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LOS ANGELES, March 20 (UPI) -- Patricia Allison said her character in Paradise, premiering Thursday on Tubi, is one she admires for her inner strength. Allison, 29, plays Ella, a young woman investigating the murder of her policeman father (Bashir Salahuddin).
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"She's stronger than I am," Allison told UPI in a recent Zoom interview. "She's a fighter."
Ella carries her father's gun, which comes in handy when the henchmen of drug dealers try to stop her from learning the truth. But, Allison said, it's Ella's attitude that makes her formidable.
"You don't need to be big to be strong," Allison said. "Really. that was quite empowering, as a tiny little person to play somebody who's so unafraid."
Allison said she is 5-foot-2, but can appear larger "depending on how big I wear my hair."
Allison trained to wield Ella's Colt Navy Revolver, beginning with hand exercises and weight training before she learned to fire it. She shared the outcomes of squeezing a hand grip and holding a 5-pound weight outstretched, slightly heavier than the actual gun.
"The blisters I got on my hands were red, raw, and I have never felt like my thumbs had strength like they did from just cocking," Allison said.
Learning from firearms trainer Luke LaFontaine, she said she grew to appreciate Ella's fondness for guns.
"She loves the mechanics of them and how to fix, mend and even dismantle them," Allison said. "She has that kind of genius brain."
By the time Allison fired the real pistol, she impressed herself.
"I found that I was a surprisingly good shot," she said. "I managed to get a bullseye quite a few times."
Allison said safety was the primary focus of the armorers, stunt coordinators and filmmakers. She rehearsed her movements with director Max Isaacson, her co-stars and the camera crew.
"Eight big muscly guys try to attack me, me dodging them and knowing when the camera is going to be swinging in the right place," Allison said. "You don't want to be coming up at the wrong time and having an accident."
Though she learned to fire the real gun before filming, Allison said she used a prop on camera. That meant she had to recreate the recoil of the pistol in her performance.
"Your body gets a little bit terrified of that kickback," Allison said. "You find your arm moves up or to the side. So, it was always about catching those moments and resetting."
Though only on screen since 2019, Allison has been acting on stage in England since she was 10. She went to drama school at East 15 Acting School, which is part of Essex University.
Her screen work began in 2019 with the role of Margueritte in a BBC miniseries of Les Miserables and a series regular role in the Netflix show, Sex Education.
In Sex Education, Allison played Ola, initially a love interest for the main character, who then comes out and has a relationship with another woman.
Allison said she continues to meet fans of Sex Education, even though her role concluded in 2021.
Those fans "tell me how much that show has impacted them in a very specific way or how much they love my character, Ola, on that show," she said.
Allison also branched out into directing recently with the short film, A Day Like Tonight, in which she also appears. She said stepping behind the camera makes her a better actor.
"I understand the pressure of being a director now," Allison said. "It goes hand in hand."
As for acting roles, Allison said she would like to do more action movies, adding that she admires Tom Cruise for pushing the boundaries of physical performance with his Mission: Impossible stunts.
"The more stuff you learn to do, the more fun, maybe, you'll have doing your job," she said.
