Geoffrey Rush: That was the result of hours of make-up, every day. I had a total of 38 wigs, for a start. There were prosthetics, too - silicone pieces which go on the skin, which absorb the light. They looked like seven pieces of uncooked veal to start with. But by the time the make-up department finished with me, I could not believe what I saw in the mirror. The trouble was, I would often only get to film about four hours a day because of all the time it took to make me look like him.

Geoffrey Rush: I realised he was a bit of a handful, but everyone you speak to who worked with him had a different view. I spoke to Goldie Hawn, when I was in Los Angeles, and she said that, on form, he was the funniest man in the world. But she also remembered having him over for one of her Hollywood parties and he walked around, looking sad and silent, staring at the paintings on the walls. She described him as a grown man balancing on a pin. You never knew when he was going to topple.

Geoffrey Rush: I do not want to demonise him and take care in the film not to do that. He was a complex man, full of originality. He was a star on radio and then did all these amazing films. I cannot imagine what it would be like to be both blessed and cursed with all that talent. Life would be tough, which I know sounds ridiculous. But it would be. And he lost it at the end.

Geoffrey Rush: I am a simple soul, compared to him. But there is a scary side to acting for me, because I have always wanted to develop rather than plateau out. When people come to me and tell me I was terrific in this or that, I do not want to fall flat on my face the next time. But, tough, I have fallen flat before. You just get up and dust yourself off.