James McAvoy has opened up about an upsetting experience at the beginning of his acting career, claiming that a co-star tried to intimidate him while filming the acclaimed war miniseries Band of Brothers.

The Scottish actor, now 47, made an appearance in the 2001 HBO miniseries, which marked an early step toward the international success he would later achieve through major Hollywood roles. However, his time on the production was not entirely positive.

Speaking with Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live, McAvoy revisited a photograph featuring several members of the show’s cast and recalled an uncomfortable incident from his first day on set.

The actor explained that he was 22 years old and fresh out of acting school when he joined a crowded scene set in a bar. Although many of the performers had already spent months working on the series, McAvoy said his character was given considerably more dialogue than some of his longer-serving castmates.

According to McAvoy, that difference appeared to create resentment among the established actors.

He explained that some performers had spent nine or 10 months on the production only to receive a single line in an episode, sometimes waiting until several episodes later to speak again. By comparison, his character had a substantial storyline and numerous lines despite appearing in just one episode.

McAvoy alleged that one actor in the photograph decided to target him because of the disparity.

He recalled being bullied on what he described as his first day as a professional actor after leaving acting school. The situation reportedly escalated when the unnamed performer encouraged other cast members to join in.

McAvoy claimed that the actor gathered his friends, who stood around pointing at him and laughing for approximately three minutes.

The actor did not publicly identify the person he accused of bullying him. However, he specifically ruled out David Schwimmer when discussing the incident.

McAvoy also highlighted two colleagues who made him feel welcome during the experience. He said Dexter Fletcher and Robin Laing took him aside and encouraged him to spend time with them instead.

His appearance on Cohen’s show brought the early-career memory back into focus as he looked through the Band of Brothers photograph and tried to identify the people pictured.

In the miniseries, McAvoy portrayed Private First Class James W. Miller, a real-life American soldier whose story featured prominently in the episode before his death in combat. Miller was 20 years old when he was killed by an enemy shell in the Netherlands on September 20, 1944.

McAvoy’s recollection offers a glimpse into a difficult moment from the early days of a career that would eventually make him one of Britain’s best-known actors. While he shared details of the alleged incident, he left the identity of the co-star he accused unnamed.

Source: Compiled from various sources.