Defiance - Syfy Video: Tony Curran Red Carpet Interview
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/04/defiance-syfy-video-tony-curran-red.html?spref=tw
Tony Curran from the Red Carpet
http://www.defiance.com/en/series/video/2641659
Tony Curran's Favorite Scene from the Pilot
http://www.defiance.com/en/series/video/2639863
Tony Curran Reveals What Really Happens in the Bath
http://www.defiance.com/en/series/video/2639860
Green Tips from Tony Curran of Syfy’s “Defiance”
http://www.nbcunimediainsider.com/green-tips-from-tony-curran-of-syfys-defiance/
Defiance - Syfy: May 2013 Schedule
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/04/defiance-syfy-may-2013-schedule.html?spref=tw
Defiance - Monday at 9/8c - Next Episode: The Devil in the Dark
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eU4RTfHTvXg
Defiance - Monday at 9/8c - Episode 103: First Four Minutes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=HgEi4DA6Y6Q
Defiance 1.03 “Down In The Ground Where The Dead Men Go” REVIEW
THE
ONE WHERE In the wake of the Second Battle of Defiance, the town gets
ready to bury its dead. However, Datak and Nolan clash when the
lawkeeper breaks up a ritual concerning the one Castithan to have fled.
Datak, and Elah Bandik, the deserter, are adamant that it’s a ritual
meant to return honour to the Castithan. Nolan and Irisa are adamant
it’s torture. Mayor Rosewater is caught in the middle.
Meanwhile,
Mr Birch, Nicolette’s distinctly odd assistant, breaks Ben out of the
infirmary and tells him to finish the job. Not long after, there’s an
explosion at the mine…
VERDICT It’s so traditional for a second
episode to see a show relax into its most basic plotting, that when the
synopsis for this episode was released, several other sites began
describing Defiance as just a “sci fi cop show”. Based on this script,
there’s a lot more going on than that description leads you to believe.
Let’s
take the cop plot first. Ben, the Indogene who blew up the shield wall
last episode to try and drive everyone out of the town, is broken out by
Mr Birch and told to “complete the job.” He breaks into Rafe’s mine and
holes up in old St Louis with some Votan explosives. Rafe and Nolan
lead a party in after him.
Written down, that looks pretty
coptastic but it plays out very differently. For a start, the insights
we get into Rafe and Nolan on the journey down cast both men in a
different light. Nolan now openly remembers that he used to live in St
Louis, and the moment where he and Rafe sit in the same park Nolan used
to play in (and presumably where he also witnessed the arrival of the
Arks) is sweet and oddly paternal. Nolan’s complete lack of front is
clearly starting to charm Rafe a little bit, as evidenced by him backing
the lawkeeper up in the final confrontation. Whether or not Nolan has
picked a side in the McCawley/Tarr war, it’s starting to look like one’s
been picked for him.
However, it’s Rafe who really comes into
his own this episode. Graham Greene is one of the best actors in the
cast and here he’s given a chance to show it. The twin revelations that
Rafe’s family used to run a popular dog food supplier and that he always
wanted to be a photographer don’t just round him out, they make him
seem much more human. The gruff, stereotypical mine boss is nothing of
the sort, he’s just a survivor making the best of what he has. That,
combined with the short, pivotal confrontation with his surviving son
gives Rafe a lot to think about, and the closing montage shows he’s
acting on that.
Secondly, the reveal on Old St Louis still being
largely intact is a really interesting touch that simultaneously nods to
Futurama and strengthens something only hinted at in the pilot; when
terra-forming was used as a weapon during the Pale Wars, the planet
sculpted with ruthless abandon by groups with wildly differing agendas.
Not only does this go a long way towards explaining why the terrain
around St Louis looks so different, it also hints at the conflicting
agendas behind the wars and, by extension, the founding of Defiance.
After all, what better place to hide something than in a city buried
beneath hundreds of feet of rock? It at least seems likely that the
artefact Nicolette and Mr Birch are seeking was hidden by the same
people who terraformed the area.
And speaking of everyone’s
favourite Lost alumni and her sidekick, their presence in the episode is
small, but pivotal. Mr Birch clearly has some military experience,
especially given the Doc’s comment about Ben being revived using a
military drug. However, where last week Mr Birch seemed to be the Man
Behind The Curtain, this week Nicolette looks to be pretty definitively
in charge. She’s also deeply troubled by what they’re doing, which is no
surprise given the plan she’s signed off on (detonate the gulanite
explosive against one of the old St Louis reactors, use that radiation
to drive everyone out of town so they can search it). Nicolette is being
set up as something approximating the Ben Linus of the show, a
character prepared to do horrible things for the greater good. She’s not
quite a bad guy yet, and I can’t help but feel she’s working for
someone else as a result. Regardless, for now, the old Mayor is troubled
by what she’s doing, but not so troubled she won’t send an Indogene to
his death.
Then there’s the Elah Bandik plot which does a good
job of not only showing us a lot more about the Castithan, but also
providing some insight into Datak Tarr, Amanda, Irisa and Tommy. For
Datak, Elah is a liability, a man who not only stole the honour of every
Castithan but who made him look bad. After all, none of Rafe’s men ran.
For Amanda, Elah is a symbol of the town’s worst past failure, and a
sign that there are some things that, she’s been told, the mayor should
take no part in. What’s really interesting is how much that bothers her,
and how much she’s subconsciously already trying to push away from the
decisions made during Nicolette’s term as mayor. Meanwhile, for Irisa,
Elah is a victim, a man being subjected to horrible torture as, it
seems, was she. Finally, for Tommy, Elah is an opportunity to not only
back a fellow lawkeeper’s play but also to get closer to Irisa. A single
character does four separate things in the plot, whilst also being a
symbol of an alien race’s laws and beliefs. That’s pretty nuanced
plotting, and a thousand miles away from Law and Order: Defiance, as the
show is starting to be dismissed as.
Finally, there’s evidence
of what seems to be the writer’s identifying the weakest element of
their arc plot and actively working to strengthen it. The scene between
Stahma and Christie in the diner is sweet, and genuine and completely
chilling. Datak murdered a man to ensure he and Stahma could be together
and she finds that as admirable as she does romantic. Christie’s
clearly shocked, but she’s a million miles from horrified, and the seed
of dissent Stahma sews here very clearly takes root. Datak fights his
wars on the streets, Stahama fights her wars in hearts and minds. At
this stage, I honestly think she’s the more dangerous of the two.
The
ending ties all of this together, as Defiance buries its dead, Elah
allows Datak to kill him, Datak drops the body on the steps of the
lawkeeper’s office and Rafe searches Luke’s room and finds much more
than he was expecting. It feels less like a sci-fi cop show and more
like a full-blown science fiction version, not of Firefly, but of
Deadwood. Defiance’s inhabitants may all live in the same place but they
don’t want the same things and, with Datak, the Tarr/McCawley feud and
Nicolette’s ongoing plans to deal with, Nolan, Tommy and Irisa clearly
have their work cut out for them. A strong second episode, all around.
Read more at
http://www.sfx.co.uk/2013/04/23/defiance-1-03-down-in-the-ground-where-the-dead-men-go-review-c/
'A Salute To Old Hollywood' Red Carpet. Tony Curran
http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/cA6SD5-S5al/Salute+Old+Hollywood+Red+Carpet/yg5oyCNfuYG/Tony+Curran
http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/cA6SD5-S5al/Salute+Old+Hollywood+Red+Carpet/zs7rz9HJ2Ex/Tony+Curran
http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/cA6SD5-S5al/Salute+Old+Hollywood+Red+Carpet/h5ptV1rQOrI/Tony+Curran
http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/cA6SD5-S5al/Salute+Old+Hollywood+Red+Carpet/WYcwgnf0EUq/Tony+Curran
NBCUniversal Summer Press Day
Tony
Curran attends the 2013 NBCUniversal Summer Press Day held at The
Langham Huntington Hotel and Spa on April 22, 2013 in Pasadena,
California.
http://www.zimbio.com/photos/Tony+Curran/NBCUniversal+Summer+Press+Day/7AmroEwLJ5n
http://www.zimbio.com/photos/Tony+Curran/NBCUniversal+Summer+Press+Day/x1fFqq8oapY
http://www.zimbio.com/photos/Tony+Curran/NBCUniversal+Summer+Press+Day/yet_gGSm223
http://www.zimbio.com/photos/Tony+Curran/NBCUniversal+Summer+Press+Day/nBuxgD4C2XK
April 22, 2013
Jamie
Murray, left, and Tony Curran, co-stars of "Defiance," arrive at the
2013 NBC Universal Summer Press Day at the Langham Huntington Hotel and
Spa in Pasadena, Calif.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/rf/image_606w/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2013/04/23/Style/Images/2013-04-23T015749Z_01_LOA040_RTRIDSP_3_USA.jpg
Tony Curran on ‘Defiance’
We
talk to the alien gangster of “Defiance” about hot tubbing with Jaime
Murray and the human sides of the show’s otherworldly characters.
http://www.craveonline.com/tv/interviews/487487-tony-curran-on-defiance
Syfy's New Hit Series "Defiance" Continues to Deliver in Week Two with 2.4 Million Total Viewers
http://www.thefutoncritic.com/ratings/2013/04/23/syfys-new-hit-series-defiance-continues-to-deliver-in-week-two-with-24-million-total-viewers-851313/20130423syfy01/
Defiance - SciFi Talk: Cast Audio Interview - Part 2
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/04/defiance-scifi-talk-cast-audio.html?spref=tw
Defiance - Monday at 9/8c - Shooting the Shtako: Episode102
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6214XVX8Nc
Defiance - Syfy Video Featurette: 'Shooting the Shtako' Episode 2 with Tony Curran
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/04/defiance-syfy-video-featurette-shooting_24.html?spref=tw
Defiance - Syfy Video: ' 'Down In The Ground Where The Dead Men Go' - Complete Episode
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/04/defiance-syfy-video-down-in-ground_23.html?spref=tw
Defiance - Syfy: Julie Benz Video Interview
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/04/defiance-syfy-julie-benz-video-interview.html?spref=tw
Hope you enjoy tonights episode
https://twitter.com/TonyCurran69/status/326499194955251712/photo/1
https://twitter.com/TonyCurran69/status/326913234848337920/photo/1
Talking 2 @TVGuideMagazine about #Defiance with TV husband @TonyCurran69 ... Can't wait 4 tonight's episode
http://twitpic.com/cl9ymw
You reap what you sow in
https://twitter.com/DatakTarr/status/326453140398428162/photo/1
Syfy's #Defiance continues tonight
http://instagram.com/p/Yakv3ONmAd/#
Conversation with Tony Curran of #Defiance from
http://twitpic.com/ckons0
Conclusion
of this special on this breakthrough SyFy series with this edition Tony
Curran, Jaime Murray and show runner, executive producer Kevin Murphy.
http://www.scifitalk.com/podcasts/
Jaime Murray is out of this world
YOU
won’t recognise Jaime Murray in her latest role in the new SyFy drama
Defiance. She’s an albino alien. Mind you, even an ardent Jaime Murray
fan would struggle to understand her as she speaks “alien” in a very
rich dialect.
