Australian actor Eric Bana plays American con artist and sociopath John Meehan in Netflix's true-crime series Dirty John. And the happily married star, 50, found his portrayal of the complex character both 'uncomfortable and interesting'. Speaking to Daily Mail Australia on Thursday, Eric said: 'It does have an effect. You could go away feeling too much like John at the end of the day.' Scroll down for video EXCLUSIVE 'I'd come home and not want to make eye contact': Eric Bana revealed how playing a sociopath in Netflix's Dirty John was both 'uncomfortable and interesting' Dirty John, starring Eric and American actress Connie Britton, is an eight-part true crime anthology series based on the Los Angeles Times podcast of the same name. While Eric says he has become 'pretty good at switching off' over his more than two decades in the industry, he admits there are definitely certain characters that leave an impact on him while he's shooting. 'There is part of your brain that is always - because you have to - creatively thinking about the character and the work you have tomorrow. You are definitively dedicating a good part of your brain to your character and your character's thought processes. It makes sense that it's going to be a little uncomfortable.' Based on a true story! Dirty John, starring Eric and American actress Connie Britton, is an eight-part true crime anthology series based on the Los Angeles Times podcast of the same name about John Meehan (LEFT) and Debra Newell (RIGHT) 'You could go away feeling too much like John at the end of the day': While Eric says he has become 'pretty good at switching off' over his more than two decades in the industry, he admits the characters left an impact on him while shooting (Pictured in Dirty John with co-star Connie Britton) Eric, who has been married to Rebecca Gleeson since 1997, claimed coming home from set on the intense docu-series was hard at times. 'It's not something that manifests itself in outward behavior, but most definitely there are times I'd come home from work and just be like "don't look at that person". I didn't want to make eye contact,' Eric said, explaining he was still thinking about the character. 'I walked around feeling guilty most of the time because of the effect that he (John) has and his behaviour. ' 'There are times I'd come home from work and just be like "don't look at that person"': Eric, who is happily married to Rebecca Gleeson (LEFT), claimed he often 'walked around feeling guilty' 'Getting into the psychology of a that (sociopath con artist), it was very interesting': Eric wanted to provide a 'convincing portrayal' of men like John and hoped it would spark conversation about spotting red flags in other relationships Preparing for the role, Eric said he drew on his past work and concentrated on traits specific to John's conman behaviours. 'Getting into the psychology of a that (sociopath con artist), it was very interesting. I just tried to come up with a version of John that spoke to that character type. It was about convincingly portraying what these types of men are like,' Eric explained. Eric is aware that some viewers will be triggered by the eight-part series, but hopes it can insight conversations and help fans spot red flags in unhealthy relationships. 'Hopefully there are a few John Meehans around who are being caught out a lot earlier they they would be!' Dirty John is now available on Netflix Australia<doc-sep>Here's a quick look at the best TV and movies on offer this week including James Cameron and Robert Rodriguez's blockbuster manga adaptation and Steve Buscemi returns to TV in a surreal comedy. Here's a quick look at the best TV and movies on offer this week including James Cameron and Robert Rodriguez's blockbuster manga adaptation and Steve Buscemi returns to TV in... The story of John “Dirty John” Meehan captivated millions of people around the world when Los Angeles Times reporter Christopher Goffard launched its popular podcast in 2017. The spine-chilling tale of a charismatic conman who captured the heart of a wealthy Californian woman was great storytelling — exactly the kind of material that lends itself to a TV miniseries. Dirty John, the eight-part dramatisation of it, launches on Netflix today after its original debut in the US late last year. In the TV version, Eric Bana plays Meehan, who meets Debra Newell (Connie Britton) through an online dating service. She’s immediately smitten by this kind man who claims to be a doctor. They start a whirlwind romance but her daughters are far from convinced of his supposed good intentions. It’s a seductive albeit unsettling series that hooks you into its world, laced with the melodrama of the likes of Desperate