‘I love erotic thrillers, but this so isn’t one’: Damian Hurley on directing his mother, Elizabeth, in a ‘sensual mystery’. What took him so long? He should have pulled his finger out like Damian Hurley, son of the model and actor Elizabeth Hurley, who was just 20 when he called “Action!” on his own debut, Strictly Confidential.
His mother has starred in all his films. In one of his childhood shorts, she played a shady detective. In another, she was a serial killer, with Grant donning a bald cap as a corrupt judge. “Hugh was incredibly good,” enthuses Hurley in the manner of a studio mogul spotting a future star. He believes his mother, though, is one of the all-time greats. “She’s fearless. She brings a sensuality to the screen that not many can, and she’s devoid of self-consciousness.
In the light of what he has lost, it seems almost callous to steer Hurley on to the subject of privilege. But what I want to know is whether he and, say, the Beckham brood sit around bemoaning the lot of the nepo baby. “There is certainlya club where we all lament our situation,” he says cheerfully. “I’ve never met a child of someone successful who objects to the term. I’m actually proud of it. I find it quite cool.