The Hustle actress plays a Castithan and speaks very
convincing Castithan, too. Confusingly, this alien tribe is only one of
seven in the show who are generally know as Votans.
The back
story is that their home was destroyed in a galaxy, far, far away and
now they have taken root on dystopian Earth, in a town called Defiance.
Flying
into London to promote the big-budget series Murray says: “David
Peterson, a linguist, actually created the language. There are seven
different alien races. He said the Castithan are star people so this
reference is to do with the stars and sky and so on.
“As he was
talking I got the fear, ‘I’m never going to be able to do this!’ I
worked by repetition so he sent me mp3s and I learned it off that. As I
got used to it, I realised there was a real musicality to it.”
Murray
then provides me with a sample of Castithan expletives. We can take her
word for it. You will be relieved to learn that there are subtitles in
the drama.
She plays opposite Scottish actor Tony Curran, her
on-screen husband, who is a nasty piece of work. “I probably married
beneath myself,” she jokes, “but everything changes when you’re a
refugee. He was a real survivor and real scrapper. He ends up running
the underbelly of Defiance.”
Murray, who has also starred in the
popular American series Dexter and Spartacus, agrees her character has
Lady Macbeth tendencies, especially during one rather risqué bathroom
scene with Curran. “I actually designed an outfit,” she tells me,
“because it was written that we were in the bath and obviously it’s not
Spartacus or an HBO show, it’s more mainstream, so it wasn’t appropriate
to show anything, but equally why would a female from an alien planet
have the same inhibitions as a human? I ended up wearing the ceremonial
jewellery to hide the things that needed to be hidden.”
Her
reaction to the whole Defiance project was not unexpected. “I didn’t
understand it! In fact, I didn’t fully understand it until afterwards.
Read more at
http://www.express.co.uk/entertainment/tv-radio/393584/Jaime-Murray-is-out-of-this-world
Watch the First Four Minutes of Defiance Episode 1.03 - The Devil in the Dark
http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/66014/watch-first-four-minutes-defiance-episode-103-devil-dark
Image Gallery for Defiance Episode 1.03 - The Devil in the Dark
http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/65984/image-gallery-defiance-episode-103-devil-dark
Jeff Korbelik: 'Defiance' off to great start for SyFy
“Defiance”
has a chance to be as good as “Battlestar.” The early episodes reveal
quality acting, better-than-decent visual effects and, not surprisingly,
outstanding makeup.
Read more at
http://journalstar.com/entertainment/tv-radio/jeff-korbelik-defiance-off-to-great-start-for-syfy/article_90b77da7-abd0-53c7-bb90-8cda669d878f.html
"Defiance" Cast of Characters Quick Guide
http://tvnewsreviews.blogspot.ru/
“Defiance” Is Politically Challenging
http://mindschmootz.net/2013/05/defiance-is-politically-challenging/
Defiance - Monday at 9/8c - Episode 104: First Four Minutes
Defiance - Monday at 9/8c - First Four Minutes: A Well Respected Man
Amanda's caught between a rock and a hard place as she tries to appease both Nolan and
Datak's interests in this exclusive look at the first four minutes of next week's brand-new Defiance
Mondays at 9/8c on Syfy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVDfZlKR9zM
Defiance Interview with Jaime Murray and Tony Curran.
Defiance interview with Tony Curran and Jaime Murray.
I
had the very great pleasure of taking part in a conference call with
Tony Curran and Jaime Murray. They gave wonderful, thoughtful, in-depth
answers about their characters and the themes of the show. They hinted a
little bit about where their characters might be going this season and
hopefully beyond. Both were very generous with their time and
enthusiastic about the show. It was also fun to hear both of them using
their actual real-life accents in answering the questions! (Tony is from
Scotland and Jaime from England) What follows is a quick synopsis of my
notes of some of the highlights of the conversation. Do come back when
the full transcript will be posted.
Q: Can you talk about how the dynamic is shifting between Stahma and Datak?
JM:
I feel like it’s a period piece even though it’s 35 years in the
future. It’s a very patriarchal society. Stahma is repressed. It’s a
society in which “her role is as a breeder and a bleeder.” It’s
complicated by coming from a strict caste system. Datak would almost
have been an untouchable and Stahma is almost royalty. They would never
have been together on their home world. It’s a bit of a power struggle.
She is more highly educated and she sees the longer game. He’s shrewd
and sharp. He’s had to live on his wits. She has to suggest ways of
dealing with things. He’s sometimes more at the whim of his emotions.
She has to avoid hurting his pride.
TC: As the season progresses,
you see interesting dynamics develop. Stahma and Datak are coming from a
different planet and very different ends of a cultural spectrum.
They’re trying to re-invent themselves. Stahma wouldn’t have had as much
power in their home world. She keeps his temper in check. Datak begins
to wisen up to Stahma’s cunning. She’s a refined tool while he’s a blunt
instrument.
JM: We all wear masks, but Stahma wears the mask
all of the time. She loves him but she never takes it off. It just
“slips” slightly at times.
TC: The makeup was important. You can
still see the eyes and facial expressions. We wanted the audience to be
able to relate to the characters. The patriarchal society is still seen
all over the world today. Women in Defiance are strong role models.
Q: What initially attracted you to the role? What were the initial acting challenges?
TC:
The size and scale of it all. Playing an alien and what that would
entail. It’s important to break it down to the characters. You can have
an amazing backdrop, but you have to have interesting, relatable
characters. We have an interesting dynamic. Someone from the gutter
marrying someone in the upper echelons. It’s very much like Sense and
Sensibility.
JM: The Stahma/Datak relationship was very
interesting to me. It’s a very complex relationship. Just playing
another species skews things enough off their axis to give you a fresh
perspective on what it means to be human. You want to play something
that is human enough but different enough. It still needs to be
relatable and needs to be able to allow the audience to invest in the
family.
The scene in the bath where I’m almost naked and hugging my adult son. It’s very creepy. And the shaming ritual.
TC:
I spoke to Kevin Murphy and that moment when she looks at me in the
bath and then I give her a look like oh go on. Exactly what people
should be reacting to. It almost didn’t make it into the episode. The
Tarrs are weird and wonderful. They aren’t human. The Tarrs are
relatable but still have to be different.
JM: I didn’t want to
move like a human woman. My technique is to react to the other actor and
let my own impulses come up, but in playing an alien I look for the
opposite impulses. So if as a human I might do one thing, I choose to do
the exact opposite as an alien. Getting in the bath – I would be
self-conscious and hold my body in a certain way, but an alien would be
erect and proud, like a cat or a snake. Our DP through the lighting of
the Tarr house really raised our performance.
TC: We’re alien but
have been on earth for 33 years. I have an American accent. Stahma is
very deliberate when she speaks and looks for the words. We chose to
sound different from each other.
JM: Tony – Datak – learned to speak in the streets. Christie is one of the first humans Stahma’s had contact with.
TC: Many back stories to come. We’ll find out lots of interesting things about the Tarrs.
Q: She manipulates him. Does he know it and would he do anything about it?
JM:
In my life I know when people are doing it. Sometimes, I’ll just go
with it. Tony is an organic actor. The scenes are so charged they are
almost like a love scene. He knew it and appreciated it, but went with
it.
TC: If someone gives you an idea that’s a great idea or
they’re more informed than you are, you will take it. He admires Stahma.
He knows she’s smart. It’s unsaid. She does it in a manipulative way
but it’s for the better of the two of them. He knows what she’s doing
but she still has to watch her step.
JM: At the beginning, Datak
listens more. As the season progresses he enjoys some success and her
control over him lessens. He becomes confident in his own abilities.
TC:
Her ideology and philosophy is calming him down. Stahma is moulding
him. He has the blunt instrument you need in the frontier, but she is
educating him.
JM: Datak has the short term win, while Stahma has
the long term goal in mind. She can satisfy his ego because she never
needs to be right or seen as the victor. There is a shift in power. They
need to find a new way or relating to each other.
TC: Jaime is
the unsung heroine. She is the silent, stoic. She’s like a silent snake
who takes down her prey and then leaves before anyone notices. Stahma
does thing maybe Datak doesn’t know about. It’s going to stir the pot.
JM: There’s a lot of hot air that comes out of Datak, the there’s a vulnerability. I just want to take care of him.
TC:
Lots of men with a volatile temper end up that way because of their
hard upbringing. Stahma isn’t as vulnerable as Datak can be. It makes
him fun to play.
Q: What is the joy/challenge of playing your characters?
TC:
There was a lot of aggressiveness in the Pilot. I’m a big fan of James
Cagney – a kid from the street. He was perceived to have a hard shell
but he was damaged. His upbringing shaped his behavior. In episodes to
come you’ll see how Stahma takes care of Datak. He’s like a big kid. A
lot of characters on the show have skeletons in their pasts. They try
not to face them.
JM: The unexpected delight in playing an alien
forces me to question being human. So much scope for this character.
Stahma doesn’t really know who she is. She only knows who she is in
terms of other people. She’s surrounded by free and emancipated women.
Even though she’s smart and powerful, she is defined by the men in her
life. I felt isolated and lonely playing her because she’s constantly
hiding behind her mask. She may figure out how disconnected she is and
try to connect with someone. She’s a bird in a gilded cage. There’s a
raw immediacy about who Datak is.
Q: Alak’s radio station – what would you add to his playlist?
TC: Old Earth vinyl. I’m a big fan of Motown, Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross. Maybe Public Enemy.
JM: Pearl Jam, Jeremy, or quirky like the Cure, TC, Adam and the Ants. Some of those 80s singers like Soundgarden, Nirvana.
Jesse’s having a blast. He’s been tweeting as Alak, doing re-caps. He does a little video.
Q: Do you see a possibility that Datak will act for the town and Stahma will act for her family and this will put them at odds?
TC:
Maybe Stahma gets what she wants and doesn’t need him. I don’t know how
far he’d get without her. The Need/Want is a good symbol for how much
do they need each other and how much do they want each other. To get to
where they’ve got, they need each other. I’ve heard through the
grapevine where things might happen in the future that will be tough for
both. It’s an interesting road.
JM: They are so much a part of each other, who they are as individuals.
TC: You’d really see who Stahma is or who she thinks she is.
JM: Who would fare better on their own?
TC:
Kevin is a writer/producer, but he’s a good director. He’ll whisper
something in my ear about the scene, and not tell the others, so you
don’t know what’s coming. He’ll come and tell you something that’s
coming in a future episode.
JM: I think she’d put the family
first, but she might get distracted but she might take her eye off the
ball and then Datak may react to his own ego and act out a rash decision
without her council.
TC: He might relate back to where he was before her.
JM: She might discover a new way of being while Datak will revert back to his old ways.
TC: She’s trying to educate him. Stahma could start soaring without him.
Q: I like picking out the political undertones. Assimilation is a topic that’s come up. Is assimilation possible?
TC:
I think it’s inevitable. With the way terrorism is sweeping across the
nation, it could be on the verge of turning really bad if we can’t
integrate societies.
