Actor Artjom Gilz chatted about starring in the buddy spy thriller series “Ponies” on Peacock, which stars Emilia Clarke and Haley Lu Richardson.
The show focuses on these two embassy wives in 1970s Moscow, who become CIA operatives following both of their husbands’ suspicious deaths.
The synopsis is: The series is set in Moscow in 1977. Two “Ponies” (“persons of no interest” in intelligence speak) work anonymously as secretaries in the American Embassy.
That is until their husbands are killed under mysterious circumstances in the USSR, and the pair become CIA operatives. Bea (Emilia Clarke) is an over-educated, Russian-speaking child of Soviet immigrants.
Her cohort, Twila (Haley Lu Richardson), is a small-town girl who is as abrasive as she is fearless. Together, they work to uncover a vast Cold War conspiracy and solve the mystery that made them widows in the first place.
Starring in ‘Ponies’
On starring in the show “Ponies,” Artjom said, “It was fun. It was great. ‘Ponies’ is incredible. I feel like we did a really good job. I liked watching it.”
“I feel like the feedback has been pretty good and solid, and I really enjoyed making it,” he added.
Playing Andrei in ‘Ponies’
When asked what he likes most about his character, Andrei Vasiliev, Artjom said, “I think what I liked most about Andre is that he is so far away from who I am as a person.”
“I feel that is what got me interested in him, especially being able to explore complete freedom in an oppressive system just because of the position that he is holding,” he noted.
“It was quite interesting to see what depth would make with a person and how they would behave and how that would influence their personal growth,” he explained. “So, to sum it up, it was really interesting for me.”
“It was really interesting for me to see how Andrei moves through the world and how he moves in a system that is oppressive, but it’s also pressing him. Also, it was interesting to see how Andrei perpetuates that violence throughout just to get ahead,” he elaborated.
Lessons learned from the ‘Ponies’ screenplay
On the lessons learned from the “Ponies” screenplay, he reflected, “I feel that working with this group of actors is more relatable than the screenplay.”
“Being surrounded with cast-mates that are so nice and lovely, and they were so themselves,” he said.
“For me, personally, observing Haley Lu Richardson was great because she is so true to herself… so unapologetic in the most beautiful way,” he observed.
“That is something that I can spire to, and something I can actually copy because it’s so much easier to be yourself than pretend to be somebody else,” he explained.
Closing thoughts on ‘Ponies’
For fans and viewers, he expressed, “I would love for people to obviously watch it, and have fun with it!”
“I would like them to be on the edge of their seats, and to long for a second season. I would say that is my goal for what the series should be,” Artjom concluded.
To learn more about actor Artjom Gilz, follow him on Instagram.
