The clam after the glam. Emma Laird turned up in tiny Scots village (2025)

She has spent much of the past few months travelling the world promoting Oscar-winning film The Brutalist as well as her other filming commitments.

However, actress Emma Laird ditched the glitz and glam of the red carpet when she popped up in the tiny village of Luss

The unexpected sojourn came a matter of days after her co-star Adrien Brody picked up the Oscar for Best Actor with the film also taking home the coveted gongs for Best Cinematography and Best Film Score.

In a photo posted on her Instagram reel recently, the star posed in front of the ‘Discover Luss’ tourist sign while wearing a blue hooded jumper, a red woollen hat and a fur-lined coat.

A subsequent image then made a jokey comparison between her surname and a section on the sign discussing a ‘local laird’ in reference to Scotland’s landed gentry.

Laird captioned the photo, which she posted on March 22, with the brief message: ‘Having lots of fun.’

Eight days later, the actress suggested she had stayed on in Scotland, sharing a photo taken at the entrance to the so-called ‘Hidden Lane’ arts space in Glasgow.

However, a possible reason for Laird’s trip emerged when the BBC this month announced she will star in a new drama called Mint – filmed in Glasgow.

The eight-part television series is described as ‘a darkly comic and unconventional drama about a crime family’s inner life’.

Laird will play the central character Shannon - the daughter of the area’s dominant crime family.

Meanwhile Scots actress Laura Fraser will play her mother Cat while Sam Riley takes on the role of her father Dylan.

Laird’s new role in Mint will see her based in Glasgow for extended periods.

As such, it will be a departure from the more glamorous locations she has enjoyed recently.

For example, in September of last year Laird and her co-stars from The Brutalist attended the film’s world premiere at the 81st Venice International Film Festival.

At the time, she gushed: ‘I am blown away and overwhelmed and so honoured to work with these people.’

A week later she jetted to the States to promote the film at the New York Film Festival, walking the red carpet in a silver Louis Vuitton beaded dress and black leather knee-high boots by the fashion house.

Last month (Mar), Laird attended the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival in Austin, Texas, to promote drama Satisfaction alongside the film’s writer-director Alex Burunova.

The movie itself had also required weeks of filming in another sun-drenched location - the idyllic island of Antiparos, in Greece.

In 2023, 26-year-old Laird made headlines after she was spotted in a clinch with ex-Doctor Who star Matt Smith, 42.

Laird’s star has been on the rise, having landed parts in the Apple TV+ series The Crowded Room, and in Kenneth Branagh’s A Haunting In Venice, her feature film debut.

The former model first came to prominence as an actress in American TV drama Mayor Of Kingstown, where she played the key role of an escort employed by the Russian mafia.

It was previously rumoured that she had been in a relationship with Taylor Swift’s ex Joe Alwyn, after filming the The Brutalist with him in Hungary.

On Instagram, she posted a picture of the actor on a scooter during a night out, along with a caption that read: ‘Moments in March,’ accompanied by a red heart emoji.

Glasgow

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