JM: All societies need to evolve. Stahma is
uncomfortable with the old traditions, but Datak is holding on to the
society that never helped him. It’s generally the disenfranchised who
carry on the damaging behavior. There is a universal desire for people
to have connection. Assimiliating has a strong connotation. We need to
look at different cultures connecting so that we don’t have
disenfranchised.
TC: You’re going to find some very human
stories with people being alienated within the society. Like any good
drama, it’s holding a mirror up to society. The question is what are we
going to do? Do something about it, or let it go on?
This is not the entirety of the conversation, so please come back and scroll through the official transcript for even more!
http://www.spoilertv.com/2013/05/defiance-interview-with-jaime-murray.html
Defiance 1.02 "Down in the Ground Where the Dead Men Go" Review: Everyone Has a Past
http://www.spoilertv.com/2013/04/defiance-102-down-in-ground-where-dead.html
Defiance 1.01 "Pilot" Review: Welcome to the Neighbourhood
http://www.spoilertv.com/2013/04/defiance-101-pilot-review-welcome-to.html
Defiance Anticipates A Second Season On SyFy
Action
and intrigue are promised every time you tune in to SyFy’s Defiance. We
hope you’re enjoying Rockne S. O’Bannon’s series, which he executive
produces with Kevin Murphy
and Michael Taylor because we hear a second season is very likely.
“New
Earth. New Rules.” That’s the tagline for this fresh series. Will you
join the fight? Here’s the set up. The year is 2046, just thirty years
after a whole slew of different alien races arrived on Earth. The
landscape of the planet we once knew has completely changed, thanks to
terraforming efforts.
This takes us to the town of Defiance,
sitting where St. Louis used to be. Enter Nolan, acted by Grant Bowler,
and his associate, Irisa, acted by Stephanie Leonidas. They settle in
Defiance and meet the residents, Julie Benze acting as the mayor, Amanda
Rosewater , the powerful Rafe McCawley. acted by Graham Greene, lounge
owner Kenya, played by Mia Kirshner and a pair of alien Tarrs, played by
Tony Curran and Jaime Murray. There is a fragile peace in place, but it
may not last much longer.
Ratings have been okay thus far and
there has been enough interest in the video game, that the drama is very
likely to get a second season, according to our good friends over at
Deadline.
Read more at
http://www.boomtron.com/2013/04/defiance-anticipates-a-second-season-on-syfy/
Tony
Curran - "A Salute to Old Hollywood Party" to Celebrate the Launch of
BritWeek 2013 - Los Angeles, California, United States - Tuesday 23rd
April 2013
http://www.contactmusic.com/photo/tony-curran-old-hollywood-celebrates-britweek-2013_3624912
http://www.contactmusic.com/photo/tony-curran-old-hollywood-celebrates-britweek-2013_3624898
Tony
Curran - Celebrities attend 2013 NBCUniversal Summer Press Day at The
Langham Huntington Hotel and Spa. - Los Angeles, CA, United States -
Monday 22nd April 2013
http://www.contactmusic.com/photo/tony-curran-2013-nbcuniversal-summer-press-day_3621827
http://www.contactmusic.com/photo/tony-curran-2013-nbcuniversal-summer-press-day_3621823
http://www.contactmusic.com/photo/tony-curran-jaime-murray-2013-nbcuniversal-summer-press-day_3621822
http://www.contactmusic.com/photo/tony-curran-jaime-murray-2013-nbcuniversal-summer-press-day_3621821
'Defiance': Acting with the visual effects
https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL6a4U43jvE4IXHm-1W5O1Mzeswd0nl75t&v=dima-8IFf3g&feature=player_embedded
'
Defiance': On set with the cast
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PLRTPADxj0&list=PL6a4U43jvE4IXHm-1W5O1Mzeswd0nl75t
Doctor Who - BBC America: Season 5 Weekday Schedule - Apr 29 '13
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/04/doctor-who-bbc-america-season-5-weekday_27.html?spref=tw
Defiance: Down in the Ground Where the Dead Men Go Review
http://www.mania.com/defiance-down-ground-dead-men-review_article_137366.html
Defiance (Syfy) Episode 3 “The Devil in the Dark”
http://www.tvequals.com/2013/04/29/defiance-syfy-episode-3-the-devil-in-the-dark/
Defiance - Syfy Video: 'The Devil in the Dark' Sneak Peek - Airs Apr 29 '13
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/04/defiance-syfy-video-devil-in-dark-sneak.html?spref=tw
Defiance 1x03 The Devil in the Dark Promo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbZ9TX7FB8A
Defiance Review: Must-see science fiction television
Syfy’s
new series Defiance was one of the most-watched scripted series
premiere for adults since 2006. So, obviously, there’s something good
about it. But was it all hype and marketing? Because, let’s face it,
Syfy has thrown a lot of money its way. Was it due to the
ground-breaking MMO game integration? Or was it something much simpler –
is it just a really good show?
You’ll be happy to know that the
answer is the latter (although the marketing and game integration don’t
hurt). Defiance is one of those shows that, when you first watch it,
gives you goosebumps because you know you’re in for something special.
No, Julie Benz was not lying when she said that Defiance was epic and
unlike anything on t.v. It’s all of that and more.
First up, if
you’ve played the accompanying Defiance MMO game at all, you’ll have a
much better feel for the pilot episode of the series. The first episode
of Defiance, which serves to present us this new world and all of its
wonderful characters, begins with two Ark Hunters: Jeb Nolan (Grant
Bowler) and his adopted daughter, Irisa (Stephanie Leonidas). Irisa is
an Irathient, one of a dozen of different alien species that now calls
Earth home. The two find themselves in a town that was once St. Louis, a
place now known as Defiance. Earth itself is unrecognizable as the
alien invaders have terraformed the planet to meet their own needs (for
example, Antarctica is now a beach destination).
In Defiance,
Nolan and Irisa meet the mayor, Amanda Rosewater (Julie Benz), along
with the rest of the town, which includes a variety of characters,
including Datak Tarr (Tony Curran) and his wife Stahma (Jaime Murray),
the alien Doc Ywll (Trenna Keating) and the Hatfield to Tarr’s McCoys,
Rafe McCawley (Graham Greene). In the end, Nolan and Irisa have to
decide if they’re just passing through the town or are planning on
staying, especially after Nolan is offered the badge of Lawmaker. Hint –
they stay.
The first thing I noticed about the series was its
scope. Epic is such a small word to describe the massive scale of this
television series. From the opening scenes when we see massive space
ships with alien invaders coming into view to the vision of the Arks
(which were supposed to be mankind’s escape pods – but somehow most
didn’t make it) still floating in space. The town of Defiance itself is
so fully realized that no detail has been left unturned. Everything is
perfectly rendered and it is easy to believe that this is the Earth of
the near-future. The special effects are brilliant and very reminiscent
of Battlestar Galactica.
The races of aliens are also so varied
that no two are alike. They might all be humanoid, but each has their
own specific characteristics. From the motorcycle gangs of Irathients to
the wonderful Doc Ywll, each alien is infused with its own species’
personalities. Each species, too, has its own language, which could not
have been easy for actors to tackle. It’s exactly the sort of detail I
like to see.
The acting, as expected, is some of the best on
television. Julie Benz shines as the compassionate (but bad-ass, to
quote Benz) mayor – doing her best to keep the city going, in spite of
odds against her. Bowler as Nolan is a new sort of Han Solo – the kind
of rough-and-tumble guy who seems to be selfish, but turns out to have a
heart of gold. Leonidas (who I loved in Mirror Mask), has an
unpredictability about her that makes Irinis one of the more compelling
characters of the series. Curran and Murray are nearly scary in their
mafia-like makings, with Murray being the Lady MacBeth to Curran’s
Richard III – I was also impressed by how beautifully they both handled
the made-up language their characters speak. I was delighted to see
Greene in the series, as he’s one of those character actors I have
always loved to watch. Finally, Trenna Keating is the no-nonsense Doc
Ywll – she also delivers some of the funniest lines in the pilot
episode.
In fact, it’s the female characters that really stand
out in Defiance. Only in science fiction do we get these sort of strong
women figures that are so wonderfully thought out and acted. I wish
other non-genre television series would figure that out.
Defiance
is one-of-a-kind television, the sort of thing you absolutely must-see.
So go run to Hulu or Syfy or Amazon Video On Demand and get this one
now. Trust me – this is the series you do not want to miss.
http://www.fangirlconfessions.com/syfy-defiance-review/
Defiance Dissected: The Ongoing Review – Week 1
http://www.thesixthaxis.com/2013/05/02/defiance-dissected-the-ongoing-review-week-1/
Syfy's ‘Defiance’ Packed With Adventure, Intrigue and Aliens
http://makeupmag.com/featured/id/1105/
SyFy Renews Defiance, Season 2 Aims for 2014 Premiere
Defiance
fans can breath a sigh of relief, the series is officially moving on
past its first season. SyFy has renewed the program for a 13 episode
Season 2, which is currently aiming for a 2014 premiere.
Production on the upcoming episode cycle will begin this August in Toronto.
"Bringing
the rich world of Defiance to life has been an incredible team effort.
We couldn't ask for better partners than [showrunner] Kevin Murphy, his
amazing cast and crew, and Trion Worlds," SyFy head Mark Stern said in a
statement. "We can't wait to see where they take us in the second
season."
Kevin Murphy will return as the executive producer and
showrunner alongside executive producers Darren Swimmer and Todd
Slavkin. Michael Taylor will serve as a consulting producer.
Defiance
stars Grant Bowler, Julie Benz, Stephanie Leonidas, Tony Curran, Jaime
Murray, Graham Greene, and Mia Kirshner. There is no word on who is
returning, as the initial season is only half over and we may see some
character deaths/departures in coming episodes.
Defiance's April
15 premiere was the second largest in SyFy history in the 18-49
demographic. Throughout the season, it has performed surprisingly well,
often beating its scripted competition, in its Monday time slot; and has
quickly become " SyFy's highest-rated original series this year."
The
show takes place in the aftermath of a alien attempt to colonize Earth.
After a massive war, the humans and various alien races live in an
uneasy peace. One city in particular, Defiance, is built in the ruins of
St. Louis and is home to a wide variety of aliens, cultures, and
factions.
It airs on Mondays at
9PM on the SyFy channel.
Its
videogame counterpart has so far amassed over 1 million registered
accounts across three platforms. The game takes place in the new
frontier of the San Francisco Bay area.
http://www.latinospost.com/articles/18836/20130510/syfy-renews-defiance-season-2-aims-2014-premiere.htm
Cast Thoughts on Fan Reactions
http://www.defiance.com/en/series/video/2645673
Defiance - NBCUMV Syfy Press Release: 2nd Season Renewal
DEFIANCE - NBCUMV SYFY PRESS RELEASE: SECOND SEASON RENEWAL
May 10, 2013
SYFY RENEWS HIT SERIES DEFIANCE, PROMISING MORE ACTION AND INTRIGUE IN SEASON TWO
April 15 Premiere Second Largest Series in Network History
Syfy
has renewed its groundbreaking series Defiance, giving a 13-episode
second season order to the critically acclaimed hit that has catapulted
Syfy to the top cable drama spot in the time period among adults 18-49,
adults 25-54 and total viewers for three consecutive Mondays. Season two
of Defiance, produced by Universal Cable Productions, will begin
production in Toronto in August for a 2014 premiere, returning as the
anchor of Syfy’s Powerful Monday’s block of primetime original series...
