Bill Murray described his work on George Clooney’s 2014 Second World War drama ‘The Monuments Men’ as “the worst kind of work”, saying the role frightened him because it required acting against a green screen. His remarks underline the difference between conventional performance and productions reliant on visual effects, where actors must react to settings and action added later.

Murray played Sergeant Richard Campbell in the ensemble film, which follows Allied specialists tasked with recovering art looted by the Nazis. The cast also included Clooney, Matt Damon, Cate Blanchett and John Goodman, and the film was based on the real Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives programme.