Viewers used to the cosier crime-fighting adventures of Sicilian detective Inspector Montalbano, the show based on the best-selling books by , might be startled by star Luca Zingaretti’s next move.
The charismatic Roman actor takes a turn for the mercilessly unpredictable, depicting hard-as-nails prison director Bruno Testori in The King. This latest show’s a real vibe shift, with Bruno willing to do whatever’s necessary to keep the (tenuous) peace between cellmates and wardens when a shocking murder rocks the foundations of San Michele, an imposing stone fortress on a stony outcrop relentlessly smashed by crashing waves.
Zingaretti says the more dramatic turn is like going back to basics for an actor who cut his teeth on the stage. “I spent 20 years in dramatic roles in theatre, so I’m used to playing roles like Bruno, who reminds me a lot of the great Shakespearean characters,” he says. “I’ve played a lot of tragedies with darkness and complexity written into them.”
Luca Zingaretti in season 2 of 'The King'. Credit: Andrea Pirrello / Sky Italia
Much like the dramatic masks of tragedy and comedy, Bruno is a man of many faces. He can mete out brutal justice to his team or the inmates he’s responsible for one minute, then lovingly talk about restoring an old boat with his mentor or trying to mend bridges with his ex-wife and their young kid the next. Torn between tenderness and traumatic violence, where will he wind up? And who will he break along the way?
“Fundamentally, the tale of Bruno is that of a man who loses himself,” Zingaretti says. “He recalls the characters from Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now, based on the novel Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad. He is, at his core, enamoured with his job, which eventually becomes an obsession for him. So he doesn’t become immoral, per se, but amoral. He feels that if he does not do it this way, things will spiral out of control.”
Bruno (Luca Zingaretti) stalks the halls of San Michele. Credit: Sky Italia
The murky waters in which Bruno swims make for compelling viewing, with every episode delivering a shocking new cliffhanger. One of the most intriguing aspects of the show is that the murder that spins relative stability into chaos threatens his authority on two fronts. First, he must figure out who has moved against his people from the inside, whether it’s one of his guards or an inmate. Then, from the outside, the investigation brings a worthy adversary in the form of outstanding actor Anna Bonaiuto (Loro) as prosecutor Laura Lombardo, who immediately catches onto Bruno’s rule-bending and breaking.
Anna Bonaiuto as prosecutor Laura Lombardo in 'The King'. Credit: Sky Italia
“Anna’s really great and also has a lot of theatrical experience, which I believe is the best school, in terms of acting,” Zingaretti says. “She infused the character with an unpredictability based on the best weapon that she uses, irony, which wasn’t really written into the script. So when she attacks someone, she uses their personal strength against them, which was brilliant for the series and I enjoyed bouncing off of her.”
Zingaretti came up with the initial idea for The King’s gripping battle of wits, enlisting regular Luca Guadagnino collaborator and producer Lorenzo Mieli to help make it a reality. “He’s one of the most brilliant producers in Italy, and he fundamentally understood who Bruno was,” he says.
The writer’s room includes scribe Stefano Bises, with Giuseppe Gagliardi directing. “There was continuous conversation with a lot of feedback, and that’s why the show took so long in the developing process,” Zingaretti reveals. “We wanted it to stay true and to not stray from the original idea as much as possible. Guiseppe immediately understood the mood and it was a very collaborative process.”
While Zingaretti has dipped into directing, including the final episodes of Inspector Montalbano, there was no question of stepping behind the camera on The King. “It was necessary for the series to keep the two worlds separate,” he says. “I had a really great working relationship with Giuseppe and it’s very helpful to have someone holding a thread in case we got lost in the story, so he was able to pull us backwards.”
Luca Zingaretti says filming inside a former prison added weight to his role as Bruno. Credit: Sky Italia
The prison itself was a guiding light, or rather the three stone edifices they shot across, two of which are abandoned, with one now a museum. “When you shoot in an actual prison, quite apart from the aesthetics, it was a very peculiar experience that added a lot to the tone of the series,” Zingaretti says. “Even though we would leave after a ten-hour shoot to go back to our homes, the constraint was incredibly helpful.”
These stone walls hold a dark history all of their own. “You can sense the death and suffering, the oppressive energy of these places and the people they held, and that really informed my performance and our experience of The King. It almost made it seem like an experiment, like the dynamics of human nature held under a magnifying glass. To lock up human passion within a box and eventually these tensions explode.”
Both seasons of The King are streaming at SBS On Demand.
Stream free On Demand
The King
series • crime • Italian
MA15+
series • crime • Italian
MA15+
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