Housewives or a Shonda Rhimes show. The performances from Bana and Britton are what keeps it grounded — and the knowledge those bonkers things really happened. To promote its launch on Netflix in Australia, Bana sat down with news.com.au to shoot the breeze about playing a sociopath, why we’re drawn to dark stories and the red flags people should look out for in the dating world. Is it perverse or a cautionary tale to launch Dirty John, a show about how online dating can go so wrong, on Valentines’ Day? All of the above. I didn’t choose the timing, you’ll have to speak to Netflix about that but I thought it was quite genius! It’s most definitely a cautionary tale and I think there’s plenty of warnings and lessons in it. Tell me about your decision to not meet Debra Newell or her family until after the production wrapped. I had a head start on my prep so by the time I got to California to start shooting, my version of John Meehan was pretty fully formed. Connie had already established a relationship with Debra and I wanted to keep the two separate. Maybe it was something instinctual; I felt I didn’t want to tap into Debra’s stuff and or into what Connie’s process was. I wanted to keep the two things separate. When you’re playing a real person, at a certain stage you need to claim a certain ownership and you want to make decisions for that character creatively and I felt like it was more important for me and director Jeff Reiner and head writer Alexandra Cunningham to talk about those things. And I felt I had more than enough information and I didn’t want to get derailed. What are the sensitivities around playing someone whose victims aren’t only around, but for them everything that happened was only two or three years ago? Where you’re aware of those sensitivities is your confidence in the production — that you’re making a good project. So if you feel like the subject matter is going to be exploited or sensationalist then it’s a different thing. But from the get-go, I felt very confident in the team. This is Debra’s story — John happens to her, she’s our moral compass, she’s where the sympathy sits, she’s where the understanding and empathy sits, not with my character. My job is to portray this terrible person as believably as possible. Because if you don’t buy John, it’s harder to excuse and understand Debra’s behaviour. Other actors who have played bad guys have said that to play a villain, they also have to believe this person is the hero of their own story. Did you think about John that way, that maybe he didn’t see himself as the bad guy? I don’t know if that was the case with John. I think he was aware that he was a pretty bad person. It wasn’t like he was on some kind of crusade, he wasn’t defending any honourable code, he was just a conman and a swindler. Who knows what his real reasons for doing this stuff were. I think he’s someone who could’ve been in therapy in 20 years and he wouldn’t get to the bottom of it. So I was like, “I’m not getting to the bottom of that, I’ll try, I’ll get as far down as can” but I don’t think it’s absolutely essential that in every case you need to have huge empathy for the character to portray them. There are a lot of dark things going on in the world and yet people are really drawn to these true crime stories. Why do you think people respond to the darkness? I think it’s similar with horror. I did my first horror film with Scott Derrickson who’s a highly intelligent filmmaker and he knows a lot about the horror genre. He has articulated it well in the past about why we’re attracted to darkness. It has a lot to do with making our everyday life feel really good. These stories are a great counterpoint and we can feel better about ourselves. I think with this story, sometimes people feel like they’re better than that — “I wouldn’t ever get in this position, I would be a better judge of character” or “I’m a better person than that person on that reality TV show, I would be able to cook better than that person”. I think intrinsically people like to feel better about themselves and I think sometimes with the tales out there, particularly this one, that’s prompted a lot of that. There are people who find it hard to fathom that Debra stays as long as she does. We’re thankful to Debra that one of the reasons she wanted to tell the story was that she felt that it could do some good and get women talking among themselves, and women looking out for each other in terms of potentially dangerous partners. You met Debra and the other real-life counterparts eventually? It was quite brief. She came up to me and said “I don’t know whether to hug you or slap you” because she’d seen the whole season. The reaction from Terra the daughter was more