Rising stars David Jonsson and Tom Blyth talk being prison cellmates in new movie Wasteman

Stills from the film Wasteman — (Image credit: James A. Demetriou)

What do you get when you bring together two up-and-coming British actors and shove them in a nail-biting prison thriller? A BAFTA-nominated movie and a bromance for the ages.

David Jonsson has made a name for himself as the scene-stealer after his supporting roles in Hollywood blockbusters, The Long Walk and Alien: Romulus, were lauded by fans and critics alike. Meanwhile, Tom Blyth made his first big splash in Hollywood by leading the last entry of the billion-dollar Hunger Games movie series, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.

In the new movie Wasteman, the pair cross paths and trade blows as prisoners forced to share a cell in an underfunded, disorderly prison. Jonsson plays Taylor, a drug addict days away from being released early on parole and reconnecting with his son. But then Dee, played by Blyth, is assigned to Taylor’s cell and stirs chaos in his bid to rule the prison.

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We caught up with the film’s rising stars ahead of its release on Friday, February 20th, to chat about the film and their future partnership.

1. Blyth and Jonsson had each other’s backs during the tough days

Wasteman depicts a more authentic portrayal of prison life than previous prison dramas, showing the drug-fuelled highs, the lows and the near-death experiences. Across the 18-day shoot of the film, Blyth and Jonsson were cooped up together in a cell and occasionally tapping into dark emotions for their characters. How did they come up for air at the end of the day?

“It was coming back to ourselves as much as we could and checking each other,” Jonsson explained. “Making sure we were good, talking about our life outside, because what people don't talk about is the life of actors continues. It doesn't matter what role you're doing, you've still got to pay the gas bill or whatever.”

Blyth said one of the nicest parts of the film process was sharing a car with Jonsson on their way home from set.

“It's always just to debrief because it's the only time we're going to get,” Blyth reminisced.

“That car ride became quite like a little therapy session. There were days when equally I'd get in, or [David would] get in the car, and each of us needed a bit of quiet, and we just let each other sit quietly. Just reading the other person and seeing what they need.”

2. Blyth and Jonsson want to work on an A24 Horror film together

This is the first time Jonsson and Blyth have worked on the same film, but the pair had previously worked with the same director, Francis Lawrence, on different projects — Blyth on The Ballad of Songbird and Snakes and Jonsson on The Long Walk. They also share the same agent, Olivia Holman, who introduced them years before they filmed Wasteman.

That introduction led to a friendship and to Jonsson mentioning Blyth’s name to Cal McMau, the director of Wasteman, during casting. The pair’s good friendship is clear during the promotional tour interview for Wasteman, and they had some ideas about the type of film they’d want to star in next.

“I feel like we’d do a good A24 horror. Like a body swap horror,” Blyth said, referring to the independent film studio behind hits like Pearl and Hereditary. “Something really weird.”

Jonsson said, “That could be really fun. The truth is, I’d do anything with Tom, but I think I'd also be interested in another thriller with Tom.”

When we asked if they wanted to do something lighter, the pair agreed they could do a buddy comedy.

“I was just gonna say we could do a little buddy comedy, but I think with us it would still have to have a lot of heart because we both are looking for that,” Blyth responded.

3. The duo were not a fan of shooting a scene involving vomit

Wasteman doesn’t shy away from violence, but one of the more gut-wrenching moments involves Dee vomiting on Taylor. Blyth explained he was actually spitting out vegetable soup, but thought it was still an uncomfortable scene to shoot.

“It was coming out of my mouth onto David's face,” Blyth said. “David is such a pro that he was just like, wipe it off, start again.”

“In that moment, you got to do what you got to do,” Jonsson added.

Blyth said they filmed the moment multiple times until he and Jonsson said they had done enough takes.

Blyth recalled, “They were like, ‘There's one more for safety.’ And we were like, ‘We don't need a safety.’”

4. Blyth on the prison’s ecosystem as a volatile reflection of the outside world.

Switchback, a London-based charity that supports male prison leavers to adjust to life outside prison, were hired as prison consultants on Wasteman to make the film more realistic. Jonsson and Blyth said their presence on-set was valuable for their performance.

“I learned so much. So much about a life you're trying to interpret, but they're giving you direct access, and there’s nothing better or more fulfilling than that,” Jonsson said.

Blyth said his biggest takeaway from hearing stories from the consultant was that prisons’ ecosystems were just a “magnified” version of capitalism in the outside world.

“Capitalism is inherently somewhat of a violent thing because it's based on resource guarding,” Blyth said. “This is what you see with Dee. He gets his stuff, and he wants to keep hold of it, and he's going to keep hold of it and gain more, no matter what the cost.”

Blyth added, “I think there's a conversation to be had there about capitalism in prisons and what it does to prisons. Bigger conversations than me.”

5. Blyth and Jonsson believe casting ordinary people with actors creates movie magic

The Switchback employees, some of whom were former convicts, appeared in Wasteman. Blyth and Jonsson said that this is a cool trend among modern directors such as Chloe Zhao and Sean Baker. In 2023, A24 attracted attention after casting former incarcerated actors to play themselves in the film Sing Sing about a New York prison’s theatre programme.

Blyth and Jonsson believe that casting actors with “real street” cred can create movie magic when it works.

“There were some people who were brilliant,” Jonsson said. In particular, the pair praised their co-star Keaton Ancona-Francis, who has a small role in the film as Dee’s friend from another prison ward.

“I think I'm so proud of our film for doing that,” Jonsson said. “Not only gave us a chance to do characters that are just not us at all, but it also gave these former prisoners a chance to revisit things in a way and give it something completely new.”

Wasteman is in cinemas now.