Knives Out 3's Andrew Scott explains why Catholic Church is the perfect backdrop for a murder mystery

After his previous murder mysteries took viewers inside a cosy mansion and onto a lavish private island, Rian Johnson's latest Knives Out film Wake Up Dead Man opts for a rather different backdrop: a Catholic church.

The film finds Daniel Craig's sleuth Benoit Blanc called in to solve the killing of the foreboding Monsignor Jefferson Wicks (Josh Brolin), with the rather more modern clergyman Jud Duplenticy (Josh O'Connor) serving as the maverick detective's closest confidant.

Of course, Johnson has always peppered a dash of social commentary into his whodunnits, and that's no different this time around.

Throughout the film, he makes interesting points about modern interpretations of faith – and the way it has sometimes been weaponised for political ends – while also making cinematic use of religious imagery and iconography.

This made starring in the film an especially tantalising prospect for many of the cast, with Andrew Scott explaining during an exclusive interview with RadioTimes.com why he felt that murder mysteries and Catholicism make for such a perfect match.

"It's a great premise for a film," he explained. "Because there's a murder mystery, but there's also mysteries [of the church] that we recognise. Both [me and co-star Daryl McCormack] come from Catholic Ireland, so it's something I think we're familiar with."

He continued that being on set was "incredibly beautiful", adding that something about religious iconography and the questions it throws up are "just innately dramatic".

"[The] question of what happens to us when we're no longer on the earth... it's the thing that faith is based on and so there's just an innate, well, mystery is the best word for it," he said. "And that marries with the subject matter of a whodunnit really beautifully.”

McCormack – who plays aspiring politician turned internet conspiracy theorist Cy Draven in the film – added that he loved "how personal" the film was for Johnson, and the way in which it explored "the different iterations of faith".

"My character is someone who has really politicised his faith, and even begs you to ask whether he has a genuine faith," he added. "[He's] very much driven by a kind of fear and power and greed and all these things that tend to be un-Christ-like ironically. So I thought it was a beautiful kind of composition to explore.

"I just love that faith – which is almost like the unanswerable question in itself – is also part of the mix in this third film."

Scott and McCormack weren't the only stars who were intrigued by the religious angle. For example, while Mila Kunis – who stars as local police chief Geraldine Scott – would have been keen to star in a Knives Out film whatever the topic, this particular setting especially captivated her.

"When Rian and I met for breakfast, before I knew what this movie was about, I sat down, and I was like, 'Listen, I'll just do it,'" she recalled. "And he's like, 'You should really read the script!'

"But I was like, 'Can you just... give me a little bit, give me the setting, the world, anything.' And he goes, 'Well, it's gonna be about the Catholic Church.' And I went, 'I'm so in! Whatever it is...' I was, like, double down on how in I am. I thought it was fascinating."

Read more:

• Wake Up Dead Man cast reveal Knives Out film's relevance to "scary times" we live in – and who has pitched a return for a sequel
• Daniel Craig reveals why he thinks the Knives Out films are not "whodunnits" at all

Meanwhile, Cailee Spaeny explained it was very easy to understand how her character – the former concert cellist Simone Vivane – had chosen to turn to God and more specifically to the fire and brimstone version of Christianity served up by Monsignor Wicks.

"It was a very easy thing to fall into for me," she said. "Growing up religious, I had a similar path as Rian, and so I just knew her. I understood her conflicts and why she joined this congregation, what she was getting from it, and her doubts, and it all made sense.

"And I just thought how impressive that Rian Johnson is gonna make another murder mystery and drop something like this right in the middle of it. I just think it's so Rian, and there's so much heart and humanity.

"I think this movie really is about grace and sort of hearing one another and connecting, which I think is really refreshing."

Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is currently showing in select UK cinemas and comes to Netflix on 12th December. Sign up for Netflix from £5.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin.

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