17 mind-blowing facts about Misfits you probably never knew

18 September 2020, 15:07

Watch Nathan Young's funniest moments from Misfits Season 2

By Jazmin Duribe

Simon the villain? A Misfits movie actually exists? WHHAT!?

Misfits is now on Netflix and you better believe we're binging the entire series from the very beginning. The popular British show, which originally aired on E4, following a group of young offenders ordered to do community service but things take a turn when they gain supernatural powers from a strange storm.

Although it's been almost 11 years since the first episode aired in November 2009, the internet is still obsessed with the programme – especially the hilarious Nathan Young (Robert Sheehan). But how much do you actually know about Misfits? Stick with us and we'll let you in on all the show's closely guarded secrets.

READ MORE: Misfits is coming to Netflix in September

1) A Misfits movie has already been written.

Misfits writer Howard Overman actually wrote a movie that combines the old and new cast after the series ended. However, it never made it to production. Shame, we would like to see it.

2) Simon Bellamy was originally supposed to be evil.

Yep, it's hard to believe, but sweet-natured Simon was supposed to be a villain. In an interview with the Geek Syndicate Podcast in January 2011, Howard Overman revealed that Simon should have turned into the villain towards the end of the first season, resulting in the rest of the gang having to kill him. However, the character was so well-liked they decided to bin the idea.

3) Robert Sheehan didn't have anything lined up when he left Misfits.

It was thought that Robert ditched the popular character for a Hollywood role, but that actually wasn't the case. In a 2011 interview before the BAFTAs, he confirmed: "There's a few articles I've seen on the internet or whatever about how I've left Misfits to go off and do films and that's all so bullshit, that's complete nonsense. I left Misfits to go off and do other stuff, completely unspecific. I just left because a rolling stone gathers no moss, as they say, and I just wanted to piss off and do other things, you know?"

4) Misfits was meant to be set in a shopping centre.

The original concept of the show was that the group would all work in different shops each Saturday within a massive shopping centre. Alas, that idea was scrapped and replaced by the "more urban" community centre.

5) The actors were actually allowed to tweak their storylines.

Howard Overman wrote the majority of the Misfits episodes, however, the actors were allowed to say how they thought their character would act in certain situations and contribute to the storylines.

6) Lauren Socha refused to film scenes unless the crew pronounced Iwan Rheon's name properly.

Iwan regularly had his name mispronounced by crew members, leaving Lauren infuriated. She even refused to film a scene until they all got it right.

7) Misfits was all filmed in London.

Misfits was filmed around the Southmere Lake in Thamesmead, South East London – the same setting used in cult classic movie A Clockwork Orange. The entire series centres around the community centre and surrounding multi-storey buildings, which were shown from the Lakeside Centre and Bexley College. The scenes under the flyover used the M4 at Boston Manor Park in Brentford, and indoor scenes were filmed in sets built in the old Runnymede campus of Brunel University.

8) The Misfits theme song is 'Echoes' by The Rapture.

Everyone knows one of the best parts of Misfits are the opening credits when the infamous theme tune plays to the crew all swirling around in the storm. The song is 'Echoes' by The Rapture from their debut album of the same name. The song was released in 2003 and also appeared in the 2007 movie Superbad written by Seth Rogen and starring Jonah Hill.

9) Antonia Thomas almost didn't take the role of Alisha Daniels because of the sexual nature.

Antonia was originally hesitant to take the role of Alisha because of the multiple sex scenes involved. However, after a chat with Howard, she discovered that Alisha had far more depth than what she first thought.

10) Joseph Gilgun had "23456" tattooed on to his chest in honour of his time on the series.

Each number represents a different cast member from Season 3.

11) Nathan McMullen originally auditioned to be a minor villain before being cast as Finn.

Nathan initially wanted to play a minor role in Season 3 but he impressed the writers so much that he became series-regular Finn.

12) Each character had their own Twitter accounts.

The accounts, which were supervised by Misfits writer Howard Overman and not the actors themselves, were initially used for marketing and to provide extra information about each character. However, they also bridged gaps between series.

13) The powers each character received after the storm represent their own flaws.

Alisha is given the power of hyper-sexual arousal because of her love of casual sex without a care for other's feelings. Nathan believes he's invincible and so he becomes immortal. Simon, an introvert, can become invisible. Kelly, conscious of how others see her, has the power to read others' minds. Curtis, who regrets his failed athletic career, can now reverse time.

14) Season 4 is the only series not to feature time travel.

It's also the only season to have cast changes inbetween episodes rather than inbetween each series.

15) Simon wasn't supposed to be Superhoodie.

It's thought that the writers only came up with making future Simon become Superhoodie while writing Season 2 because of a video whereby Superhoodie speaks in a different voice whilst giving a cryptic warning to Simon, Nathan and Kelly.

16) Multiple Misfits cast members have went on to star in Game of Thrones.

Iwan Rheon (Simon Bellamy), Michelle Fairley (Louise Young), Ellie Kendrick (Helen), Nathalie Emmanuel (Charlie) & Josef Altin (Gary), and Gwyneth Keyworth (Marnie) have all starred in  Game of Thrones as Ramsay Bolton, Catelyn Stark, Meera Reed, Missandei, Pypar and Clea, respectively.

17) Finn's community service jumpsuit had to be specially made.

Finn's orange jumpsuit had to be tailor made because they couldn't find the right size for 5ft 3in Nathan McMullen.

QUIZ: Would Robert Sheehan date you?