"Bringing the rich world of Defiance to life has been an incredible
team effort. We couldn't ask for better partners than Kevin Murphy, his
amazing cast and crew, and Trion Worlds," said Mark Stern, President of
Original Content for Syfy and Co-Head of Original Content for UCP. "We
can't wait to see where they take us in the second season..."
... The audience for its April 15 premiere was the second largest series
premiere in the network’s history among adults 18-49, making it the
biggest in nearly nine years in that coveted demographic, based on Live
+7 Data. The premiere also delivered almost 4 million viewers
(3,834,000) and has quickly become Syfy’s highest-rated original series
this year in adults 18-49, adults 25-54 and total viewers. It has also
received unprecedented attention as a transmedia event in partnership
with Trion Worlds’ MMO game. Airing Mondays at
9pm, Defiance stars Grant Bowler, Julie Benz, Stephanie Leonidas,
Tony Curran, Jaime Murray, Graham Greene and Mia Kirshner.
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/05/defiance-nbcumv-syfy-press-release-2nd.html?spref=tw
Syfy Renews 'Defiance' for Second Season
UPDATED: The pricy original series, which saw a solid debut in April, is part of a larger initiative that includes a video game.
Syfy
is going back to Defiance. The cable network has renewed its freshman
drama for a second season after solid premiere ratings and strong
retention.
A 13-episode sophomore season of the dystopian alien drama
has been ordered, with a production start eyed for August and a 2014
return to the network.
STORY: NBCU's $100 Million Gamble on Syfy's 'Defiance'
Currently
in the middle of its initial order, Defiance marked the second largest
series premiere in network history and has regularly won cable's
scripted offerings in its Monday time slot among adults 18-49. It opened
on April 15 to 2.7 million viewers and 1.3 million in the demo.
Solid as those numbers might be, Defiance has been a massive investment
for Syfy and Universal Cable Productions. Billed as a "transmedia
experience," the series is tied to a massively multiplayer online video
game. The combined price tag of the freshman season and the video game
is a cool $100 million. The Trion Worlds game, as of early May, has
north of 1 million registered users.
"Bringing the rich world of
Defiance to life has been an incredible team effort," said Syfy
president of original content Mark Stern. "We couldn't ask for better
partners than [showrunner] Kevin Murphy, his amazing cast and crew, and
Trion Worlds. We can't wait to see where they take us in the second
season."
Murphy will stay on as ep and showrunner, with
Smallville’s Darren Swimmer and Todd Slavkin returning as eps for season
two and Michael Taylor serves as consulting producer.
Defiance stars Grant Bowler, Julie Benz, Stephanie Leonidas,
Tony Curran, Jaime Murray, Graham Greene and Mia Kirshner.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/syfy-renews-defiance-second-season-520713
Defiance renewed for second season!
Hot off the presses: Syfy has Renewed Defiance for a second season!
From the press release:
SYFY RENEWS HIT SERIES DEFIANCE, PROMISING MORE ACTION AND INTRIGUE IN SEASON TWO
New
York, NY – May 10, 2013 – Syfy has renewed its groundbreaking series
Defiance, giving a 13-episode second season order to the critically
acclaimed hit that has catapulted Syfy to the top cable drama spot in
the time period among adults 18-49, adults 25-54 and total viewers for
three consecutive Mondays. Season two of Defiance, produced by Universal
Cable Productions, will begin production in Toronto in August for a
2014 premiere, returning as the anchor of Syfy’s Powerful Monday’s block
of primetime original series.
Redefining the transmedia experience,
Defiance has distinguished itself with an unprecedented partnership
between Syfy and Trion Worlds, by creating the first-ever true
convergence of television and online gaming. To date, the game has
garnered more than 1 million registered accounts while making gaming
history as the first online open world shooter to launch on three
platforms simultaneously. As the collaboration between show and game
continue into a second season, players will have the opportunity to
further influence the world of Defiance.
Kevin Murphy (Desperate
Housewives, Caprica, Hellcats) resumes his role as executive producer
and showrunner. Smallville’s Darren Swimmer and Todd Slavkin return as
executive producers for season two and Michael Taylor serves as
consulting producer.
“Bringing the rich world of Defiance to life
has been in incredible team effort. We couldn’t ask for better partners
than Kevin Murphy, his amazing cast and crew, and Trion Worlds,” said
Mark Stern, President of Original Content for Syfy and Co-Head of
Original Content for UCP. “We can’t wait to see where they take us in
the second season.”
Set in the near future, Defiance features an
exotically transformed planet Earth, its landscapes permanently altered
following the sudden – and tumultuous – arrival of seven unique alien
races. In this somewhat unknown and unpredictable landscape, the richly
diverse, newly-formed civilization of humans and aliens must learn to
co-exist peacefully. Each week, viewers follow an immersive character
drama set in the boom-town of Defiance, which sits atop the ruins of St.
Louis, Missouri, while in the game, players will experience the new
frontier of the San Francisco Bay area.
The audience for its
April 15 premiere was the second largest series premiere in the
network’s history among adults 18-49, making it the biggest in nearly
nine years in that coveted demographic, based on Live +7 Data. The
premiere also delivered almost 4 million viewers (3,834,000) and has
quickly become Syfy’s highest-rated original series this year in adults
18-49, adults 25-54 and total viewers. It has also received
unprecedented attention as a transmedia event in partnership with Trion
Worlds’ MMO game. Airing Mondays at
9pm, Defiance stars Grant Bowler, Julie Benz, Stephanie Leonidas,
Tony Curran, Jaime Murray, Graham Greene and Mia Kirshner.
http://scifistorm.org/2013/05/10/defiance-renewed-for-second-season/
Tony Curran at Beverly Hills
http://www.contactmusic.com/photo/tony-curran-tony-curran-out-in-beverly-hills_3643835
Tony Curran To Appear At London Comic Con
From aliens to invisible men, vampires to Dutch post-Impressionist painters,
Tony Curran
has appeared in many guises on both the big and small screen. Now MCM
London Comic Con visitors will have chance to meet the man himself, as
the Glasgow-born actor becomes the latest special guest to be confirmed
for Europe’s biggest comic con.
Curran’s roles include Vincent
Van Gogh in Doctor Who, Marcus Corvinus in Underworld: Evolution and
Datak Tarr in ongoing Syfy series Defiance. He has also appeared in
Guillermo del Toro’s Blade II, Steven Spielberg’s The Adventures of
Tintin, superhero comic adaptation The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
and BBC drama This Life.
Other credits encompass feature films
such as Pearl Harbor, Gladiator, Shallow Grave and X-Men: First Class,
as well as television series like Boardwalk Empire, CSI, Ultimate Force
and 24. Meanwhile, gamers will know him as the voice of Captain
MacMillan in best-selling first person shooter Call of Duty: Modern
Warfare 3.
Tony joins a host of special guests at May’s MCM
London Comic Con, including cast and crew from Once Upon a Time, Teen
Wolf, NCIS: Los Angeles and Steven Spielberg’s Fallen Skies, anime
director Shinichiro Watanabe, Lara Croft star Camilla Luddington and
Mass Effect voice actor Mark Meer. Meanwhile, games publishers confirmed
include Capcom, Nintendo, Activision, Square Enix, NIS America, Namco
Bandai, Tecmo Koei and Koch Media.
http://scifipulse.net/2013/05/tony-curran-to-appear-at-london-comic-con/
Event News: MCM Expo Announces New Guest For London Comic Con
MCM Expo have today announced a new guest for this month's London Comic Con, DEFIANCE's
Tony Curran...
The
Scot, currently portraying Datak Tarr in SyFy's Defiance, is a stalwart
of genre Film and TV having appeared in Doctor Who, Underworld:
Evolution, Blade II, The Adventures of Tintin, The League of
Extraordinary Gentlemen and X-Men: First Class to name a few.
Tony
joins a host of special guests at May's MCM London Comic Con, including
cast and crew from Once Upon a Time, Teen Wolf, NCIS: Los Angeles and
Steven Spielberg's Fallen Skies, anime director Shinichiro Watanabe,
Tomb Raider star Camilla Luddington and Mass Effect voice actor Mark
Meer. Meanwhile, games publishers confirmed include Capcom, Nintendo,
Activision, Square Enix, NIS America, Namco Bandai, Tecmo Koei and Koch
Media.
MCM London Comic Con takes place at EXCEL London from 24th-26th of May. Tickets are available at:
www.mcmcomiccon.com/london/tickets
http://www.starburstmagazine.com/events-news/5246-event-news-mcm-expo-announces-new-guest-for-london-comic-con
Defiance - Syfy Video: 'The Serpent's Egg' Sneak Peek - Airs May 13 '13
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/05/defiance-syfy-video-serpents-egg-sneak.html?spref=tw
Tweeted by Tony Curran. Photos:
https://twitter.com/TonyCurran69/status/331972396825325568/photo/1
https://twitter.com/TonyCurran69/status/331971056334172160/photo/1
https://twitter.com/TonyCurran69/status/331972396825325568/photo/1
https://twitter.com/TonyCurran69/status/331555514020421632/photo/1
https://twitter.com/TonyCurran69/status/331517169605148673/photo/1
SyFy's Definace starring Jaime Murray and Tony Curran airs Mondays at 9PM/8CThttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SouWgp5qEa0Jamie Murray And Tony Curran On ‘Defiance’
http://globalnews.ca/video/540175/jamie-murray-and-tony-curran-on-defiance
Defiance 1.04"A Well-Respected Man" Review: Knowledge is Power
This
week’s episode of Defiance, “A Well Respected Man,” was written by
Craig Gore and Tim Walsh and directed by Michael Nankin, who also
directed the second episode. Gore and Walsh are relative newcomers,
whose only other credits on IMDb are for the short-lived CW show Cult.
The script for the most part was tightly written and well-paced. There
were some excellent scenes with some powerful moments. There were also a
few instances of clunky dialogue. However, there were a few potentially
clichéd scenes that were turned on their head, and I’m enjoying getting
deeper into the dynamics of the community. The episode featured little
in the way of special effects – not what you would expect of a sci-fi
series, perhaps. However, the production seems to be spending its budget
wisely. The CGI backgrounds are seamless. The drama is grounded in the
actors’ performances and realistic sets. The money saved is put to good
use on music such as one of Bob Dylan’s latest releases over the final
scenes with Amanda revealing their mother’s death to Kenya, Rafe and
Quentin in the mine, Datak joining the Council, and Nolan’s chat with
Stahma. Once again, the performance of the week has to go to Jaime
Murray as Stahma with Tony Curran’s Datak running a close second.
This
week’s episode did see a number of themes running through a few
storylines with the primary one being about knowledge and perception. In
one of my favorite scenes in the episode, Datak is explaining to Nolan
(Grant Bowler) that knowledge is power. Datak is also demonstrating to
Nolan that he knows everyone in the Hollows, including all their dirty
secrets – it’s how he stays in power. He does use a lovely analogy in
describing the threads between people being like the threads in a rug.
