Mitchell Robertson on Finding Niall's Quiet Strength in Half Man

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For Mitchell Robertson, the role of Niall in HBO Max's Half Man, a role he shares in the series with actor Jamie Bell, began with something much quieter.

"The gentleness," he says, was the very first thing he connected to.

That instinct became the foundation for a performance that gradually reveals the character. Across the series, Niall spends much of his life observing rather than speaking, carrying the weight of a truth he doesn't yet know how to confront, while navigating an increasingly complicated relationship with his older brother figure, Reuben.

While Niall experiences fear, frustration, anger and heartbreak throughout the series, Robertson never viewed those emotions as defining characteristics. Instead, he always returned to the quiet empathy he found in the audition pages.

"I think it's just such a core part of who he was," Robertson explains. "It gave me a basis to shape everything around."

That foundation also became essential in understanding Niall's complicated relationship with Reuben. Rather than viewing his emotional contradictions as separate traits, Robertson saw them as different expressions of the same person.

"We're all capable of being quiet or confident or angry or kind," he says. "It's essentially being human."

Set during the late 1980s and early 1990s, Half Man places Niall in a world where even exploring his own identity feels dangerous. Robertson says he deliberately avoided approaching the role simply through the lens of sexuality.

"I didn't try at any point to play the sexuality of the character," he explains. "It was about playing someone who was concealing that truth and what carrying something like that does to a person."

For Robertson, the burden wasn't simply fear of other people's reactions. It was also the absence of space to even begin discovering who Niall truly was.

"It's not even so much about what would happen if Niall said he thought he was gay," Robertson says. "There just isn't enough room for him to properly explore who he is."

That internal conflict became something Robertson expressed physically as much as emotionally.

"When someone carries something, the body holds onto it," he explains. "There was a tightness in his shoulders, his neck just making sure that was always present."

The physical transformation proved so immersive that Robertson admits it lingered long after filming wrapped.

"It took a wee while for me to shake it off."

Much of Half Man revolves around Niall's relationship with Reuben, played by Stuart Campbell, and Robertson was fascinated by how quickly that dynamic shifts throughout the series.

"Reuben is both the protector and the oppressor," he says.

Depending on the scene, Reuben offers Niall safety, intimidation, validation, and fear, sometimes all within the same conversation.

Rather than approaching the relationship with one fixed dynamic, Robertson and Campbell spent their rehearsal period examining every scene together breaking down each emotional shift.

"We went through every single scene together," Robertson recalls. "We'd read them, talk about why the characters were doing what they were doing, look at where the shifts happened."

That preparation allowed both actors to carefully map how power moves back and forth between the two characters throughout the series.

"There are points where Niall needs Reuben more than Reuben needs Niall," Robertson says. "Then that completely flips."

Away from the screen, Robertson has also been building his own creative home through Jinty House, a production company dedicated to telling working-class stories while collaborating with filmmakers, writers, musicians and poets. This project allows him to explore creative avenues beyond acting alone.

"I do feel like more than an actor," Robertson says. "I have more to offer than that."

Growing up working-class remains central to the stories he hopes to tell.

"It's important to wave that flag," he says. "It's hard to navigate a life and career in this space not just financially, but socially and culturally."

Whether producing short films, collaborating with fellow artists or developing original projects, Jinty House has become an extension of the same thoughtful curiosity Robertson brings to his performances.

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