Steve McFadden can be "intimidating" on set.
Steve McFadden
Former 'EastEnders' director Lee Salisbury admitted the Phil Mitchell actor is very focused and committed to his role and he found the star "intimidating at first" but soon realised that Steve, 62, was just a perfectionist.
He told Digital Spy: "Steve was intimidating at first, but not in a horrible way. He was very 'in the moment' while working on Phil's drug storyline, so he's not a person who'll be talking about the weather and then snap immediately into the part.
"What I love about an actor is when they test you. Steve had played that role for years, so he wanted to know that I knew what I was doing. If I asked him to move to a different place on the set, he'd question why."
However, he revealed that getting the seal of approval from Steve was "like being spoken to by God".
He explained: ""After a few days of doing that, I remember Steve was just about to film the scene where Phil smashed up the room in The Vic. Just beforehand, he said: 'I want to talk to the director'. I remember going to speak to him and he said: 'I trust you'. It was like being spoken to by God!
"You've got to prove your worth as well, which is vital for a job like that. There's no doubt that you're bricking it working with people like that."
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