When they get to Datak’s informant, Nolan sees right through Datak’s
subterfuge, proving that he’s not nearly as stupid as Datak thinks he
is. The banter between Curran and Bowler is excellent, and sets up yet
another pair of actors with amazing chemistry on the show.
A
number of characters are being kept in the dark. Flashbacks reveal that
what Kenya (Mia Kirshner) had believed about the death of her mother was
a story that Amanda (Julie Benz) had made up to protect her. For her
part, Amanda is being kept in the dark about Datak’s illegal gunrunning.
Rafe (Graham Greene) explains it was a need to know basis and she
didn’t need to know. I’m enjoying watching Amanda slowly simmer towards
boiling as people discount her authority. The flashbacks showing how she
went bravely back for her sister when her mother abandoned them has me
thinking this is not a woman that people want to back up into a corner.
Amanda
isn’t perfect, however, and carries mis-perceptions and shame about her
sister. When she’s accosted in the street by a woman whose husband
frequents the Need/Want and calls Kenya a slut, Amanda slaps her and
declares her sister runs a legitimate business. Yet, Amanda is
completely unaware that Kenya calls her prostitutes Night Porters.
Stahma is completely comfortable with Datak frequenting the Need/Want
and knows more about Kenya than Amanda does. Stahma tells Amanda that
Kenya has a rare gift for knowing exactly what people need.
Rafe
has been keeping Quentin (Justin Rain) in the dark about what is at the
bottom of the L7 shaft. Quentin misinterprets Rafe’s decision in
shutting down the mine as Rafe’s lack of faith in him. The scene in
which Greene tells Quentin that he’ll never be Luke but he loves,
respects, and admires him and holds a special place in his heart just
for him is arguably Greene’s best work to date on the show. The scene is
further enhanced by a beautiful shot of Quentin framed by a single pane
of the stained glass in the house. As the two become closer
emotionally, the scene mirrors this physically as Quentin moves from the
doorway to Rafe’s side.
Rafe ultimately takes Quentin into
his confidence about the object he found in Luke’s room that he is
convinced got him killed. They travel to the bottom of L7 and find
bones, artifacts, and cave paintings – knowledge that will no doubt
prove to be important.
Nolan also recognizes Stahma’s importance
in the Tarr family. The scene between Murray and Bowler at the end is
terrific. Nolan tells Stahma that he’s had his eye on the wrong snake
and identifies her as the dangerous one. For her part, Stahma graciously
takes the compliment and tells him he is sweet. After interviewing both
Murray and Curran last week, I was paying more attention to their
performances. One thing that Murray commented on was her choices on how
to play an alien. It’s slightly uncomfortable watching her because her
movements and inflections are not quite what you would expect from a
human and these were choices that Murray consciously made. She is also
very deliberate in her speech, often pausing to think of the right word.
This is because she hasn’t had the same experience as Datak in walking
about the Hollows, working and interacting with its inhabitants. Stahma
will have learned her common tongue through her servants and will have
had to use it less often. She is somewhat of an anomaly in a very
patriarch society, but she does all of her negotiating behind the
scenes. She is like Kenya in her ability to determine what people need,
and she has the ability to use that knowledge to her own advantage.
The
title, of course, refers primarily to Datak’s quest for power,
standing, and respect. However, Amanda, Nolan, Quentin, and Stahma are
also looking for those things. In trying to convince Datak to help look
for Kenya, Amanda appeals to his desire for status. She points to his
recent actions and how they’ve elevated him in the town’s eyes. She
points out that the Bioman, Ulysses, is his and everyone knows it, so if
he doesn’t help, everyone will think he’s been a part of the
kidnapping. Tony Curran is fabulous in this scene. Datak talks about his
hubris in always taking credit for his work. He says it is a personal
flaw, but his wife seems to like it. Ultimately, Datak refuses to help
in the search for Kenya because they lack respect for him and think they
are better than he is. He tells them, they only see him as a wild dog
to be kept on a short leash. Datak’s desire for respect and standing is
shared by Stahma because the Castithans society is built upon it. When
she goes to Amanda, Stahma appeals to the similarities between them. She
tells Amanda that both Nolan and Datak are hotheads. She tells Amanda
that she can offer Datak respect by appointing him to the vacant Council
seat. Stahma is always soft-spoken and makes her requests in a
roundabout way.
The final four scenes are tied together by the
overlay of the Dylan song. Kenya and Amanda come to a new understanding
and mutual respect. Rafe discovers what’s at the bottom of the L7 shaft,
but not its significance. Meanwhile, Datak is taking his seat at
Council for the first time. He notices Rafe’s empty chair and looks
disappointed. No doubt Datak was looking forward to gloating over his
nemesis. Certainly, he takes great pleasure in closing the door in
Nolan’s face, thus demonstrating his superiority over the other blunt
instrument in town. Stahma is patiently waiting for her husband to
finish her business, working on some kind of weaving craft. It reminded
me very much of a spider, spinning a web. Nolan demonstrates that he is
much more of a blunt instrument by seeing through Stahma’s facade, and
realizing that Datak’s quest for respect and standing is very much her
own.
I enjoyed seeing the Bioman again, and I hope that they will
“reprogram” him so that we’ll see him again. I found the Blue Devil
storyline a bit simplistic and derivative, even down to the kidnapping
and draining victims while putting them in a dream world – see any
episode about Djinn in Supernatural, but particularly “What Is and What
Should Never Be.” It did, however, serve its purpose as a backdrop to
the main character-driven plots.
What did you think of this
week’s episode? Is the show starting to find its stride? I remain
convinced that the strongest element of the show is its examination of
relationships. Let me know your thought in the comments below.
http://www.spoilertv.com/2013/05/defiance-104-well-respected-man-review.html
"Defiance": "A Well-Respected Man" episode airs May 6
http://newsok.com/defiance-a-well-respected-man-episode-airs-may-6/article/3805660
TONY CURRAN AND JAIME MURRAY
DEFIANCE
Q)
Especially in this next episode coming up, we’re learning more and more
that Stahma seems to be the one in charge of the whole council thing
and everything. Can you guys talk just kind of in the general sense
about how that dynamic is shifting and how we’ll continue to see more of
that through the season?
Jaime: Well, it’s really an interesting
role to me because although I’m playing this woman who I see five years
in the future, really I sometimes felt like I was in a period piece
because there are two things about the Castithans which are very similar
to, you know, where we came from, you know, hundreds of years ago. And
that is that they come from very patriarchal society. So based on
gender, Stahma is quite repressed and her job would really be what
historians might think well, you know, a breeder and a bleeder.And she
could have been expected to be a good mother. However this is actually
complicated by the fact that Stahma and Datak come from a society with a
really strict cloth system and that they have very strict cost. And
Datak would almost have been an untouchable. He would have been on the
very lowest end of that kind of cloth system. And Stahma would have been
at the very top almost like aristocracy or royalty. So they would never
on their own planet have been together. But when it’s a whole new world
that they’re on now and in many ways, the qualities that Datak had to
employ to survive back on Caspi made him very powerful and strong in the
new world of Defiance because - and she’s now with this very powerful
man. But there’s this interesting dynamic in their relationship and it’s
almost like there’s an interesting power struggle because she’s more
highly educated than him and she’s - I mean they’re both intelligent but
she has, you know, she’s probably been to more schools than him and
maybe seen at the lumber game where he’s very shroud and sharp and he
has lived on his instincts all his life. And so together they’re an
awesome combination but because of the fact that she’s a woman, she
can’t really - she can’t tell him what to do - not outright. So she has
to be very cunning and shroud and go sideways about how she communicates
ideas to him and suggests, you know, ways of dealing with situations to
him and I think that he is sometimes at the whim of his emotions more
than Stahma. Stahma is very controlled and so sometimes she’s often
counseling him to be more patient, to take more time, think of the long
term and try to do it without injuring his pride.
Tony: As you
see the season progress and each episode unfolding, as Jaime says, you
see so many interesting dynamics with a lot of the characters but one of
- they’re all compelling but one of the one’s we thinks’ quite
interesting is the fact of Jamie as of Stahma and Datak coming from
another planet but also coming from very different ends of the spectrum
within a very sort of social sort of society, culturally very different.
They’re trying to reinvent themselves basically which they have been
doing like Stahma would have had - wouldn’t have had as much power like
she has now the way she’s able to will it in her very subtle manner what
she has to do with Datak and giving him the feeling that he’s holding
all the cards or he’s got the ideas when actually she doesn’t want to
upset him because he gives such a volatile character. But back on their
own planet she was obviously - as Jaime said - it’s a very clear
patriarchal society. She would not be able to wield her cunning sort of
ways as she’s doing in Defiance. And then Datak and his sort of journey
as well - I think he’s beginning to, you know, become a little wiser and
Stahma’s almost unconsciously or she wants it to be unconsciously
skewing Datak in the sense of no honey, don’t react too quickly because
you have to keep your volatility and your temperament in check because
when you behave like that, it doesn’t do you any good. It doesn’t do
your family any good. So I think that as the season progresses and
hopefully we will cross for next season. You’ll see that Datak becomes a
little - he wizens up to Stahma’s sort of cunning approach to things
because as he’s a bit of a blunt instrument and she’s much more of a
refined tool if you like. And both of them together are obviously – they
are quite a formidable couple.
Jaime: So one thing that I
thought was interesting for me as an actor is I realized that we all
wear masks and sometimes there’s an act where you kind of work out which
mask your character is wearing when. And sometimes you’ll have a
relationship that you can show where your character’s not wearing that
mask. And as Stahma she’s wearing the mask all the time and she wears
the mask even with Datak and it’s not that she doesn’t love him and
obviously she does. But it was interesting for me - as the season
progressed, I felt as though there were times when the mask slipped and
that was very interesting for me. I’m hoping that it will next season
though.
Tony: No, that’s an interesting point because it’s sort
of - and as Jaime said it’s a very human thing because it’s something
that we - because to cast the fans in the show, me and Jaime’s
characters Jesse who plays Alak. They started shooting and we had not
actually even we were supposed to start shooting but we hadn’t actually
completed finished on our makeup and how we will look. And I think that
was an important thing about playing the aliens. Yes, so aliens,
different languages. We look different. We sound different. But we
wanted it to put people to be able to see the actors, to see your eyes,
to see your emotions. And I think that’s an important fact of playing
them and the way we’re designed and the way we look that you can relate
to them. They are aliens but they have many, many, many traits that are
very similar, especially the patriarchal, matriarchal society within
especially what it’s like, you know, in Asia cultures and Saudi Arabia
where women are still looked down upon in many, many cultures which is,
you know, which is completely wrong. It’s the similar similarities
within outcasts in society and I think that’s what makes the women in
Defiance so very, very powerful and very relatable I think to young
women or any women out there because of the way they approach the
characters. And I think that’s very compelling of them for people to
watch.
Q) I wanted to find out if you could tell us a little bit
about maybe what initially attracted you to your respective roles and
also maybe what are some of the initial acting challenges you both found
stepping into these executive shoes.
