Michael Sheen has revealed he prepared to play Prince Andrew by looking at 'hot' throwbacks of the Duke of York.
The actor, 55, portrays the disgraced royal, 64, in Prime Video's A Very Royal Scandal - a retelling of Prince Andrew's car crash Newsnight interview in 2019.
Understandably, the royal was not involved in the production so Michael revealed that he had an unique method for getting into character.
Speaking at a screening of the show in London on Monday night, he explained: 'Whenever I've played a character based on a real life person, first and foremost, I'm looking for where's the point of connection? What's the thing that hooks me in?
'It was the footage of of Andrew, when he came back from the Falklands on the dockside with the rose in his mouth - that's about as good, a moment as you're ever going to get.'
Michael Sheen has revealed he prepared to play Prince Andrew in Prime Video's A Very Royal Scandal by looking at 'hot' throwbacks of the Duke of York
Michael said he felt 'connected' to Prince Andrew looking at the footage of the royal returning from the Falklands War on September 17, 1982, onboard HMS Invincible
Michael explained: 'You're the brave, conquering, hero returning. You're really fit! Really hot! And everyone thinks you're great.
'And it was sort of downhill from there wasn't it... that journey was my hook in.'
The Welsh actor went on to add that whenever he takes on a role it needs to be within his reach but 'far enough away to be a challenge', which the Prince Andrew role proved to be.
While Michael managed to embody Prince Andrew for the drama, he previously revealed that he would never want to be part of the royal family in real life.
Absolutely not,' he told PEOPLE. 'No. The fairytale image of it seems so extraordinary — living in palaces and having everything you want and servants and all that kind of stuff.
'But the reality seems to be that there are far more restrictions than there are freedoms.
'No amount of wealth or assets or privilege can make up for not being able to have basic sort of freedoms that a lot of us take for granted. So no, I would not want to have that life.'
Amazon Prime released the trailer for A Very Royal Scandal last month after announcing when it will drop on the streamer.
The actor, 55, (left) portrays the disgraced royal, 64, in Prime Video's A Very Royal Scandal - a retelling of Prince Andrew's car crash Newsnight interview in 2019
Amazon Prime released the trailer for A Very Royal Scandal last month after announcing it will drop on the streamer on September 19
Starring alongside Michael as the Duke of York is Ruth Wilson (left) as journalist Emily Maitlis
Starring alongside Michael as the Duke of York is Ruth Wilson as journalist Emily Maitlis.
The three-part series will premiere on 19 September exclusively on Prime Video.
It comes just five months after rival streaming platform Netflix 's version, entitled Scoop, which was out on April 5.
In the trailer, Ruth's Emily can be seen pursuing the story that would make her a global household name and destroy the Prince's reputation in a pivotal moment in British history.
Before the interview, the Duke of York quips: 'I'm going to blow this out of the water.'
He adds in a voiceover: 'I've been warned about you. You have a bit of a reputation.'
Emily then cheekily responds, while sitting across from him: 'Well, for you, I'll try and behave.'
It then cuts to the interview and then its aftermath, where Emily says: 'I was only ever hoping to ask the right questions.'
On Monday night the series' stars Michael and Ruth joined Emily Maitlis for a special screening at the Ham Yard Hotel in London. This series is said to focus more on Emily's involvement
The upcoming series by Amazon MGM Studios will focus far more on Emily - who serves as an executive producer, whereas Netflix's Scoop focused on Prince Andrew.
A spokesperson for Amazon confirmed the series will 'follow Emily Maitlis' professional and personal journey as a Newsnight journalist, leading up to her acclaimed interview with Prince Andrew.'
A press released added: 'A Very Royal Scandal follows the action of Emily and Prince Andrew in the lead-up to the interview, the ground-breaking event itself and the many questions left in its wake that would change their lives forever.'
The first episode sees Prince Andrew attempt to declare his innocence as he finds himself at the centre of an international scandal while Newsnight presenter, Emily, does everything within her power to secure an interview with him.
The second instalment features the interview but the meeting takes various twists and turns that neither Emily, nor the Newsnight team, could have expected.
Finally, in the third episode Prince Andrew is left to navigate the fallout for himself, his family, and the Royal firm as Emily considers her reputation and the future of her career.
The three part series will premiere on 19 September exclusively on Prime Video in the UK, US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
It comes just five months after rival streaming platform Netflix 's version, entitled Scoop, which was out on April 5 and starred Gillian Anderson and Rufus Sewell
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