VIDEO EXCLUSIVE: Cary Grant’s Ex-Wife Dyan Cannon & Jason Isaacs On Icon’s Secret Identity

Dyan Cannon, ex-wife of Cary Grant, and actor Jason Isaacs spoke about the new series Archie and how they were both able to learn new insights into Grant’s life. 

Cannon explained to uInterview founder Erik Meers that the series started when director Jeff Pope approached her ten years ago after reading her novel. 

“He read my book Dear Cary,” she recalled. “And said let’s make a movie, let’s option your book. I said let’s talk about what that would be, we did. And it’s evolved into a four-hour miniseries because ultimately he felt that an hour and a half couldn’t capture the fullness of what this life was.”

Isaacs, who plays Grant in the show, shared that he learned Grant’s true character and how that is different from the public’s view of him. 

“All those adjectives that have been applied to him, debonair, suave, what any of those things, I learned that he was the very opposite,” he said.

Isaacs continued to explain that the role also taught him personal lessons, specifically how people tend to not show their true identity to the public.

“It reminded me not to think that other people have perfect lives and the shinier they look from the outside, very often the more broken they are on the inside,” he said.

After working with Isaacs and helping to create the series, Cannon had her own realizations about Grant and their life together. 

“Cary was always hungry because he really was always hungry as a young boy, they didn’t have enough money. When something spilled on the floor, he had to get down on the floor and eat,” she said. “And there was still very little to eat and he used to finish my plate whenever I would not finish my plate. He would not only finish my plate but our guests’ plate very often.”

In addition to this, Cannon explained, “I also didn’t realize that we stayed home so much.”

Isaacs added how secrets played a big role for him and found that this was especially true with Grant.

“I mean all you want as an actor is a secret,” Isaacs added. “All actors really, that’s the most playable thing. And he had bigger secrets than anyone. What the world saw him as and even that’s maybe one of the reasons you stayed in all the time.”

Isaacs continued to share his insights on Grant, specifically how he felt that Grant was a different person in public than in private. 

“What he had to be when he went out was very opposite of many of the things he was feeling, just self-hatred and anger and fear and all of those things that you got the brunt of,” he said. “Because you were the only person that he could show that to.”

The actor also explained that he hopes the audience will also gain a similar experience as him and that his portrayal of Grant will show his true character.

“Ask most people what they know about Cary Grant and they put it down on a piece of paper,” he said. “Hopefully, by the end of the four hours, they’ll have torn that piece of paper up because he’s not Cary Grant, he’s Archie Leach and Archie Leach is the polar opposite of Cary Grant in every way.”

Cannon shared that, for her, the show taught her to not forget that people can easily hide their true identities and things are not always as they seem. 

“I think it serves for me as a reminder to not look out there and look at a couple and think, ‘Oh my gosh they’re poster couple out there, they oh look at how happy they are,” she explained.

In part one of the interview, Cannon and Isaacs address the gay rumors about Grant.

Archie is now available to stream on Britbox.