Tony: It’s a good question
and the first thing that attracted me to well reading the script, there
was the size and scale of it all and how challenging this would be and
also that the, you know, playing an alien and what that would entail I
think for me was just sort of - it was going to be a challenge for
anybody really. But I think for me it was that to break it all down with
the characters. If you don’t, you can have this fantastical backdrop of
these amazing sort of aliens and the statistics of backdrop. If you
don’t have these interesting characters that people can relate to then I
think for me that was the most important thing. And also playing
someone who’s from a difference of different planetary system and also
who is actually a kid from the gutter as well. And this interesting
dynamic that I found worth having something like sense and sensibility
if you will when someone from the gutter ends up marrying someone from
the upper edge lawns of society. So for me it was just interesting to
play a character who had that sort of - who had that interesting dynamic
with, you know, within someone who came from a different star cast
system.
Jaime: Yes, I agree. Definitely my relationship with
Datak - the Stahma Datak relationship was very interesting to me and I
felt as though it was a lot of play that we could have with that and a
very complex relationship. But also just playing another specifies was
just so interesting to me because, you know, this is the wonderful thing
about Syfy. It just skews things, you know, it just offers access just
enough that it gives you a whole new way of looking at things - a really
fresh perspective on things. I knew instinctively but in my quest to
play an alien, it would make me take a fresh look at what it means to be
human because you want these things. You have to kind of choose things
which you are universal enough that the audience wants these different
species to kind of make it work. They’re recognizable. You don’t want to
just play an animal or you want to play something which is human enough
but different enough. And so as an actor I had to kind of think how am I
going to make this woman different enough that people can think she’s
an alien but similar enough that they’re not completely kind of turned
off by her and they can actually invest in the drama of these people and
this family. We talked a lot about cultural and social things which are
jarring and make you feel very uncomfortable. And you can have fun with
that. Some of those things are quite harmless and others are really
horrendous. So in the second episode one of the fairly harmless ones was
that creepy scene in the bus somewhere and I’m very scantily caught and
I’m hugging my grownup son. I think that’s sort of super creepy. But
you could go to European country or, you know, an African country and
nudity is handled in a completely different way. So that was just kind
of like an interesting kind of quirk that shows that you’re not in
Kansas anymore but then obviously in the second episode as well you see
something far more disturbing and grotesque when you see a man strung up
and tortured before the whole town because he’s ashamed of the cast of
some people. I think there’s almost elements where you can have fun with
these differences and other areas where you can make really valid
important points and which aren’t too far removed which is what’s going
on in other places in the world today. So I thought so there was a lot
of power and there was a lot of scope in playing these characters and I
was really excited about that.
Tony: And the thing you mentioned
Jaime about the moment in the bath scene. I spoke to Kevin Murphy about
that. That moment where Stahma’s sort of half semi-clad and her son is
wearing his denim jacket and I’m in the bath. And she gives me a look as
if to say oh you be quiet. And then I give her this weird smile which
is obviously - everybody’s tweeting out going what was going on there?
And apparently NBC were like well we’re not too sure about that moment
and apparently they weren’t going to put it in the show.
Jaime: They put it in the show. It was so upsetting.
Tony:
I said to Kev - but that’s exactly what we people should be reacting
to. We’re not doing it for some sort of well let’s do something to
surprise them in some sort of emotional response. We’re doing it because
the towels are not from Kansas. The towels are from another planet. And
there weird and wonderful and then their weirdness should definitely -
it should be odd but it should be hopefully people should think it’s
kind of different and interesting and intriguing enough to go. How many
eccentric wonderful weird people do you look at and go wow, he’s odd or
she’s odd but then you go I’d like to see them again. And I think that’s
what I think the Tarr's are like. As Jaime said you want to make them
relatable but at the same time we have to make them a little different,
yes.
Jaime: Different enough that you can believe that they’re
organically a different species because obviously I’m a human woman
playing this alien. So I’ve got to do a few somersaults so you can
see...
Tony: Allegedly Mrs. Murray, you are human. I’ve heard otherwise.
Jaime:
Only on the outside, exactly. But you know, actually that point that
you made - didn’t necessarily you have to kind of think - I didn’t want
to move like a human woman. And so when it kind of came to challenges
there’s part of my acting technique is I focus on the other actor and I
read and respond to their behavior. And then I allow my own impulses - I
try not to sensor my impulses - and I allow my own impulses to come up.
That’s kind of like basically, you know, a very basic description of
sometimes, you know, how I try and make it work on set. But in playing
this alien, a lot of my impulses are human. Sometimes I would have an
impulse and I would think oh well what is the opposite of that impulse?
So for example in the pilot I knew that I had to get into this bath and I
realized that there were things that I would do if I’m scantily clad as
a human woman. There is a certain self consciousness that I have about
my body and a certain way that I would hold myself which is very
recognizably female and human. And I thought well why would this alien
species have the same hang-ups and the same and hold their body in the
same way as a human female. Why would she not necessarily stand like a
cat or a serpent or ballerina kind of erect and proud. They’re not the
same species. So you kind of try and make as many choices which shows
that they are different and I think that obviously we work with amazing
makeup artists and costume designers and the lighting with the DP, what
he did in the tar house lighting wise I think really elevated our
scenes.
Tony: it’s interesting because we still - as Jaime said -
we still have sort of a trace of our own cultural and alien background
physically. But the tars have also been on planet earth since 2013. It’s
now 33 years later. So we have integrated it. Me and Jaime talked about
it a lot with the producers direct about how we would sound when we
were speaking English. And we were going to try some interesting
accents. But then we decided that because it was set in America that we
would have to talk about this vocal side of it. We would try and
integrate best into the society as much as possible. So we would have
sounded like the American people around us. But Jaime made a wonderful
way of speaking as Stahma where she tries - she’s very slowly deliberate
and tries to find the words as if it’s still tricky for the Castithans
to speak English but it’s, you know, they’re very deliberate about it
whereas the way I sound and we thought, oh we have to sound the same and
then we decided well if someone’s from Oxford in England and someone’s
still from England but from the east end of London they are going to
sound very different and that’s why. That’s why obviously Datak and
Stahma when we speak with certain vocals but...
Jaime: No but
Tony, Tony also you are integrated. The American language from other
Americans on the streets of Defiance and in the Shanty Town. Whereas
I’ve learned to do that and actually I rarely leave the house. I mean
you’re the only person I rarely go out. I start to in this season, you
know, I start to integrate a little bit more. But up until this point, I
think I really very rarely - Christie’s probably one of the first
humans I’ve really spoken to.
Tony: Indeed, she’s someone like
Lady Diana back in the day or, you know, there’s these public
engagements. Stahma wouldn’t be out on the street very much at all
really so whereas I won’t say too much about it but there is - there’s
many avenues of back story to go down in the coming weeks and you’ll
find out some interesting things about the tars by going back which they
may do. I’ll put it like that. I beg you that’s enough.
Q) She
obviously manipulates him a little bit. Do you think he knows he’s being
manipulated and do you think he’d ever do something about that?
Tony:
It’s an interesting question, aye, Jaime; because I don’t think
anybody’s ever asked that question. I’ve thought about it myself. I’ve
thought about it and...
Jaime: It kind of depends on how they do
it. And sometimes if it feels good, I’ll just go with it. It’s like, you
know, there’s sometimes moments and I would be in scenes with Tony and
Tony’s like such an in the moment organic actor. Sometimes we would have
these scenes and they were so charged because it was like it was almost
like a love scene sometimes because it was so volatile but kind of - it
didn’t kick off because I think that he kind of knew and he kind of
appreciated it but it was kind of a thing that they didn’t talk about.
Tony:
I think that it’s interesting, especially, you know, in episode one in
the bath and she starts saying, you know, I have to get some changes and
I’m going to kill it’s pretty intense stuff to say I’m not going to
kill him but I’m going to kill his whole family. It’s like I’ll tip toe,
I’m going to wake up in the middle of the night and burn his house down
and piss on his ass.So he’s in the bath and as Stahma does - she gently
puts the idea in his head that maybe we should marry these kids off and
then we could take over the mines. And I think definitely with Datak or
with anybody really - if someone gives you an idea - someone gives you
their opinion that just happens to be more informed or a great idea. I
think he admires Stahma. I think he definitely knows in the back of his
mind that there is this culture class system which realistically he
isn’t part of - he was never part of. She, you know, with her husband
from the past, you know, he would have been telling her what to do. But
now he knows that she’s smart. He knows that. But obviously as Jaime
said before, it’s the unsaid. You know, she’s not going to come out and
say oh for God’s sake Datak don’t do that. Do this. She does it - Stahma
does it in a very suggestive and very, you know, very manipulative cat
like way. But she’s manipulating Datak for the better of the two of them
of their drive to the top. She’s not manipulating him in a detrimental
way - well not yet anyway. I think Datak you know, subconsciously he
knows she’s smart and I think he likes the way she approaches him with
her ideas and sometimes they would later write the episodes where they
talk about being refugees and things to do with Alak. And it isn’t
manipulative. It’s more, you know, you see Stahma come out of her shell
and she just can’t deal with Datak. Sort of a subtle approach - if you
will - from Stahma. Sometimes Stahma just puts her foot down and says
listen Datak you fucking get a grip here. Pardon my French. Get a grip
here or we’re going to lose what we’ve got. So yes, I think he knows
what she’s doing and I think he respects her and stuff like that. But at
the same time I think Stahma has to - she still has to watch her step
in many ways which is unfortunate but I think that’s what makes the two
of them then sort of quite the dynamic between them quite compelling.
Jaime:
I think at the beginning when you first meet Datak he’s - he listens to
her much more and then as the season progresses, he enjoys some success
in kind of the social climbing that they’re both kind of trying to
achieve even from the beginning. And I think that actually her control
over him listened.He becomes more confident in his abilities and he
thinks obviously he doesn’t need her council quite so much.
Tony:
Yes but I think that’s because he’s getting these good ideas but he
doesn’t actually - I think he has to realize that these good ideas are
coming from not just her ideology and her philosophy about things but
also it’s about calming him down and also giving him good ideas but also
I think Datak’s going to change and I think Stahma’s molding him into -
he’s always got the power there and the sort of the blunt instrument
and the volatility there which is required in a town like Defiance. But
that can get you only so far.I think that Stahma’s - she’s fine tuning
the attack and to someone - she’s educating them I think. I think she’s
educating them.
Jaime: So usually when Stahma councils Datak it’s
to fulfill their long-term aspirations whereas the difference between
them is Datak will have good ideas how to win something in the moment.
But sometimes the repercussions of those choices are not worth that win.
Tony: Yes, it’s like winning the battle but losing the war if you will.
Jaime:
And sometimes also he will make good decisions to win in that moment
but what he’s actually winning is the satisfaction of his own ego. It’s
that narcissistic fix. She’s not a narcissist. She’s almost vampiric in
her avaricious kind of materialistic social climbing aspiration but she
never needs to take credit. She never needs to see it be seen as the
victor and she never needs to be right whereas he needs all those things
really badly. And she plays on those in order to kind of achieve her
means. But there is a real shift in power as the season goes on and they
both end up in kind of territory - kind of new territory and they have
to kind of find a new way of dealing with each other.
