Inside After the Party stars Peter Mullan and Robyn Malcolm real off-screen relationship as they get rave reviews
AFTER The Party stars Peter Mullan and Robyn Malcom have gained rave reviews for their roles as warring exes in the hit Kiwi show.
However in real life they are very much a couple and met in 2013 while they were filming the mystery drama Top of the Lake.
The show starred huge A-list Hollywood actors Elisabeth Moss and Holly Hunter.
The pair’s paths crossed again in 2017 when they both starred in the western adventure Hostiles.
Robyn said: “Working with Peter is always fantastic, even though in everything we’ve done together our characters have never got on.”
She added: “But the great thing about working with someone you love and trust so implicitly, and who you really respect as an actor, you can go to some incredibly dark places and still be fine.”
Robyn explained that while filming Top of the Lake, they had a ball together.
In an interview with The Guardian, Peter said : “So we yapped a lot. Actors we admire. Art we admire. Politics, life, love, death, all the usual stuff.”
He continued: “And we’re nice enough to give the other one time to yap.”
Robin added: “And we still do.”
However, although they debate things constantly, the couple rarely talk about their work.
Robin explained: “If we’re talking about a job – and most of the time we’re doing different jobs on opposite sides of the world – it’ll be gossip or if there’s an arsehole on set.
“Any two people who work in the same profession, if they then went home and talked about it, they’d want to shoot each other. We want to talk about something else, usually politics.”
The couple have six children between them from previous relationships.
Robin has two grown up sons and Peter has three with actor Ann Swan and a 1teenage daughter with human rights activist Robina Qureshi.
Their new Channel 4 drama, After the Party, has proved hugely popular, not just in the UK but globally.
It has won awards in New York, Barcelona, France and gained a record-breaking nine awards in New Zealand, where it was created and filmed.
In the six episode series, Penny (Robin) is convinced that her husband Phil (Peter) has committed a sexual crime against her daughter’s teenage friend.
She accuses Phil of inappropriate behaviour but nobody believes her and the couple split up.
Five years later, Phil returns to town and moves in with Penny’s daughter Grace and her grandchild.
Grace begs her to put the past behind them, but when Phil takes up a teaching position Penny is again compelled to prove his guilt.
An increasingly alienated Penny is forced to choose what’s more important – the truth or her relationship with her daughter.
Some viewers binge watched the whole six episodes and were quick to show their appreciation on social media.
One stated: ” Just binged it, incredible performances and brilliantly written.”
Another said: “Finished binge watching this thought provoking uncompromising New Zealand series. It is dark & deals with the horrendous subject of grooming.”
“Just binge watched #Aftertheparty I highly recommend it’s so good and very well acted.” added another fan of the show.
A fourth said: “It was fabulous – Robyn Malcolm was excellent.”
After The Party airs on Channel 4 and all episodes are available to stream online.