‘Half Man’ younger actors about the homoerotic dynamics of Niall and Ruben

SPOILER ALERT: This post contains stories from the series premiere of “Half Man,” now streaming on HBO Max.

“Half Man,” the second drama from “Baby Reindeer” creator Richard Gadd, follows the story of two very different teenage boys brought together by fate, whose relationship will influence the rest of their lives.

There’s the clumsy, unconfident Niall (played by Mitchell Robertson and later Jamie Bell) and the flighty, angry Ruben (Stuart Campbell, then Gadd) who form a tragic and suffocating lifelong bond when they find themselves living under the same roof. Over the course of the series’ six episodes, their relationship waxes and wanes, but continues to cast a shadow over their fate until the thrilling denouement of the finale.

Before the first episode drops on HBO (it will be released on BBC iPlayer on April 24), Robertson and Campbell spoke to Variety to discuss the brotherly and sometimes sexual nature of the boys’ friendship, that bedroom dance and the “shocking” sex scene that required two intimacy coordinators.

How do you see the relationship between Niall and Ruben?

Mitchell Robertson: It’s a very complicated relationship, isn’t it? It’s really layered.

Stuart Campbell: It helped that Mitchell and I got along really well from the very beginning – we didn’t know each other during the first chemistry lecture. It made me feel very safe and comfortable [him]and we became pretty good friends pretty quickly. So as a basic security blanket, I felt like I could feel safe with him to be vulnerable and challenge myself, and to go to the places that the relationship and the script require.

While filming the scenes, did you know how their relationship ultimately ends?

Robertson: We didn’t know how it would end. We had no idea. I heard little rumors about what might have happened. So we didn’t know while we were recording our episodes, which for me – honestly, I preferred that. I preferred to focus only on our version of events.

Mitchell, how do you see Niall’s fixation on Ruben? Of course there is fear, but is there also a sexual undercurrent? Or is it more brotherly?

Robertson: When Ruben first comes back into Niall’s life, the obvious reason why Niall wants him to stay is the physical protection he provides, obviously helping the situation with the bullies. And furthermore, as they begin to connect and have moments of connection, perhaps a real sense of friendship will develop between them. In terms of the sexual undercurrent, it wasn’t something I played intentionally. It’s really interesting because a few people have asked me about it. I think there were definitely moments, especially in episode 1, where I was maybe a little bit in awe of Ruben or fascinated by Ruben, and couldn’t keep Ruben off Ruben, I think, looking at him with eyes full of intrigue or interest, and maybe some of that reads as a sexual undertone. But at no point did I plan on playing it that way. So it’s interesting that it came across that way.

The scene where Niall sees Ruben dancing in their bedroom, was it choreographed?

Campbell: We did have a choreographer. But I thought: there needs to be a bit of improvisation to make it human. Mainly because it doesn’t have to be an incredibly perfect routine. It’s just a guy in his bedroom improvising. So I added a few of my own moves. I guess I have to get over the fear and the bullshit that gets in the way of thinking like, you know – because I’m not a dancer and I haven’t had that kind of training – but it doesn’t have to be that way. And just letting go of the fears and the voices and just trying to have fun with it.

What was your reaction to the scene where Niall loses his virginity to Mona, played by Charlotte Blackwood, while Ruben is in the room?

Campbell: My reaction when I first read it [while auditioning] was very shocked is probably a good way to put it. And I also remember thinking, “This is going to be a real challenge for whoever gets to do it.” It was a lot scarier on the page than it actually was to shoot for me personally – obviously I don’t speak for all the actors in that scene – but for me. And all credit to the team that we had, the intimacy team and our director, and our DoP, which was really shot with great care.

And it is also a very crucial moment for Niall. To me, that scene reinforces for Niall a lack of autonomy, it reinforces for him a lack of autonomy over his own body. And certainly in that scene, Ruben is much more the focus for Niall than Mona which I feel like, which is also interesting.

Why do you think Ruben gets so involved?

Campbell: There is a constant interweaving of protectiveness and possessiveness with Ruben in terms of his relationship with Niall. Both can occur in the same sentence or at the same time. And I feel like there are positive qualities that Ruben, as context, has clearly had to survive on his own, and he brings a lone wolf energy with him when we meet him again from the Young Offenders Institute. But then the sense of duty and loyalty and family and wanting to protect [Niall] is quite a positive impact for [him] getting that protection, but also for me, having that sense of purpose and connection with someone, but then it can turn into something more toxic and sinister pretty quickly and it’s like, “I can’t just let you have it.” It’s like, “I need to have a little for myself too.” What keeps them together, probably until the end of [Episode] 6. I can never just let it go [him] have it.

I don’t think it’s an exaggeration or understatement, it’s a scene that had to be handled with a lot of care and attention and with two intimacy coordinators on the day. It took several days of rehearsals before we ever got on set to understand what was needed, but I think we both felt very safe and comfortable that day.

Do you remember how many takes it took to shoot?

Robertson: We had all day to do it. In terms of how many takes, I don’t know, but we did a lot of different setups.

Campbell: Incredible honor for Charlotte. That was her one day at work. To come in and do that was remarkable, [to] come in and find out within a day. And of course there are safe spaces outside the set. Since it’s a set, it’s obviously easier to control the environment and keep it safe than probably someone’s home on location.

This interview has been edited and condensed.