Interview With Director Pablo Trapero (& Sons)

Pablo Trapero’s English-language debut, & Sons, adapts David Gilbert’s acclaimed novel into a sharp, tender portrait of a fractured clan orbiting a famous, reclusive patriarch: writer Andrew Dyer (played by Bill Nighy). Facing a personal crisis, Dyer summons his two middle-aged sons to his home, with a secret that could upend everything. We sat down with Trapero to talk about translating the book to the screen and assembling a killer ensemble. 

How did you approach adapting David Gilbert’s novel – especially for your first English-language film? What were the greatest challenges and surprises? 

David’s amazing book is entirely set in New York. It includes many references to New Yorkers’ perspectives, specific corners of the city, and elements of its unique culture. I wanted to translate what I saw as the core of the story into something a little more universal – something that could resonate with audiences around the world, not just those familiar with New York. When I started researching and rewriting it, together with [scriptwriter] Sarah Polley, our first attempt was to shift the setting to something more general: the countryside. If you’re familiar with UK geography, you might recognize it as somewhere between London and Oxford, but it could really be any place on the outskirts. 

What was most important to me – beyond the local references or where the characters were based – was what the house and its surroundings say about Andrew Dyer. From the very beginning of the writing process to the final stages of mixing, that remained the story’s most essential element. I focused on that, and so did the production designer, the director of photography, and the actors. We were all deeply invested in capturing the specificity of this family’s dynamics while translating them in a way that could resonate with different cultures, age groups, cities, and languages.  

Did you always have Bill Nighy in mind for Andrew Dyer? With such an incredible ensemble – Imelda Staunton, Dominic West, George MacKay, Johnny Flynn, Noah Jupe – what performances stood out most during the shoot?  

Listen, one of the greatest joys of this project was the cast we had. I’m so thrilled and honored. Bill Nighy, Imelda Staunton, Dominic West, George MacKay, Johnny Flynn, and Noah Jupe are all incredible actors, but each with their own unique ways of approaching their character. The only way to succeed in creating an ensemble like this is through their commitment and openness – to try new things, to be guided, and to be willing to explore. It wasn’t just about sticking to the script or following my direction; it was about discovering things along the way and finding what’s new in the moment – what can be uncovered, what hidden places and layers could emerge through their performances. I’m so proud of them because they’re all very different, but when we were on set, in the scene, we were all moving in the same direction, to create and deliver the best possible performance from each of them in every single moment. 

What, above all else, do you hope stays with audiences after they leave the cinema?  

‘What’s most important to me – out of all the movie’s layers, subplots, and themes – is legacy, responsibility, commitment, and ego. Or egotism. But above everything else, & Sons is about love, and how we develop and navigate it. Love is very much linked to boundaries and freedom, and this delicate balance between them is creating this sort of big bang in their relationships, mostly starting with Andrew. So I feel like audiences might relate to this complex family portrait.’