Tony: I
think that’s interesting that Jaime says that sort of the unsung heroin
if you will - she’s the stoical and, you know, she said that she may
have that egotistical say to her but as like with Datak she’s the quiet -
she’s the silence of them - the stoical sort of stealth like serpent
that comes through the grass and takes its prey down. And then you turn
around and she’s gone. She’s smarter. She’s probably arguably the
smartest alien of person in town and God knows what she would be like if
she did - if she did good things for the community which I’m sure
Stahma will. But I think that she’s just a stoical character Stahma.
Very quiet and I think that one day hopefully - or maybe that will never
happen - that Datak and Stahma can really relate to each other in maybe
a more sort of equality - yes with an equality sort of approach. I
don’t know if that would happen. I think that would be interesting. But
right now I think the dynamic between the two of them has got so many
possibilities because there’s things in the next few episodes that show
up which I obviously can’t talk about but Stahma does things that maybe
Datak doesn’t know about and that, you know, if your better half - your
husband or your wife start doing things that you don’t know that they’re
doing and then you find out about them. That can definitely stir the
pot if you will.
Jaime: What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.
Q)
Well from a viewer standpoint, if I were each on their bad side, I
would fear her more because I mean I could see him coming from a mile
away.
Tony: You’d hear a silverback coming through the jungle
before you’d see a snake in the grass. Let’s put it that way. I’m
watching the Twitter feed here and everything we’re saying’s coming up.
It’s quite funny. Stahma is the silent stealthy one, probably the
smartest in town. There you go. It’s all down there in the tweets
darling. You can’t hide from it.
Q) It’s those troubled times
that you kind of make us like him that I really appreciate because it’s
one thing to be kind of big and loud and mean but then every once in a
while you’ll pop in something like, "I really kind of like this, but I
don’t want to."
Jaime: Whether the audience sees it - but when
I’m in scenes with Tony, he’s like there’s a lot of hot air that comes
out of Datak but there’s so much vulnerability. I would be in a scene
with Tony with Datak and it’s confusing as an actor sometimes. And just
see this little boy or this little alien. There were real moments as
Stahma that I just wanted to take care of him. I just wanted to save him
from himself. And I loved him. I love him.
Tony: Now going down
that straight through as a gentleman just said who was on the phone, I
think that, you know, those big characters like Datak as a lot of men
who have got a volatile temper and it’s probably from their unfortunate
past that they’ve had. So then Stahma’s obviously had more of a, you
know, silver spoon in her mouth - if you will - upbringing. I don’t
think she’s as vulnerable as Datak can be. He can be like a spoiled
child. Yes, that’s a good point. Which makes people interesting to play I
guess. It makes them interesting to play, yes.
Q) And that’s
kind of what I wanted to ask is what - do you have like a greatest joy
about your part and maybe your biggest challenge?
Tony: Yes I
think what you mentioned there that I think is fun because there’s a lot
of rules out there that anchors play and I think for me playing a role
that it’s, you know, when I was doing the pilot there was the rule of
this oh aggressiveness - oh he’s this aggressive type alien type
character. But I always - I always look to movies like him - angels with
dark faces or white heat. I was always a big fan of Jimmy Cagney. And
when people like you are playing an alien and you’re watching Cagney
movies, I’m like he was a kid from the street as well. And at the end of
the day he was as hard as a shell that he perceived to have. He was
damaged. He was damaged goods. He had issues and the reason that he
behaved the way he behaved was because of his upbringing because
obviously like we all - our past shapes, our future. And definitely
Datak’s past is shaping his present and his future. But just to be all
about sort of blowing all air and behaving in an aggressive manner would
be very dull. I think it’s interesting to see that and you’ll see in
episodes to come how Stahma takes care of Datak because he is like a big
kid in many ways and he is a vulnerable individual who tries to have
this - he is a strong character. There’s no doubt about it but at the
same time like any human being - to talk about humans again. There are
huge vulnerabilities in him. Anyway, a lot of the characters in Defiance
- they have many skeletons in the closet and they’re almost trying to
separate themselves from their past and instead of facing the past and
dealing with it. And I think as you see the next few episodes come up,
there are some back-story coming up which will reveal things about many
characters in Defiance that you don’t know about now. So yes, it’s good
to have a role - of course the regular character. If it’s all on the
same level, it becomes, you know, not so compelling I feel.
Jaime:
I talked about the challenge for me in playing, you know, the
unexpected delight in playing this alien is it forced me to look at what
it means to be human. And when we’re talking and trying to look like
these characters, you know, you’re constantly talking about what human
beings do. So that was really fun. But also I just feel as though
there’s so much scope for this character. I feel as though and it will
start happening in this season but I feel as though Stahma doesn’t
really know who she is. I don’t really think she has any real idea of
who she is. I think she only knows who she is in terms of other people
and I think that’s going to be really exciting for it to suddenly dawn
on her that she’s not on planet Casti anymore, that she’s surrounded by
free and emancipated women. And although she has power and although she
is intelligent, she is so defined by the men in her life and I think it
will be interesting to see it dawn on her that there might be other ways
of existing in this new world. Machiavellian in the way that she
behaves. I often felt very vulnerable playing her. I felt very isolated.
I felt very lonely because she doesn’t really let that mask slip with
anyone. So if you’re constantly hiding behind your mask, you’re not
really truly connected. And I think that she might actually kind of
realize how disconnected she is and she might kind of try and be brave
and connect with somebody and that might be quite of a profound feeling
for her. And let’s see how that turns out. I mean there’s a raw
immediacy about who he is which I bet he sleeps quite good at night
whereas I bet Stahma doesn’t sleep so good.
Q) Kevin Murphy said
his plan was to include bold earth vinyl which reminded me that when you
first joined Twitter, Jaime, you used to tweet out songs by Lily Allen
and Vice and dedicate those.
Jaime: I’m not very technologically
clever and I think I probably got on that website because of Eddie
McClintock from Warehouse 13 and I need to find another way of streaming
music because I love music.
Q) And you would dedicate like don’t
hate me to Julie. So I’m wondering from both of you as actors, not your
characters but if you could add any contemporary artist to Alak’s
playlist just to get artists on the show under the geyser called earth
vinyl. Who might that be?
Tony: I love that he’s bringing that
into it because obviously I can speak for all of us on the phone right
now. That was definitely the first musical format that I remember. The
first album that I bought was a Stevie Wonder album called “Hotter than
July”. It’s an album with like “Master Blaster” on it and songs like
that. And I’ve always been a big fan of Motown as well. So I did well up
for my boy - oh boy play some Motown. Play some, you know, some things
like Stevie Wonder for instance or, you know, Diana Ross. I don’t know.
Did I say that? Yes.
Jaime: I can’t really imagine like Diana Ross in the most...
Tony: I was going to say Diana Ross is the right thing to say.
Jaime:
A bit tweaked. A little bit unsettling like something like I can
imagine Pearl Jam.And I imagine like, Jeremy, like there’s kind of like
some rage in all those Pearl Jam songs or maybe something a little bit
kind of quirky like the Cure.
Tony: Yes, that would be cool as well, yes. Adam and the Ants.
Jaime:
Exactly. There was some real kind of like because it’s cool. I’m left
in the 80s. There’s some of those kind of 80s, early 90s song I think
are quite kind of apt to have sound guard.
Tony: I think Alak is
going to have a fun time of suggesting things because (Jessie) for us -
he’s such a Syfy aficionado and he loves his music as well that he’s
having such a blast playing Alak and he’s so wonderful that he’s going
to have a tall ball. He’s like I’ve got a radio station. And I don’t
know if you noticed but (Jessie)’s been tweeting as Alak talking about
recaps in the episodes. If you see the tweets he’ll go so last week,
what happened on Defiance. And he’ll basically recap the episode. It’s a
little video like a little video he does. And it’s like, you know, show
Nolan or you. And my mom doesn’t like Nolan. He doesn’t like her. And
he talks about it and then it’s a little video feed which, you know,
that boy’s a genius he is. He’s a genius.
Jaime: You didn’t even like Alak particularly.
Tony:
I don’t like him. I don’t. But if you’re talking about music, see the
end of episode one. There’s a lovely scene between Fionnula and the
train carriage. And there’s some beautiful - I’m not sure who it is but
it’s like from the 20s or 30s - this old sort of speak easy music that
was just added in as sort of background music. And it was the very last
scene in the pilot. Yes, it really took you into the scene. You were
like oh hang on a minute. Yes, it’s very evocative and where is this
taking you and what is sort of the ambiguity of the scene and what they
were talking about or what they weren’t talking about was very
interesting I thought and the music really brought you into that, yes.
Q)
So sort of along the lines of what we’ve been talking about them being
from sort of different ends of the spectrum, I mean Datak has kind of
had to embrace his evil because he’s had to sort of fight his way out to
the streets and Stahma - it's part of the patriarchal society that she
has to operate the way that she does. Well Datak can be evil. He’s
definitely not a coward. I mean he’s very brave every time that he has
to fight or defend his family. But I’m just wondering if at some point
he may end up putting the town first. Is he maybe going to get sucked
more into the town politics at some point?
Tony: Yes, it’s an
interesting point actually. And some people have said to me isn’t there
sort of a - Stahma has such a stoic way about her that, you know,
wouldn’t it be the case one day where Stahma might get what she wants
and then Datak is superfluous to requirements as it were. So to reverse
what you said there, it may not be Datak who puts the tone first. Maybe
it’s Stahma but that is yet to be seen. But yes, to be totally honest,
my first instinct of that would be I don’t know how far Datak will get
without Stahma. I think he can get to a certain point but to talk about
or just to mention that the bar - the house of ill repute is called the
need want in Defiance. And it’s interesting between Datak and Stahma -
how much do they need each other and how much do they want each other?
So I find that quite an interesting question which is basically will
they always need each other and will they always desire each other
because I think they desire each other but to get to where they both got
to, I think they definitely needed each other. So it’s interesting
because I’ve heard some talk through the grapevine of what may happen in
the future. Datak ends up dying his hair red and I just thought that
was - no I was like a ginger. I can’t be a ginger. I’m already a ginger.
No, I think that there are things that happen in the future that are
going to be that are going to be very - it’s going to be tough for Datak
and Stahma but I think that it’s a very interesting road to go down
after what’s happened in season one but obviously...
Jaime: But
they are so much a part of each other. The kind of the two only really
exist as a part of each other, you know. And so it’s very interesting
who are they as individuals.
Tony: Yes and I think that once you
take one away from the other - if that was ever to happen physically I
mean - then I think then you would maybe - as Jaime said - the last lady
chatting online. You’d see maybe who Stahma really is or who she thinks
she is or how does she feel about Datak. Yes, who would fail Datak,
yes.
Jaime: I keep on coming at an attempt to answering your
question, Lisa, and I keep almost giving spoilers away. So it’s a good
question because it’s obviously a question that the writers want you to
ask and answer and I think that you might find the answer to your
question, you know, this season.
