// BBC ENTERTAINMENT & ARTS — MODA & SOCIETÀ
'I watched 800 films in Covid, now I direct them'
Benjamin Williams has loved films since he was a child
During the coronavirus lockdown in 2020, Benjamin Williams, a lifelong film fan, watched 800 films.
"I just found the time. Plus, it was Covid - I was bored," said the now 28-year-old, looking back.
He started out with dreams of becoming an animator, inspired by films like Avatar: The Last Airbender and Pokemon, before going on to study film at Hereford Sixth Form College, which "opened a whole world" for him.
Williams, from Malvern, has now directed his own film and worked with the likes of Marvel and, most recently, was an assistant director on Apple TV's hit series, Slow Horses, starring award-winners Sir Gary Oldman and Dame Kristin Scott Thomas.
"I have signed many NDAs [non-disclosure agreements] over the years, and obviously, Slow Horses has been one of them.
"I can't say anything about it - obviously the cast and crew are amazing - it's a very wonderful show to work on.
"That's probably the one I've learnt the most on, because that's the one I've spent the most amount of time on," he said.
Williams says Sir Gary Oldman is a "pretty cool dude"
The spy thriller series is based on the best-selling novel Slow Horses by Mick Herron and premiered in 2022, with a seventh season set for release in 2027.