interesting because she was genuinely still suffering from trauma. We met each other in the make-up trailer — she came in and did a background extra thing in the last week of production — and was quite wary of meeting me. One of the advantages of not playing someone from the same country was the minute I started talking she was like, “You don’t sound like him, it’s OK’. And I got to meet some of the other family members. I got to meet John’s real daughters and I got to meet Tonia, his ex-wife. It was really interesting, especially to meet his daughters actually — one who never knew him at all and one has very little memory of him. They were very sweet, I really felt for them. Now that you’ve played a sociopath, what are some of the people should look out for? I have a list. The number one thing for me, based on my experiences, is intricate backstories that can’t be substantiated or corroborated in the present by anyone. They’re quite often, conveniently, from another city, and have parents who, quite often, have died. So strangers who are lonely? Yeah, but let’s get this straight, I’m talking about lying sociopaths! Not people who happened to have, by unfortunate circumstances, no parents and living in a different city! Just want to get that out there. But yes, they’ve fallen out with friends, fallen out with family members — a lot of weird intricate detail that holds up under cross examination but funnily enough, no one in the present who can corroborate. That’s a real red flag. A man wearing cargo shorts perhaps.<doc-sep>NETFLIX viewers have been left unable to sleep after watching Dirty John - the true story of a woman who meets a guy online who turns her life into a living hell. One fan wailed: "Dirty John is every single girl’s worst nightmare 😳." 6 Eric Bana stars as 'Dirty' John and Connie Britton as wealthy Debra Credit: Getty - Contributor Connie Britton stars as a wealthy mum-of-two who, after four failed marriages, thinks she's struck gold when she finds Eric Bana's John Meehan on a dating app. But while he seems perfect at first, it turns out he is a con man and sociopath of the highest order, with a history of seducing women then blackmailing them using their nude photos. She also finds out he spent time in jail for stalking and drugs - and has poor Connie firmly in his sights as his next victim. Chillingly, it's all based on fact - with the real John Meehan having picked up the nickname 'Dirty' because of the way he'd talk about women after having sex with them. 6 The show has been described, repeatedly, as a 'nightmare' 6 John seems perfect at first, but his terrible lies quickly emerge 6 John is a real person who preyed on women via dating apps Credit: Oxygen One tweeter wrote: "Now I can’t sleep because that can seriously happen to anyone at any time. Thanks #dirtyjohn. Someone send help 😳." Sleepless nights are far from unusual among viewers, with one posting: "My anxiety was through the roof watching the finale of Dirty John! I still can't sleep." Another explained: "Started watching Dirty John on Netflix last night...if anyone’s ever been involved with a sociopath it’s a terrifying watch." While the series has already aired last year in the US, it has only become available to UK viewers on Netflix - ironically having been released yesterday, on Valentine's Day. 6 The tale is likely to chill anyone who likes to use dating apps Credit: Getty - Contributor 6 John turns out to be a con man with a history of tricking women Credit: Getty - Contributor Most read in TV & Showbiz KIM'S NEW KRUSH The men lining up to be Kim K's next partner as Kanye ‘dates Irina Shayk’ JOSS PERFECT Jac Jossa shows off her tiny waist after weight loss in pretty summer dresses 'WE'LL SEE' Louise Redknapp revealed Jamie wanted another baby when she was on Strictly GRANDE AFFAIR Ariana dazzles in white gown as she shares private pics from secret wedding a wright treat! Mark Wright gives fans tour of new £2,400 a night home with Michelle Keegan Exclusive ARG-AIN James ‘Arg’ Argent's set to reunite with 'love of his life' ex Lydia Bright BRAVE HOLLY Gordon Ramsay's daughter reveals she was hospitalised after sexual assault PTSD ain't arth bad! Inside James Arthur’s mansion with incredible indoor pool and home studio graveside pain Ashley Cain vows to visit Azaylia's grave every day as Safiyya shows flowers BUSY MAMA Lauren Goodger has returned to work doing fillers despite being heavily pregnant Some people have already managed to watch, tweeting: "Holy heck. #DirtyJohn on @NetflixUK is brilliant. And terrifying that is based on a true story." The drama has been adapted from the podcast of the same name, which told the horrific story in six 'chapters' - racking up 10 million downloads within the first six weeks alone. Queer Eye tease they will be back on Netflix for a third series Got a story? email digishowbiz@the-sun.co.uk or call us direct on 02077824220. We pay for videos too. Click here to upload yours.<doc-sep>
