Josh Gad, who stars in the big screen adaption of Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl, has said he was "mesmerised" by the world the Irish author had created.
Kenneth Branagh directs this family-friendly fantasy which has been adapted from Eoin Colfer's bestselling teen novels.
Young Irish actor Ferdia Shaw stars as the title character, a rebellious kid who comes from a long line of criminal masterminds, and introduces a hidden underground world of very powerful law-enforcing fairies.
Speaking to RTÉ’s Stephen Byrne, Gad, who plays the bearded and dirty Mulch Diggums, admitted he hadn’t read any of the Artemis Fowl books before he joined the cast.
However, once he got started, he said he flew through the books at a "great pace" because he was "just mesmerised" by Colfer’s writing.
He said: "It felt like the first time I read JK Rowling or George R. R. Martin. I was just mesmerised.
"I read it at such a great pace because it was so fascinating to see the anthesis of Harry Potter. A 12-year-old criminal mastermind that is so brilliant he manages to outsmart every adult in the story and the entire underworld of magical creatures. It felt so fresh."
Check out the interview in full below:
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Artemis Fowl is available to stream on DIsney+ from Friday, June 12
