From creator Antonio Campos and inspired by a true story, the HBO Max original limited series The Staircase tells the story of Michael Peterson (Colin Firth), who was accused of killing his wife Kathleen (Toni Collette) after she was found dead at the bottom of their staircase. The suspicious circumstances, along with secrets that start to unravel, create a stranger-than-fiction vibe that makes you wonder just how accidental this tragedy truly is.
During this 1-on-1 interview with Collider, Michael Stuhlbarg (who plays David Rudolf, Michael Peterson’s lawyer) talked about why he wanted to be a part of telling this story, playing someone who’s just a normal guy that’s good at his job, getting to meet the real person he was playing, working with a leader like Firth, whether he’s ever affected by the characters that he plays, and what gets him excited about a project.
Collider: This is such a fascinating and bizarre story. When this project came your way, what made you want to be a part of telling it? What ultimately most spoke to you about this story?
MICHAEL STUHLBARG: I had seen the documentary before, and I had also worked with Antonio Campos before, and some of the other actors, like Toni Collette and Odessa Young. The opportunity to work with all of them again was wonderful, as well as the script itself and the character. Watching how David comported himself, during the course of the trial and during the course of the entire documentary, to have the chance to walk in his shoes for a while was a wonderful opportunity.
He’s a guy who seems like a good guy. And he’s a lawyer who seems like a good lawyer. He’s just stuck with this client who he’s trying to do his best with. What is it like to play and explore someone like that? How did you view him? How did you approach understanding him, when he feels like he could be anybody that you know?
STUHLBARG: Yeah, that’s the great thing about him, both watching him, and then I got to meet him and hang out with him for a while. He basically was an open book. What you saw is what you get. He believed Michael, from the very beginning. He told me everything about his own life that led him to those circumstances, and then everything that went on with him afterwards. I believed him from the get-go. I enjoyed the time we spent together, and I enjoyed watching him and trying to figure out the best way to go about doing these things. He’s really good at his job, and he’s got a great sense of humor. It was really fun.
Are there challenges that come with playing just a normal, straightforward guy?
STUHLBARG: It’s funny because, even though someone might seem that way, they aren’t those things. We all are human, so there’s always something that will surprise you about someone. Although David does shoot from the hip. What the series offers is a glimpse behind everyone’s mask that they wear. You get to learn about people that you didn’t necessarily get to learn about, if you had seen the documentary. It explores everyone’s life, during the course of the circumstances of the trial. What may seem straightforward actually takes a lot of time and effort. David has honed his professional self, as well as his personal self, over the course of many years. He is a particular way in the world. So, I tried to absorb as much as I could about him. He’s our eyes and ears, in watching the events take place during the course of not just the documentary, but in our story as well. Although we are privy to learning a little bit about everyone during our story.
When you meet with someone like him, and you know that you’re going to be playing him, do you study him for the way he behaves in his mannerisms, or do you not find that, so necessary with something like this?
STUHLBARG: It’s something that one is drawn to want to do because you want to do your job well, but under this circumstance, there’s a lot of footage out there of David. I could watch him through the entire documentary and not even necessarily need to meet him, but I had the opportunity to, so I took it. I loved hearing his answers to questions that I’m sure he’s answered a million times before. It was great.
The real David has said that he believes and has always believed that Michael is innocent. Did you feel that you had to believe that? Is that something you even thought about? How did you work that out for yourself?
STUHLBARG: I didn’t feel like I had to believe the same things he did, but I inevitably did because the facts were just one thing. The facts were the facts. As they were presented, that’s what I grew to believe as well. Now, if you ask the same question to the actors who were on the prosecution side of this case, they will say that they believed what their characters were going through as well. I think perspective is an interesting aspect of this whole project, in that there are several different and new perspectives that our version of this story allows for, where the documentary only presents one.
Having seen the documentary, and then having had the experience of making this series, did it change your perspective on Michael Peterson at all?
STUHLBARG: Mostly, my opinions are still the same, from what I gleaned from the documentary. I’d like to believe what people say, but that’s part of my nature. In the end, people will try to put their best foot forward, I suppose. I’m not sure if I learned a whole lot about Michael, so I don’t feel like my perspective changed so much about who he is. I took what I was privy to, and I made my decisions based on what I had seen, so not a lot changed for me.
What was it like to work with Colin Firth and to have him as a scene partner, playing that dynamic?
STUHLBARG: Colin is a leader by example. His work is so smart, and away from the work, he’s so pleasant to be around. He’s a generous and gentle spirit, and so funny. It makes all the difference in the world, to enjoy the people that you work with, just for who they are, and to watch how they work and how they go about trying to find a way into who it is that they’re playing. That can be inspirational, in terms of your own work. Certainly, Colin provided that inspiration, every time we had the chance to be together.
The last thing that I saw you in was Dopesick, and that is such a different character than this one. Do you get affected by the characters that you play? When you play someone like Richard Sackler, who really is responsible for the destruction of so many lives, does it get under your skin? Can you avoid that from happening?
STUHLBARG: Depends on you, as an individual. It depends on how long the shooting process is, and to what you are privy to, with the information out there about somebody, and also the script that you’re working with. Inevitably, if you live in that world, and you’re trying to portray someone as honestly and as non-judgmentally as possible, it’s most likely gonna stick with you a little bit because it’s a significant amount of time living with someone or as someone. I just try to take the facts and honor what I learn, as much as possible, and try to be without an agenda, given all the circumstances. It’s really hard to judge a character that you’re playing while you’re playing them. You’re gonna feel a particular way, most of the time. It’s always a marriage between the individual and yourself.
You’ve played characters that are all over the map. What typically gets you excited and interested in a project? Is it who you’re working with?
STUHLBARG: Always, sure, it’s who I’m working with and the material itself. If it moves me, if it makes me laugh, if it captures my imagination, if it’s challenging, if it’s something I’ve never done before, if it’s something that scares me, all of those things go into the mix. I’m always trying to look for something I’ve not done before and something that is terrifying to do, just to se where it is I end up meeting the material and what I’m capable of. You don’t know unless you’re challenged, really.
The Staircase is available to stream at HBO Max.