SCOTTISH actress Gayle Rankin admits she would love to explore a role in her own accent - even though she has had success Stateside playing a variety of non-Scots characters. 

From her portrayal of Queen Victoria in The Greatest Showman to playing eccentric Sheila the She-wolf in Netflix wrestling drama Glow, the 30-year-old has a CV packed with roles most actors would envy - yet she still hopes to get back to her Scottish roots.

READ MORE: BBC Radio One star Arielle Free says she is a weegie and Glasgow made her streetwise

Glasgow Times:

“I am itching to get back home,” she said with a smile in her voice.

“I haven’t really worked even in my own accent which feels kind of morally confusing and like an identity crisis in some ways.

“I am very eager to explore that and get back to my roots.

“I am really proud of what work is happening at home.

“This is just my journey you know to come out to the States and do stuff here and hopefully come home and make some work there too,” she added.

READ MORE: TV star talks about new documentary Being Gail Porter

Glasgow Times:

Although she is about to become the toast of her hometown thanks to Blow the Man Down screening at the Glasgow Film Festival on Thursday, Gayle will be notably absent due to filming commitments for the final series of Glow in LA.

“I am in wrestling training right now,” she laughed.

She added: “I am going to be in LA otherwise I would have been there with bells on.

“It is such a huge honour and I grew up going to the Glasgow Film Festival and the GFT, watching incredible movies there.

“It is just so mind-blowing to imagine that I am going to be in a film that is showing there, it is really cool. I know all my family will go.”

READ MORE: The Logans talk about car raid in new BBC Scotland series

Glasgow Times:

Blow the Man Down tells the story of sisters Priscilla and Mary Beth Connolly who are doing all they can to keep their small-town family business afloat following the death of their mother. When Mary Beth goes to a bar one night and ends up in the wrong place with the wrong man, the consequences turn deadly.

Roping in Priscilla to help cover up what happened sets off a chain of events that uncover this small town’s seedy past and threatens the livelihood of the criminal element present in the community.

Described as an atmospheric New England noir, the film has been billed as one that is sure to keep you guessing until the very end.

Glasgow Times:

Gayle plays prostitute Alexis - a role she researched through watching crime documentaries - and stars alongside an impressive cast that includes Margo Martindale, June Squibb, and Annette O’Toole.

“I got to learn so much from real veterans Margo Martindale, June Squibb, and Annette O’ Toole. Just incredible, incredible actresses who I really look up to so that was really great,” she beamed.

Gayle was born in Paisley and grew up in Eaglesham where she attended Mearns Castle High School.

A graduate of the prestigious Juilliard School in New York, she has the accolade of being the first Scot to win a place there.

Currently residing in the US, she has been working on a variety of projects including a role in the HBO remake of Perry Mason opposite Matthew Rhys.

Although she admitted she can't say much about the project, she revealed: "I am really thrilled about it. I have had such an amazing time working with HBO, they are an incredible company.
"It's a reimaging and retelling of the original story of Perry Mason."

Gayle has also acted alongside some of Hollywood's elite including a role in The Meyerowitz Stories which starred Adam Sandler, Ben Stiller, Dustin Hoffman, and Emma Thompson.

Last May, she had a Cannes breakout in Mike Covino and Kyle Martin’s film The Climb, which will be distributed by Sony Pictures Classics later this year after receiving rave reviews out of the festival circuit this past year. 

But it is filming the final series of Glow that has consumed her schedule at the moment - and it is an ending which is bittersweet.

“I didn’t know how I was going to feel until we started training again,” she said

She added:” Being in the ring with the girls and reconnecting with this skill that we have all learned over four years together and how much our lives have changed, it’s very personal and very emotional.

“I feel both so proud and so excited and also so sad that it's going to be over but also know that it will always live with me and be such a huge part of my life.”

Glasgow Times:

Once filming has finished, Gayle hopes she can eye up more opportunities closer to home.

She said: “I do miss home. I mean my whole family is in Scotland.

“It is interesting I just spent a little time in London recently because I think it would be important for me to explore the possibility of working in the UK.

“I haven’t really and I am excited about that prospect.”

She added: “I am going to finish Glow up and I am really excited about starting a new chapter.

“ I am very proud to be Scottish and definitely want to make work there.”

For tickets to the screenings of Blow The Man Down click here