Dirty John Cast: Connie Britton, Eric Bana, Julia Garner, Juno Temple, Jean Smart, Shea Whigham Director: Jeffrey Reiner Have I ever conveyed why I absolutely love true-crime? Quite simply, true-crime has more drama than narrative fiction; more chills than psycho-horror, thus, more catharsis than a classic mystery-thriller. The last one: not always though. As such, real life criminals have inspired many villains in Hollywood, and we know how much Hollywood likes harkening back to its culture of violence and insanity for creating popular content. Continuing the tradition, this week, Netflix has come out with another original, Dirty John, trying its best to satiate my growing curiosity for true-crime. To say that it has all the ingredients, aforementioned, blended together to the right proportion would be to liken Dirty John to some of the better genre series I have previously seen on Netflix, which is not the case here. But Dirty John certainly has something good going on, something nasty yet worthy. Created for television by Alexandra Cunningham (Bates Motel, Chance), Dirty John is based on the very popular podcast of the same name created by Christopher Goffard of the Los Angeles Times and Wondery in October 2017. The TV series has been produced by Los Angeles Times Studios and is directed by Jeffrey Reiner (Fargo and Homeland). Connie Britton plays the role of Debra Newell, a 50-something woman, continually judged by her two young daughters, searching for love. She is a successful interior designer, and yet, four marriages flushed down the drain, wants to settle with someone, again. Online dating has brought her closer to a pool of potential lovers, however, the connection, with each one, seems to be lost, somewhere between desperation and expensive luncheons. Maybe, she is being too hard on herself for wanting the perfect guy! Enter John Meehan (Eric Bana), a smart, charming soul, who, for once, would actually listen to Debra. Shorts and T-shirt, nothing too much but still a caring man. Debra falls in love, quick as a wink. The next steps: moving in together and getting married happen rather quickly, and against her daughters’ preference and knowledge, but who cares as long as Debra gets what she deserves. Love. As truth reveals itself, John is not what Debra thinks he is- a kind husband, a loving sweetheart. No. To be fair to her, he is all of this from the outside, but on the inside, John is a serial con artist, and Debra is just a game that he is too much invested in to not be winning at all cost. What powers this beautiful-set-up-turned-worst-nightmare are the performances of the characters, both lead and supportive. Connie is Debra. The role was carved out for her, or rather she moulds herself for this role. Debra’s fear, confusion, uncertainty, vulnerability and doubt are all rolled into Connie’s being, in front of the camera, and she materialises perfectly into the victim that she is meant to play. Nowhere is she overboard with her emotions. Subtlety is her strong suit. Bana is equally good. John was menacing by virtue of his existence and we witness that in Bana’s physiognomy. He doesn’t need to shout, threaten or break things to appear intimidating. He’d rather be smart and let things take their usual course before intervening. Pushed over the limit, he is nasty in wordplay and frightening in demeanor, which is enough to suggest the opponent maintain the distance. There are some strong character portrayals by Julia Garner as Terra Newell, Juno Temple as Veronica Newell and Jean Smart as Arlene Hart, and a delightful small appearance by Shea Whigham as William Meehan, John’s father. Arlene and William bridge Debra’s and John’s past with their present. Where they are both coming from, where they are at and to what extent can they go are tightly rolled into two episodes, connecting individual past with their folks. As for Terra and Veronica, they are the daughters that one would want, and at times not want, in every sense of the word. They complete the portrait of a happy-family-turned-unwilling-victims, with Debra in focus. Obnoxiously overbearing in meddling with Debra’s life, a little selfish that way too, but who wouldn’t want to save their mother from a sociopath and a potential killer. Reiner’s directorial strength lies in impartial retelling of the story. In separating us from the victims and perpetrator, he is hinting that we dissociate from them and look out for our own because things can go south for anyone.