Matt Smith explains how his punk Caught Stealing character is really a “sweet guy”

In a brief early appearance, we get a very vivid impression of what kind of guy Russ might be, and speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com, Smith explained that it was important to show there were many facets to the character in his short amount of screen time before he disappears from the action for a while.

"Me and Darren, talked about that on that first day," he revealed. "Because also we catch him in a nexus of anxiety and stress.

"And a good note Darren gave me really early on was... actually, this guy... [he] used the word 'sweet', I think. Like he's quite... there's a kind of sensitivity to him in a way. That's why he acts up."

Aronofsky himself added that the role was a "very hard" one for Smith to play.

"Because [Russ] is a little bit simple in his own way," he explained. "And that's a hard thing to do. And there is a tenderness, even though he is a punk!"

Smith especially enjoyed the interplay between Russ and his neighbour in the opposite flat – a man named Duane (George Abud) – who he considers to represent the polar opposite of his punk ideals.

"I just love that then there's this poor guy who lives opposite... you know, that's the f**king... that sort of energy is just someone who's gonna send us to the end of the moon, round the moon, round it again, and back down to Earth.

"Every day he sees him, [and] he's like, 'You are everything I hate'. And so it was a good first day at work."

Caught Stealing – which is largely set in the criminal underworld of '90s New York – has the potential to be a real crowd pleaser, and Aronofsky revealed that watching Smith's performance with a British audience at the UK premiere was an especially fun experience for him.

"It was amazing watching it with the British crowd last night," he said. "For your performance, because they really... they were laughing throughout the opening scene, and then when you show up the second time, there's like a huge amount of excitement."

And it wasn't just the fans who enjoyed it: Smith also revealed to RadioTimes.com that shooting the film included one of his "great days on a film set" when his character got to take part in a high-octane car chase.

Caught Stealing releases in UK cinemas on Friday 29 August 2025.

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