By Kristina Moskalenko
It’s impossible not to notice Rami Malek among Hollywood’s stars: an Egyptian born in the U.S., with deep, serious eyes and a thoughtful, almost guarded manner. From the first handshake, it’s clear—he’s an introvert who doesn’t open up easily.
Malek studied alongside Kirsten Dunst, but fame came only in 2015 with Mr. Robot. His haunting performance as Elliot Alderson earned him an Emmy Award in 2016. Soon after, he took on the role that would define his career — Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody (2018), a film about the legendary Queen frontman.
Initially, Sacha Baron Cohen was set to play Mercury, but the project shifted direction when Queen’s guitarist Brian May sought a more family-oriented tone. The result was a film both educational and intimate, exploring fame, friendship, and identity, but also complete with a few little-known facts, like Freddie Mercury’s engagement. Queen fans, like me, obviously can’t wait to see it, but for my journalistic part still wonders: how did such a reserved person, as Rami Malek looks, so convincingly became the explosive Freddie Mercury?
During our interview at London’s Soho Hotel, I asked Rami Malek about his first meeting with Queen, whether he actually sang with prosthetic teeth, and how he approached capturing Freddie’s unique stage presence. And, of course, the inevitable question about the rumours swirling around their off-screen relationship.
Yet the format of a typical film junket, which only gives you twenty minutes to ask questions and establish a connection, wasn’t enough to crack his shell. He answered everything perfectly, almost like from a textbook, but when I submitted the piece, my editor (for the first time in my career) noted something unusual: a subtle lack of emotion. And that, perhaps, is who Rami Malek truly is: reserved on the surface, yet quietly making an effort to connect. Beneath that composure lies a depth of feeling and sensitivity that only time and patience can reveal.
Kristina Moskalenko: Rami, unlike many biographical films made against the will of their subjects, the members of Queen were directly involved in the creation of Bohemian Rhapsody. Do you remember your first meeting with them?
Rami Malek: We met at Roger Taylor’s apartment. Brian May was already there. I had sent them a video of myself singing Freddie’s songs beforehand. But I had this feeling they hadn’t managed to download the file properly. So we ended up re-downloading it together, and I had the “pleasure” of watching Queen see me, for the first time, singing their songs.
My first meeting with Freddie was just as surreal. I was rushing to a recording session at Abbey Road Studios and got stuck in traffic. I was nervous, running late. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that pedestrian crossing from the Beatles’ album cover and for a moment, I lost all sense of reality. When I finally ran into the studio, out of breath, the walls were covered with photographs of all the legendary bands. And suddenly, there was Freddie’s picture. I stopped and caught my breath. It felt like he was staring right at me, saying, “Don’t you dare mess this up.” That’s when I knew this role would either change my life or completely break me. But you have to shut off your self-criticism and take the risk. How many chances like that does an actor really get?
Kristina Moskalenko: How do you generally feel about auditions? Many actors, especially successful ones, say they hate them. I wonder what your old classmate Kirsten Dunst would say if she didn’t get the part.
Rami Malek: I actually love auditions. It’s a space for experimentation. If you put together all those five- or ten-minute tapes I’ve done for roles I didn’t get, you’d have quite an archive. I start panicking only after I do get the role and the script lands in my hands. That’s when the question hits me: “Can I really pull this off?” But over the years, I’ve learned how to manage that panic.
I always do extensive research on the character: why he became who he is, what drives him, what he feels. That’s the most fascinating part of the work for me. I’m at my most creative early in the morning and late at night, so I try to keep that time sacred for diving into the role.
Kristina Moskalenko: Unlike your co-star Lucy Boynton, who played Freddie’s girlfriend Mary Austin and later admitted she knew very little about him because of her age, you seem to have been a fan for a long time. What’s your favourite Queen song?
Rami Malek: A lesser-known one: “Lily of the Valley.”
Kristina Moskalenko: It doesn’t appear in Bohemian Rhapsody, does it? What moment in the film moved you the most?
Rami Malek: Everything we recorded for the Live Aid sequence. That was an iconic concert at Wembley Stadium before 50,000 people. Interestingly, that was actually the first thing we shot.
Kristina Moskalenko: That’s quite a leap!
Rami Malek: Imagine walking onto a set for the very first time, and your task is to recreate what’s probably the greatest concert in music history. I didn’t sleep a single hour the night before. Brian May stopped by the set to show support, which was incredible. But it was especially tough for Gwilym Lee, who plays Brian himself (talk about pressure)!
Kristina Moskalenko: Tell me honestly, did you actually sing “Mama,” and the iconic “We Are the Champions”? Or were you just lip-syncing? Will we hear your or Freddie’s voice in the film?
Rami Malek: When Brian May or Roger Taylor hand you early studio recordings of Freddie laying down Bohemian Rhapsody, of course you want to use them. We were lucky to work with some rare archival materials, and I hope when people watch the film in surround sound, what they hear is truly Freddie’s voice.
