Here's How Pierce Brosnan Really Felt About Not Singing In Eurovision Song Contest
You probably had many questions when you first saw the trailer for Netflix's Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga, especially if you've never lived in Europe (or Israel) and have therefore never experienced the glittery chaos and political dealings that make up the real-life Eurovision Song Contest.
Logical questions include: "Is that Rachel McAdams? Is that the guy from Downtown Abbey? Why is there so much leather and metallic fabric?" If so, read this before you see Eurovision Song Contest.
From the moment you saw Pierce Brosnan's handsome, bearded face, however, the most burning question should have been: "Will Pierce Brosnan be singing in this movie?" Anyone familiar with Brosnan's career and/or delightfully bananas movie musicals knows that the actor has a rocky history with the genre.
Some audience members may be pleased, then, to learn that the answer to this question is no. Brosnan does not perform a song in Eurovision Song Contest. The actor had complicated emotions, however, about losing out on the spotlight. Here's how Pierce Brosnan really felt about not singing in Eurovision Song Contest.
Pierce Brosnan has a history of movie musical disasters
Before we get to his feelings on his songless character Erick Erickssong in Eurovision Song Contest, let's go over Brosnan's not-so-ancient history of on-screen singing.
In 2008, Brosnan appeared in Mamma Mia!, the Meryl Streep-starring adaptation of the ABBA jukebox stage musical. Brosnan played Sam, one of three potential fathers to bride-to-be Sophie (Amanda Seyfried), and the true love of her mother Donna (Streep), albeit one who left her after a summer fling. The film was — and is — a summery sing-along and instant classic. Unfortunately, Brosnan's vocal performances in the movie, and especially in the duet "S.O.S." with Streep, were roundly mocked. He even won the 2009 Razzie for Worst Supporting Actor.
Brosnan was admirably good-natured about the criticism. He admitted that, during the rehearsal period, he thought, "I'm doing pretty good at this, this sounds pretty good." He got a wake-up call even before the reviews came out from his harshest critics: His family. "It wasn't until about many months later my wife and kids told me they were terrified," he admitted to the BBC. He went on, "I got very confident about the whole thing until my seven year old said, 'Dad, please ... Enough.'"
Even this experience didn't stop Brosnan from eagerly signing up to the sequel, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again. He even reprised a short, solo version of "S.O.S." in a direct rebuke to his naysayers. When the film premiered, he told USA Today, "I don't care what they say. I love to sing. People don't necessarily employ me for my singing. But I chose to sing." In the end, fans liked something about the movie, and it has one of the most surprising Rotten Tomatoes scores of 2018.
Pierce Brosnan was disappointed that he didn't sing in Eurovision Song Contest
It was with mixed emotions that Brosnan learned that he would not be singing in Eurovision Song Contest. Asked directly by The Guardian how he felt about the apparent snub to his previous vocal performances, Brosnan joked, "I was surprised, I was disappointed, I was crestfallen." He told The New York Post that not having a song in the movie, "Was a relief and a disappointment."
Brosnan explained, however, that he didn't sign on to sing. As he told ScreenRant, "What attracted me to this role was working with Will Ferrell. I'm a huge fan of Will's work." It helped that Ferrell snuck a little flattery into the script. Brosnan told The Irish Times, "My character was introduced in parenthesis [sic] as 'possibly the most handsome man in Iceland'. So Will Ferrell got to my Irish vanity."
And when you see where Eurovision Song Contest was actually shot, you'll understand Brosnan's third reason for saying I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do. "I got to travel with my wife Keely. I got to visit my mother in London. I got to sit in thermal baths and drink beers with local families," Brosnan told The Irish Times of shooting on location. On balance, trading in the chance at an encore worked out.