California Schemin' stars were 'cooked' filming concert scenes repeatedly

Samuel Bottomley and Séamus McLean Ross were "cooked" filming their performance scenes over and over again for California Schemin'.

In the biographical comedy-drama, directed by James McAvoy, the actors portray the real Scottish rap duo Silibil N'Brains, who landed a record deal after pretending to be from California.

As they become more successful over the course of the film, the crowds they perform to get bigger and bigger, culminating in a show-stopping set at the Barrowlands in Glasgow, Scotland.

Reflecting on shooting the performances, Bottomley admitted to Cover Media that they "underestimated" how demanding they'd be.

"We were cooked. I had a wig on. I complained every day about that wig... It was red hot," the How to Have Sex star said.

"It was unreal. We were so cooked though," Ross continued. "I was on Lucozade tablets... We were sat with fans in the Barrowlands like sweating - he with his wig on, I was like dying, I was also ill."

"And we had to do it 18 more times because there's all the different camera angles. Yeah, it was mental, mate," he added, to which Bottomley noted, "Rapping is hard enough, but then like bouncing around the stage, the physicality of it and staying in time, keeping your breath, like... (shakes head)."

Although the actors were "nervous" about performing in front of a live audience and exhausted from repeating the physically intense scene, the response from the Glaswegian crowd gave them "a boost" and helped them pull through.

"The crowd are like in the palm of your hand, everything you're doing, they're reacting to it. It's such a strange feeling. Such an amazing feeling, man," the English actor continued.

"We got such a buzz off it," his Scottish co-star continued. "The Glasgow crowds were actually just so supportive, they were giving us thumbs up and proud mas in the crowd. It was unreal."

Ross pointed out that the scene where they celebrate after their performance required no acting at all.

"That's our genuine reaction. We were so proud of ourselves. It still feels mad. I'm actually getting a little emotional thinking about it," he shared.

California Schemin' is out now in U.K. cinemas.