanboy’ while working with Elvis Presley’s granddaughter Riley Keough on their new show Daisy Jones and the Six.
Starring with the American actress, Sam, 36, plays Billy Dunne, while Riley, 33, is Daisy Jones who find themselves in a complicated love triangle while performing in a band together in 1970s Los Angeles.
The British star appeared on This Morning to chat about his latest TV series on Amazon Prime with hosts Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary.
Asking about the novelty of working with such an icon’s relative, Alison exclaimed: ‘You got to work with Elvis’ granddaughter, I mean, did you ever actually speak to her about it?’
‘No, I tried not to,’ Sam explained. ‘I didn’t want to sort of fanboy!
Starstruck: Sam Claflin reveals he tried not to ‘fanboy’ while working with Elvis Presley’s granddaughter Riley Keough on their new show Daisy Jones and the Six
Role: Starring with the American actress, Sam, 36, plays Billy Dunne, while Riley, 33, is Daisy Jones who find themselves in a complicated love triangle while performing in a band together in 1970s Los Angeles
‘But there was a moment where we were sat in a cafe shooting a scene and they had like music playing and then all of a sudden one of his songs came on.
‘There was that moment that sort of just went, “That’s your granddad…”
‘My granddad’s a children’s entertainer, he was a clown for kids parties, he was a paramedic… But that’s your granddad. It’s crazy.’
Riley is the granddaughter of legendary Elvis Presley, and daughter of Lisa Marie Presley and Danny Keough.
The 33-year-old bid a heartbreaking farewell to her late mother Lisa after she died on January 12 aged 54, after she went into cardiac arrest at home and had to be rushed to a hospital after CPR was performed.
Sam went on to explain what the story was about, and how the role came about.
He said: ‘It’s the story of a fictional band in the 1970s Los Angeles. It’s a book adaptation, another book adaption, but yeah it follows the rise and fall of a very big band.
‘It’s very Fleetwood Mac-esque, the book is loosely inspired by Fleetwood Mac. That’ll give you a little taste of what’s to come.’
Speaking about his singing in the role, Sam said he did musical theatre growing up and thanked the great producers on set.
‘In the sense of having some musical training but the first time I was in a recording studio was during my audition,’ he explained.
‘They asked me to prepare a 1970s rock song, and I prepared Elton John’s Your Song, which is the most un-rock and roll song you’ve ever heard.’
He also revealed that he couldn’t play the guitar at all: ‘That was the biggest challenge of all.
Co-stars: The British star appeared on This Morning to chat about his latest TV series on Amazon Prime with hosts Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary
Star: Asking about the novelty of working with such an icon’s relative, Alison exclaimed: ‘You got to work with Elvis’ granddaughter, I mean, did you ever actually speak to her about it?’ ‘No, I tried not to,’ Sam explained. ‘I didn’t want to sort of fanboy!’
‘Fanboy’: He described one moment while filming when shooting in a cafe and Elvis’ music stared to play and he tried not to be a ‘fanboy’
Latest: He explained: ‘It sort of just went, “That’s your granddad…” ‘My granddad’s a children’s entertainer, he was a clown for kids parties, he was a paramedic… But that’s your granddad. It’s crazy’
‘Thankfully for me, lockdowns happened so the whole of production was shut down for a year and a half, and I was then able to learn guitar.
‘I got the role the January just before Covid, we were in LA, and we had five weeks before we started filming so I had to do all this in five weeks initially.
‘I was able to take my time with it, so in-between being a dad and working out, doing my home workouts… I was at least able to put my focus on something.’
In the trailer for the latest TV series, the duo the duo are preparing to record a song, titled Honeycomb, before the actress asks the 36-year-old Enola Holmes actor: ‘What do you think the song’s about?’
‘What do I think the song that I wrote is about?’ he retorts, with frustration in his voice, before going on to explain its ‘about starting a new life’ and ‘dreaming of something different.’
After initially butting heads, Riley takes off her headphones and tells Sam that she loves ‘the sound of’ his voice.
To their amazement, their first single together hits number one and they proceed to make an album together, which Sam describes an ‘intimate’ experience.
‘I’ve never seen him smile this much in his life,’ Sam’s on-screen wife, Camila Dunne (Camila Morrone), says in the preview of her man and his bandmates’ chemistry both on-and-off stage.
Later, Camila wistfully tells him: ‘I used to be the first person that you’d play things for.’
During a fight between Sam and Camila’s characters, he defends his chemistry with Riley as ‘an act’ that ‘people want to see’ on stage.
Relations: Riley is the granddaughter of legendary Elvis Presley, and daughter of Lisa Marie Presley (pictured together) and Danny Keough. The 33-year-old bid a heartbreaking farewell to her late mother Lisa after she died on January 12 aged 54
On set: In the trailer for the latest TV series, the duo the duo are preparing to record a song, titled Honeycomb, before the actress asks the 36-year-old Enola Holmes actor: ‘What do you think the song’s about?’
And scene: To their amazement, their first single together hits number one and they proceed to make an album together, which Sam describes an ‘intimate’ experience
Launch: The 10-episode series also stars Suki Waterhouse as Karen Sirko and Sam Clafin as Billy Dunne who are both members in the band along with Camila Morrone (left) who plays Billy’s wife Camila Dunne (Riley Keough pictured front on Sam Claflin)
The line seems blurred for Riley’s character, who confronts Sam during a heated argument as she yells: ‘Tell me that there’s nothing going on between us. Tell me if I’m crazy.’
Meanwhile, Camila tells Sam if he falls in love with Riley that’s when their marriage ends.
The 10-episode series also stars Suki Waterhouse as Karen Sirko and Sam Clafin as Billy Dunne who are both members in the band along with Camila Morrone who plays Billy’s wife Camila Dunne.
The show is based on the 2019 best-selling novel of the same name by Taylor Jenkins Reid as it follows the 1970s rockband fronted by Daisy and Billy.