From my side, I gave it everything, every single day. But I still don’t know exactly which parts of my singing made it into the final cut, if any. I imagine it will be a mix of both my voice and his. Freddie’s will definitely be there.
Kristina Moskalenko: And those teeth… Did you perform with the prosthetic teeth?
Rami Malek: Yes, and they completely changed how I felt. While filming, I often felt almost… exposed. It was as if they stripped me down to something very raw.
Kristina Moskalenko: The key milestones of Queen’s history and Freddie’s musical legacy are well known. But what about the man behind the legend, do we get to see more of Freddie as a person?
Rami Malek: I think so, yes. What fascinates me about Freddie isn’t just his music, but the circumstances that shaped him. He was born in Zanzibar, went to school in Bombay, and when revolution broke out, his family fled to Britain seeking asylum. It’s such a profoundly immigrant story: searching for identity, being a refugee and starting over from nothing. That alone is an entire world to explore.
Then there’s this duality. The contrast between the shy, humble man in private and the dazzling bravado that erupted on stage. All of that contained in one person, someone who could unite thousands without even opening his mouth. It is mesmerising to thing about how this man was “stitched,” so to speak. For me, Bohemian Rhapsody is an exploration of that phenomenon on screen.
Kristina Moskalenko: Which of those traits do you relate to most: charisma, humility, or the immigrant background?
Rami Malek: Freddie on stage and Freddie off stage were two very different people. I think I’m similar in that sense, I take on challenges and risks in acting far more boldly than I do in other parts of my life.
Kristina Moskalenko: A role like this obviously requires serious preparation. What did you do? Watch old footage, read books, study interviews?
Rami Malek: Studying Freddie Mercury was like attending a live concert every day. You can spend hours watching and listening, and it never feels like work. It’s pure joy. But I didn’t just focus on him; I studied the whole band and their dynamics, how close they were, who leaned on whom. Those relationships were something we consciously worked on, trying to recreate on screen.
Kristina Moskalenko: But surely watching concerts and interviews isn’t enough to “become” Freddie?
Rami Malek: That would be too simple. For me, he’s an enormous inspiration. He taught people to value themselves for who they are. His music and lifestyle broke conventions. His defiant spirit allows me to be fully myself. So rather than trying to be him, I looked to him for inspiration to start living fully in my own life. Becoming Freddie is impossible. He was a natural force, one of a kind. What I wanted to capture was his humanity, the spark that made him shine and vibrate, and learn how to channel that energy.
Kristina Moskalenko: Oh, and did you manage to tame that energy, you think? I haven’t seen the film yet, but sounds like a challenge!
Rami Malek: You know, to recreate Live Aid concert move by move, I had to study his physiological traits, his movements. But when I started rehearsing with the choreographers, I realised it wasn’t just about the movements, it was about why he moved the way he did. That connection, the sense of unity he creates on stage, is instinctive. When it ignites for even a second, it’s like he owns you, and you own him. I realised his magic lies in spontaneity. He wasn’t a ballerina, repeating every step perfectly. So I replaced the choreographer with a movement coach, the same kind of coach Eddie Redmayne used for The Theory of Everything. I think it worked pretty well (laughs).
Kristina Moskalenko: And the difference between a choreographer and a movement coach is..?
Rami Malek: Instead of just studying concerts, we examined how he moved and behaved in interviews. I looked at how he used his eyes, what triggered him to erupt into bravado and when he would choose to sit quietly, picking at the couch fabric. How all of that ties back to his roots, upbringing, and education. I even looked at Mick Jagger, David Bowie, Jimi Hendrix, and Aretha Franklin, because that’s who he studied.
Kristina Moskalenko: The fact that director Bryan Singer was replaced by Dexter Fletcher during filming. Did that affect you?
Rami Malek: The team stayed the same, and that mattered more to me. Mr. Robot had a new director every season, so I am used to it. By then, everyone was exhausted, and a fresh perspective was needed. I simply couldn’t allow the film not to be finished. I know it sounds strange, but after experiencing Freddie viscerally, I felt a kind of closeness to him. I asked myself how he would handle it and I knew he would finish.
Kristina Moskalenko: The film releases in early November. You’re already famous, but after Bohemian Rhapsody you’ll wake up a star. Are you ready?
Rami Malek: In New York, people photograph me on the subway all the time. They think it’s sneaky, but really, it isn’t that secret! When people start recognising you on the streets, you just want a hoodie and a bit of privacy.
Kristina Moskalenko: And you protect your private life fiercely. Rumour has it you’re dating your co-star Lucy Boynton?
A gentleman keeps that to himself. Just like his age.
____________
Please Note: This interview was set to be published in the L’Officiel Russia, however the magazine closed unexpectedly and the interview has never been published.
Articles on film, luxury lifestyle, culture and tech 
Leave a comment