Taylor Swift reveals audition for Éponine in the Les Misérables movie

Taylor Swift has revealed how she auditioned to play Éponine in the Les Misérables movie.

Appearing on The Graham Norton Show this Friday night, Swift recounts her screen test with Eddie Redmayne who played Marius in the 2012 film adaptation of the hit musical.

Chatting on the episode, Swift recalls: “Basically I was up for two roles – I had the look of Cosette and the range vocally of Eponine, so it was established I was there for a good time but not for a long time, I wasn’t going to get the role.

“But they asked if I would like to go to London to do a screen test with Eddie, who is one of my favourite actors, and I thought ‘This isn’t an experience I am going to get again in my life’, so I said yes.”

She continued: “When I got there they put me in full 19th century street urchin costume and told me they were going to paint my teeth brown and I was like, ‘You are going to do that after I meet Eddie Redmayne, right?’

“But no, they made me look like death and it became a nightmare. When I met Eddie I didn’t open my mouth to speak!”

Redmayne, shares: “I thought we would just be singing off each other – I didn’t know we would be in each other’s arms.

“My overriding memory of it is that I had had pizza and garlic dough balls beforehand and all I could think about was my garlic breath while Taylor was dying in my arms and I was trying to show emotion.”

It was West End star Samantha Barks who ultimately took on the character, reprising the role she had previously played on stage.

The cast also featured Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried, Helena Bonham Carter and Sacha Baron Cohen.

Meanwhile Swift went on to take up a role in director Tom Cooper’s all star Cats adaptation in 2019.

The Graham Norton Show will air on Friday, 28 October at 10:40PM on BBC One.