Brody and Thompson are both making their Broadway debuts in the play, based on a real story about a man wrongfully held on death row
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NEED TO KNOW
- Tessa Thompson praised her The Fear of 13 costar Adrien Brody as a “tremendous actor” and a “deeply kind” person
- The Broadway play is based on the true story of Nick Yarris, who was wrongfully incarcerated on death row for 22 years
- Kim Kardashian joined the production as a producer, citing her commitment to criminal justice reform
Tessa Thompson has nothing but praise for her "deeply kind" costar Adrien Brody.
During the opening night of their new Broadway play, The Fear of 13, at the James Earl Jones Theatre in New York City on April 15, Thompson, 42, shared what it was like working with Brody, 53, in an exclusive interview with PEOPLE.
"It's great," Thompson said. "I adore him. He's wonderful in this play. He's a tremendous actor, he's deeply kind."
Credit: Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic
"I feel like I've known him — maybe it's just you rehearse so much and you get so close — but it feels like I've known him for ages at this point. But it feels like it's kind of only the beginning for us, which I'm grateful for," she added.
Thompson and Brody are both making their Broadway debuts in the play. Written by Lindsey Ferrentino, it is based on the documentary of the same name about Nick Yarris, a man who was wrongfully incarcerated on death row for 22 years.
Ferrentino, 38, told PEOPLE she approached Brody to play Nick and "pushed the play on him very hard to try to convince him to do theatre."
She said she "can't say enough good things about what it is like to work with [Brody] and write for him."
While Brody initially found the experience "intimidating," he feels "so grateful" for the work and the opportunity to bond with the community around him on the project.
He received an Olivier nomination for the play's run in London before it transferred to Broadway. While Thompson wasn't part of the London cast, the two have since developed a close bond and even celebrated Brody's recent birthday together.
Credit: Emilio Madrid
"I did a performance, but Tessa and the gang hosted a little get-together afterwards, which was very sweet," Brody told PEOPLE about how he spent his birthday on April 14. "I'm very grateful to be doing what I love on that day, and you know it's a big, big moment in my life. I'm amazed — we're here on Broadway. It's pretty exciting."
Thompson plays Jacki Miles, a volunteer on death row who falls in love with Nick. The character of Jacki was modeled after a real volunteer whom Yarris knew, but her name and details were changed, according to The New York Times.
"I knew I wanted to do a play and I especially knew I wanted to do a new play," Thompson told PEOPLE. "I think there's so many incredible revivals, but the idea of working on something new and fresh and bringing it to audiences. And generally, I think so much about why we tell the stories that we tell and what they're good for and I think stories have the power to really change hearts and minds."
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She added, "I think our carceral system in this country and our criminal justice system is something that needs a lot of reform and look at. And there's so many different avenues to tell that story, and I thought to be able to do that through a piece of work of theater that is both a true story, but also so inventive in terms of the way that Lindsey Ferrentino has built the world out. I just thought it was such an extraordinary opportunity."
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The real-life Yarris was eventually exonerated through DNA evidence and released in 2004, after being held for a rape and murder he did not commit. He went on to write a memoir, Seven Days to Live, and worked with Ferrentino for a first-hand account of his story for the play.
Moved by the story, Kim Kardashian recently announced in her Instagram Stories on April 13 that she had joined the production as a producer.
"Criminal justice reform has been a deeply personal mission of mine. I've seen firsthand how the system can fail, and I've committed myself to fighting for those who have been silenced," Kardashian, 45, said. "That's why I am so proud to join the producing team of The Fear of 13 on Broadway."
The Fear of 13 is playing at the James Earl Jones Theatre through July 12.
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