The director of the recently-released David Beckham documentary series revealed that he had a therapeutic role during the filming, akin to being a counselor to the Manchester United legend.
In the making of the four-part series, filmmaker and actor Fisher Stevens conducted a total of 10 interviews with Beckham, spanning 30 hours of conversation. The Succession star also had candid discussions with Beckham’s wife, Victoria, and delved into a wide range of topics.
Beckham opened up about the early stages of his relationship with the Spice Girl, the backlash he faced after being sent off in the 1998 World Cup match against Argentina, and the occasionally strained dynamics with Sir Alex Ferguson.
These in-depth conversations allowed Fisher to develop a deep understanding of the couple, leading to some surprising revelations that challenged their public personas.
Fisher was particularly struck by David’s candidness and found Victoria to be much warmer and more personable than her ‘Posh Spice’ image would suggest.
According to Stevens, “[Victoria] has a reputation of being kind of tough and sour. She was never like that with me,”
Stevens told the Independent. “Funny, witty, fast. Unlike David, she was much more used to being reflective.”
“David never had therapy. I felt at times like I was his therapist. Victoria, as she admits in the film, has had therapy, and was much more used to self-reflection.”
In the meantime, David Beckham has drawn from his own life experiences to support Harry Maguire, the current England and Manchester United player, who has faced significant abuse in recent years.
Beckham reached out to Maguire to offer his encouragement, understanding the challenges Maguire has faced.
In Maguire’s own words, “I actually spoke with David about three weeks ago, after the Scotland game [where he was targeted by Scotland fans].”
“He got in touch with me, so it was really nice of him and I really appreciated that. It meant everything. I’ve spoken throughout my career about David Beckham being someone I looked up to and watched when I was a young boy.”
“Unfortunately, I didn’t end up on the right wing scoring and assisting as many goals as he has. But he was a big role model when I was growing up. It shows how classy he is to reach out to me and to message me. It was something I really appreciated. It was touching really.”
