Marisa Abela has revealed how intense gym sessions, a strict diet and regular vocal training helped her transform into Amy Winehouse for the upcoming biopic film on the pop star.
The actor plays the lead in Sam Taylor-Johnson’s forthcoming project Back to Black, which delves into the life and career of the iconic singer, starring Jack O’Connell as her former lover Blake Fielder-Civil.
Abela worked with Anne-Marie Speed and a range of other vocal coaches four times a week from September 2022 to January 2023 to learn how to sing from scratch.
The 27-year-old has also lost weight and learnt how to play guitar, in order to turn her body into a ‘true instrument’ and re-enact one of recognisable voices in the modern era for the film released on April 12.
The Brighton-born star compared intense schedule to that of a professional athlete, telling the Guardian: ‘It’s full-time preparation, it’s like an athlete and people really underestimate how physical voice production can be.
Marisa Abela as Amy Winehouse and Eddie Marsan as her father Mitch in Sam Taylor-Johnson’s forthcoming project Back to Black, which delves into the life and career of the iconic singer
Abela worked with Anne-Marie Speed and range of other coach four times a week from September 2022 to January 2023 to learn how to sing from scratch
Amy and Mitch pose in the Awards Room at the Q Awards 2006 – the film will follow the singer’s career from the early 2000s as a North London jazz musician and culminating in her rise to fame as a Grammy-winning singer with hit songs like Rehab and Back to Black
‘They don’t see it, but it really is. You’ve got to get the body working in the right way to truly support what’s happening and to produce the voice in that way.’
Anne-Marie Speed, who has trained the cast of musicals including Everybody’s Talking About Jamie and recently worked with actors on Danny Boyle’s Sex Pistols TV series, added: ‘You want [the vocal performance] to be very close, but not an impression. Because otherwise, you might as well just mime to her recordings.
‘I was seeing her [Abela] four times a week for two-hour sessions for about three months before we started shooting. So it’s a big, big commitment.’
The demand for musical biopics has increased dramatically in recent years, with some calling this the ‘golden age’ for the genre, thanks to the success of films such as Rocketman (Elton John), Straight Outta Compton (NWA) and Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla (Priscilla Presley).
Because of this, more actors are having to learn how to sing, with increased attention on their preparation for these roles, with some choosing a ‘method’ approach.
Speed believes having the ability to sing has become a crucial aspect of an actors CV, but stressed how difficult it can be to master.
‘I think it is an important skill, but not everybody necessarily wants to focus on [it] … you have to find someone who is prepared to do the work because it it is work and it takes practice.
‘I think one of the misunderstandings the public has [is] that people get take after take after take [to get it right]. You don’t because there’s a very strict schedule. So when they turn up on set, they have to be able to deliver.’
How Hollywood stars prepared to play these music icons
Bradley Cooper – Maestro (2023)
Cooper says he spent six years preparing to portray conductor Leonard Bernstein.
The American also played a troubled country singer alongside Lady Gaga in the 2018 box-office hit A Star Is Born.
Chadwick Boseman – Get On Up (2014)
The Black Panther star depicted James Brown and undertook five-hour sessions to master the dance moves of ‘the hardest working man in showbusiness’.
Boseman also worked with vocal coach Ron Anderson to master the funk legend’s iconic tones.
Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon – Walk the Line (2005)
Both stars sang every song in the film about Johnny Cash and June Carter, which tells the story of the country star’s romance and Cash’s substance abuse issues whilst touring as a young man.
Jamie Foxx – Ray (2004)
Foxx was already a pianist when he took on the role of rhythm and blues legend Ray Charles.
However, the actor insisted on learning to play like the blind signer, so began practising with his eyes closed.