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Ewan McGregor recently rewatched the film "Trainspotting"« and praised its enduring vitality and artistic influence.
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McGregor reflected on the film's cultural significance as a quintessentially British and Scottish success of the 1990s.
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Restored 4K version film "Trainspotting"« was released in select theaters on June 5, 2026, to commemorate the film's 30th anniversary.
Ewan McGregor is still very proud of his participation in movie "Trainspotting"« , which brought him international fame at the age of 20.
Speaking to PEOPLE ahead of the film's 4K re-release to mark its 30th anniversary, McGregor revealed that he rewatched the film "very recently.".
«"It was showing somewhere, and I sat down and watched it, and I saw it on the big screen. I hadn't seen it for many, many years," says the 55-year-old actor. "And then I wrote to Danny [Boyle], and I don't talk to him very often, so it was a rare occasion, but I wrote to him just to tell him what a fantastic film it was.".
McGregor says that even decades later he was "blown away by how good the movie was.".
«A lot of the things I would have made 30, 25 or 20 years ago might be outdated, or what was considered relevant then might not be relevant now in terms of cinematic techniques, but «On the needle» »It feels the same as it did back then,« he adds. »It feels like the film hasn’t lost any of its vitality.”.
Ewan McGregor in Trainspotting. Photo: Figment/Noel Gay/Channel 4/Kobal/Shutterstock
Directed by Boyle, the film is based on Irvine Welsh's cult bestseller of the same name and stars McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller, Kevin McKidd, Robert Carlyle and Kelly Macdonald. «On the needle» tells the story of Mark Renton, played by McGregor, a man struggling with heroin addiction and trying to kick the habit despite being drawn into Edinburgh's drug scene with his friends.
Recently, rewatching the 1996 project, McGregor says, "I just loved it.".
«"I think the characters are absolutely amazing, and there's something so perfect about the whole thing. The music, the lyrics, the cast, Brian [Tufano's] cinematography. Danny's an artist, he's trying to find a story," McGregor says. "He approaches it in a way that's almost lost now—where actors explore a scene, feel it, and then figure out how to shoot it.".
Speaking about working with Boyle, the actor from "« Moulin Rouge» says the director "set the bar very high for me, showing me what to expect artistically from an actor's work with a director and from character exploration through scenes and narrative.".
«"I'm amazed that I got the opportunity to do that with him so early in my career," McGregor adds.
McGregor was keenly aware that the film he and Boyle were working on was deeply British, but also resonated across the Atlantic.
«"It was an incredibly important moment in British history. It was gratifying that the film was an international success. We didn't make it to please America. We made it a British film, and a truly Scottish one," he says. "We didn't shy away from the accents, the violence, the characters, the humor that's so characteristic of Scotland, so characteristic of Britain—truly Scottish—in it.".
«"The fact that we did it meant that in Britain it belonged to us. It was a hit, but it was our hit," he adds.
He notes that the film came out at a time when British culture was booming, thanks to the popularity of bands like Oasis, Blur, Pulp and The Verve – and they "became the film version of that.".
Ewan McGregor in Trainspotting. Photo: Liam Longman/Figment/Noel Gay/Channel 4/Kobal/Shutterstock
«At the time, Johnny Miller and I were living with Jude Law. We were going out like we were the Rolling Stones or something. We’d go into clubs, and it was like we were a band; people would go crazy, and it was crazy that that was happening to us,» he shares. «It was amazing for a while. And then we had to come to terms with it for many years, I guess, with the fact that when people come up to me and call me «Rent Boy» or «Rents» or… I love it because I know they were there and they were part of that time.».
Despite a long and storied career in which he is known for a variety of projects, McGregor says, «When someone mentions «On the needle» , »It’s nice, it’s unusual.”.
Before signing on for the project, the actor also worked with director Boyle and cinematographer Tufano on the film «Shallow Grave» 1994. McGregor first attracted critical attention in the UK with his role in this thriller, so he felt "really confident" signing on for another project and "never doubted" it would be a success. «"On the needle.".
«"I also loved Danny very much and trusted him implicitly," he tells PEOPLE. "So I was confident—I don't know if I could have imagined it would lead to this outcome, but at the same time, I never doubted it would be a great movie.".
To mark the anniversary, the film, which turned 30 on June 5, was released in select theaters in a 4K restoration supervised by Boyle.
McGregor admits the anniversary brings up "quite a bit of emotion" for him.
«"We were all so young when we did this, and I see this absolute dedication. My two daughters are now actresses, too. And I see in them the same passion I remember from my early twenties, and I still love what I do, but I'm sure it's not the same anymore. Everything must have changed and matured along with me," McGregor shares.
Read the original article on People.