Former EastEnders star Ben Hardy has been seen receiving a kiss from his co-star Jason Patel after admitting to having “instant chemistry” with the actor.
The 33-year-old is playing single dad Luke in new film Unicorns alongside Jason. But the pair seem to be close off set too, now that the film has wrapped up.
On Instagram, Jason shared an image where he could be seen planting a kiss on Ben’s cheek in London’s Leicester Square. Taking the mirror selfie, the former Albert Square resident cosied up to Jason as they enjoyed a day out together.
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The movie, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, features Ben as a single dad named Luke, who is also a car mechanic from Essex. One night, Luke discovers a nightclub hosting a queer South Asian event.
(Image: @itsjasonpatel/Instagram)
Watching from a distance, Luke is captivated when drag queen Aysha, played by newcomer Patel, performs on stage. This then sparks a journey where Luke must come to terms with his sexuality after realising Aysha is Ashiq’s drag persona and not a biological woman.
Directors Sally El Hosaini and James Krishna Floyd kept actors Ben and Jason separate during preparation to maintain the story’s “danger”. Speaking to People magazine, Ben, who portrayed Peter Beale in EastEnders from 2013 to 2015, said that when they finally met, the bond was immediate.
(Image: @itsjasonpatel/Instagram)
He said: “In my experience, I don’t think you can cheat that, it’s either there or it’s not. I’ve done things before, I won’t name them, where I’ve tried to manufacture chemistry and spent a lot of time with people.
“But I think it’s like when you fall in love, sometimes you meet someone, you hit it off and things go from there. If you don’t have that on screen, it shows.”
(Image: Getty Images)
Jason also shared that they now enjoy “such a great friendship” after filming. They’ve even been spotted looking rather close with Jason kissing Ben’s cheek.
Ben, who is also famous for his role as Queen drummer Roger Taylor in the 2019 Freddie Mercury biopic Bohemian Rhapsody and for his role in X Men: Apocolypse, explained why he wanted to take on this role.
The actor said he found the story “incredibly beautiful”. He also said it was something that he’d never done before.
According to Deadline, the film includes several “intimate moments” between the two stars. However, the film is also expected to have a lot of emotional depth.
(Image: @itsjasonpatel/Instagram)
Gregory Ellwood from The Playlist praised Hardy’s “absolutely incredible” performance. He also said that it delves deep into exploring the intersectionality between queer and Muslim culture.
Jason’s character performs almost exclusively for “closeted bi or gay Muslim men”, while Aysha herself hasn’t told her estranged family that she is queer, or a drag queen. Asifa Lahore, the UK’s first out Muslim drag queen, is one of the film’s executive producers.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
