Jack Lowden's cheeky response about 'dating co-stars' during a Netflix 'respect workshop' is revealed after he cracked a joke about marrying Saoirse Ronan

Jack Lowden had little respect for Netflix's 'respect workshop' on the set of the streamer's upcoming Pride and Prejudice adaptation.

The Mr Darcy actor, 36, was required to complete the workshop with his castmates before shooting, but he had a brusque, Darcy-esque response when asked about romantic relationships on set.

In an extract from her on-set diary, shared with British Vogue, screenwriter Dolly Alderton recalled how Lowden took part in 'Regency boot camp followed by Netflix’s “respect workshop”'. 

She later texted actor Jamie Demetriou, who plays Mr Collins, for a debrief who told her 'the highlight was Jack being asked if it’s OK to date fellow actors from set.'

The actor, married to four-time Oscar nominee Saoirse Ronan, 32, replied: 'I f**kin’ hope so ’cos I married one.'

Alderton's diary from set also includes tidbits about Lowden's initial struggles to 'get under the skin of Darcy'.

'Darcy really is such a hard part in so many ways. So unknowable and brooding for such a hefty portion of the story,' Alderton admits. 'Mostly mute, deep-in-thought acting for Jack this first month of filming.'

She recalls one scene which she later watched back and 'I hear him say, "I've got nothing going on behind my eyes, I should have never taken this job," as he is directed to get in and out of a carriage for the 100th time.'

During the six month shoot Lowden also unleashed some of his 'Scottish pragmatism'. Alderton recalls during his first kissing scene with Emma Corrin, who plays Elizabeth Bennet, 'there was a lot of discussion about whether they would have kissed in this scene.'

'As my historical advisor Dr Fiona Stafford once sagely said to me during scripting, “They would have had all the same desires as us.” Jack and Emma ultimately decide it is the right moment for Darcy and Lizzy to kiss.'

'“They’d be gantin’ for it,” Jack says. I laugh. “Sorry,” he says. “The Irish are romantics, the Scottish are pragmatic.”'

Lowden and his wife Ronan first met on the set of the historical drama Mary Queen of Scots in 2018, where they played husband and wife (Mary Stuart and Lord Darnley).

They were married in July 2024 and had their first child, whose gender and name have not been shared, last September.

The couple could be sharing the screen once again if Ronan has her way. She recently revealed her dream role would be playing a Bond villain, and with her husband one of the favourites to take over as 007, they could be the perfect pairing. 

'I want to go dark,' Ronan told Empire magazine. 'I said that I wanted to be a Bond villain, and I'm dead serious.

'I think it would be really interesting, having a young, female villain. Especially for girls and women, to see someone who can just take all that pent-up anger and direct it somewhere.'

Amazon MGM Studios struck a deal with longtime franchise stewards Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson to take full control of Ian Fleming's iconic spy franchise last year.

The studio is said to be casting the next instalment at the moment, with an announcement expected this autumn. Filming could then start at the turn of the year.

Ronan has previously backed her Slow Horses star husband for the 007 role. When she co-hosted a 2024 BBC Radio 2 show with Scottish DJ Edith Bowman, Edith brought up her belief that Lowden would be a great choice for the iconic role, adding that she had been making a similar argument for years.

In response, Ronan said: ‘I’m going to start counting how many times you plug him for Bond on the radio.’

When Bowman replied she had been doing so for six years, Ronan responded: ‘Hasn’t happened yet though,’ before adding: ‘There’s time, there’s time’.