Tony: This is lovely because
Kevin - he’s obviously a writer or producer or wonderfully talented but
I’ve worked with directors sometimes who will come up to you before a
scene and they’ll whisper something in your ear and tell me something
that they haven’t told Jaime. And so I love organically - we use that
world - what can Jaime be because we can do things to each other during a
scene that’s not scripted that she doesn’t know it’s coming or I don’t
know it’s coming and it just keeps the scene fresh.And Kevin Murphy will
come up to you in a bar if you’ve done a rehearsal and he’ll tell you
something about what’s to come and you’re like seriously, you’re going
to write that? And he’s like yes, yes but don’t tell anybody I told you
that. So you he’ll tell me something he’s going to write about Jaime and
I’ll be like seriously? Oh my God. And I’m sure he does it to Jaime as
well about other characters but sometimes he’s told me some things
recently and I’m like wow, that’s going to be really challenging and
really embracing for our character to play that when he slips a little
jam in my ear about what’s going to happen to another character which I
find really exciting for the future of all of Defiance hopefully if
we’re going to go into a second season.
Jaime: I think that she
would put the family first but she might get distracted at some point
this season. And so Datak might be - she’s still there. She’s still
involved but she kind of might take her eye off the ball a bit and I
think that then Datak - it’s not that he is thinking of the good of the
town particularly. I can’t say it’s that noble or selfless. A little bit
more time and space whereby he reacts to his own ego and his own kind
of - he might kind of act out a rash decision without kind of having her
kind of sooth him and council him. And you might be interested to see
where that all kind of leaves them both.
Tony: I think sometimes
you can see distance makes the heart grow fonder but then you can also
see out of sight out of mind. And I was thinking that Datak might be
like a little boy to begin with - maybe where’s my other half? Where’s
my better half?
Jaime: Where’s my mommy?
Tony: Mommy. And
then he may revert back to where he was before he met Stahma, you know.
There’s that list of the calmer rat if you will whereas Stahma several
of you know they go - anything happened in the future where they were
not with each other. Then you would see a woman being able to - if she
had the opportunity - to wield her power without the help of a man - of
an alien man because she can stand alone and that would be very
interesting for her, yes.
Jaime: The new strength. She might
discover new ways of being whereas I think with Datak - he might revert
back to old behaviors.
Tony: Yes, without her by his side. Yes,
definitely. We’re both saying oh Datak, you know. And in very subtle
ways she’s trying to improve his manners his ways. But then I think
without her yes, he could definitely fall back into his old ways and I
think maybe the complete opposite of that is maybe Stahma could start
soaring - soaring far above him and going in a completely opposite
direction because she’s like that because she’s so bloody smart. And who
doesn’t think that Stahma Tarr is quite - by the way my nephews - I’ve
got to say this quickly - my nephews go from 5 to like 23 and they keep
texting me Uncle T, Uncle T. Man, that Stahma bud, she’s so hot.
Jaime: I hope I’m confusing a whole generation.
Tony:
You are messing their heads up. My mom is 79 years of age and she was
lying she was a bit tired. My nephew’s five and he was talking about
Jaime. And then one day my mom was like to her, would you please calm
down and relax. And my mom sat down and you remember that moment when
Trenna plays the endogen darku and she puts a finger on Julie Benz’s
head? It was “Good Human.” So Mary’s lying down on the couch and Calin
comes up to her and he puts his finger on her head and he goes good
human. Good human. I mean that’s crazy. He’s watching the pilot, you
know. So it’s definitely getting out there at a young age - a young age.
I’ve got a couple of these stories.
Q) Jaime, the last three
shows I’ve seen you in, you’ve been kind of a bad girl you might call it
- villainous. Why do you think you keep getting chosen for these roles?
Jaime:
Well I think that you play one role like that and if people kind of
enjoy that, they kind of see you. I look so different in this role but
maybe there’s something about my physiology and my facial structure. I
don’t know but what I do know is that I really enjoy playing these
roles. And they’re very complex women dealing with very complex
situations and the way I’ve always approached these roles is even the
worst person in the world kind of including Mussolini and Hitler - they
didn’t think that what they were doing was wrong. They were committing
the worst atrocities against humanity and they thought that they were
validated and that they were doing the right thing. People do what they
think that they have to do and they often do the thing they think is the
only choice they have or they’re making the best of a bad situation. So
what’s really interesting if an actor is looking at what might have
brought that person to that place and kind of really getting to know
that person. And in this case it’s not. Yes, what shaped those and
brought them to making those horrendous choices or what brought them to
that value system - that skewed, awful value system. And maybe that’s
why I keep getting these roles because I try not to judge the character
as bad because you can’t play bad. If you play bad, you end up playing a
cartoon or playing a characture. So really you’ve got to be the best
lawyer that you can possibly be for these characters and Lila and Dexter
you know, I played her. She was a broken person and she was really
looking for a connection and she’d never really truly in her life had
one before. That’s why she was going to all those NA meetings. She was
trying to feel emotions that she’d never felt before and then when she
found Dexter, she saw his dark passenger straight away and she related
to it and she felt a connection for the first time in her life. And then
when that connection was withdrawn from her, it made her go crazy. Like
her wounded inner child just took over and she did some really, really
awful things. I think that Olivia and Ringer - she was one of those
women that really was very competitive and started competing with men in
an industry which was very male dominated. And so instead of kind of
rising above it, she actually kind of became the worst type of kind of
aggressive mad. She took all the worst traits of all the worst men that
she’d ever worked with and kind of except for what she adopted thinking
that she, you know, that was the only way of her winning. And so it was
really nice when the writers then wrote the story where my character
showed a softer side with Andrea Goss who played Catherine. And it’s
really nice when you’re able to show these other sides. So in Warehouse
13 with HG World I start off as the archetypal daddy and at the
beginning of the season then I have this amazing arch whereby I kind of
won over the team. And then in the next season I save the team. So
there’s a real chance for a redemption in that role. And also you were
given insight into what made her lose it. She lost a child and I think
that there was a real charm to that character because you understood
that she made horrible, horrible decisions but you were given some
insight into her crazy and why she might have made those choices. So I
love playing these characters because you’re never really just playing
sometimes you can - as a female - you can sometimes be cast in roles
which are just really kind of layering or coloring the male hero’s role,
you know, giving insight into his character. You know and those roles
can be fun to play but sometimes these daddy female roles are so
complex.
Q) Tony, I was going to ask you about your accent for
the character. Did you make the choice to make it different than your
own or was it somebody else’s choice or how did that work out?
Tony:
Yes. Well I think at some frames some people said oh, you know, we just
love your accent. Why don’t you do it in your own accent? I was like
don’t be so stupid, you know. Oh, he’s a Scottish alien. Oh that’s
really clever. Yes, really smart. I’ve got quite a strong accent.
There’s no doubt about that but I just think that these aliens are then
they had integrated into their society. If it was set and, you know, if
it was set in Glasgow then it might be different or if it was set in
London but it wasn’t. It was set in it was set in America.So yes, I
quite like it’s a part - especially playing an alien - if I was to use
my own accent, I think that would be very odd for me. So I think that
losing one’s self in a different zone. I don’t know how Jaime feels
about it but it’s not like I’m actually doing an accent. I’d be in my
room and I don’t know everybody - anybody else’s process. I’d be in my
room talking to myself as Datak or trying to find a voice and some lines
that we see and lines that we’re reading paragraphs of the script.I
would be reading from a book I may be reading that time and I would try
to find and it’s not like leaving my accent but almost trying to find
another sound that obviously isn’t my own accent but is the sound that I
feel comfortable in to express what Datak can - has what he has to
express I guess. So I think I feel quite comfortable in it now. As I
watch the episodes for characters that I haven’t done scenes with or
scenes that Jaime’s done. Arguably one of my favorite scenes - one of
them is the scene between Christie and Jaime on the train carriage. I
think that Jaime sounds amazing and the scene is amazing. And I think as
actors you constantly keep learning because I’ve watched last night’s
episode and then I watch the last episodes and you’re looking in the
world that was created because there’s a lot of the time when me and
Jaime aren’t on the set and you’re looking at scenes that was shot when
you’re not there. And you’re like okay, that’s how that part of the
world looks when as before it’s only been in your mind’s eye as it were.
So yes, I think that you’re constantly learning about how you sound,
how you look, how you move and how other people do the same. And it’s
sort of interesting to sort of try and learn something from that I guess
is always interesting.
Q) We’ve heard the Defiance mayor insist
on several occasions that assimilation is the only way to really coexist
whether it’s 2014 or 2040 something, it seems that aliens are always
expected - whether they’re space or undocumented - to assimilate here in
the United States. With such diverse culture lines drawn in Defiance,
do you think assimilation is possible and should it be?
Tony: I
think assimilation is inevitable in many ways and especially with the
unfortunate recent events with, you know, the way terrorism is sweeping
across the - sweeping across the world. But I think what we’re in many
ways sometimes on the verge because of certain, you know, religion’s
been attached to certain terroristic attacks. I don’t mean to go into
that right now but I think it’s important. But it could be on the verge
of turning really bad if humanity cannot see, you know, see a way to try
and integrate societies and to have that - to have that - the American
dream - the American philosophy of acceptance and of equality.
Jamie:
I’m glad that you asked this question. After last episode, Tony and I
were emailing the show producers and backwards and forwards because
there were views that really kind of picked up on the points that you’re
making. And I was like yes, they’re seeing some of those really
important universal themes that we wanted to make sure that we showed in
a really nuanced and interesting way. And what I would say is that
societies - all societies need to evolve. And it’s when people become
entrenched in certain ways, that’s when you have a problem. And it’s
really interesting - that scene between Datak and Stahma in the bath -
where Stahma comes from the upper atriums of Casti and society and you
can tell that she has a little bit of distaste about what they’re doing
to Eli in the town square. And Datak who really never got anything good
for his own society is the one holding on so tightly to those old
traditions and those old traditions did nothing for him. And I think
that was a really interesting point that the episode made which is it is
generally the disenfranchised of any society that carries on doing
damaging behaviors. It doesn’t matter where they come from. They’re
damaging to everybody. And I think that you then have a child come into
that scene and he’s dressed in his modern clothes and he just wants to
be kind of connected and hang out with his generation. He doesn’t really
see, you know, the other species particularly. It’s not about him
retaining who he is. He wants to evolve and there’s always these kind of
clashing kind of generations and cultures in that one scene. I thought
was really kind of interesting what he done. And I would just say that I
think that universal desire is that human beings have is for
connection. And as you look at immigration and moving forward,
assimilation sounds - I don’t know - it has connotations which could be
really positive and sometimes really kind of get people’s back slapped. I
just think that we need to look at ways of a different cultures
connecting with each other on an authentic way so that we don’t end up
with disenfranchised people who want to do damage to our societies. And
whether it’s the UK and the British people or the American people - they
have to be prepared to evolve too. You don’t want to stay the same. Who
wants to stay the same? And then other cultures that come into a new
place. They have to be willing to evolve as well and together we can
create something new and we can create something better maybe.
Tony:
Yes, definitely. That’s what the more optimistic, the more hopeful and
progressive side of Defiance is trying to achieve. And to get away from
the secular nature of humanity that is that you stay over there because
you are a white middle class person and we have black people over here.
And we are Asians over here and we are whatever over there. And we’re
all going to integrate with each other because we get on better
separately. I think in the sense of Defiance and in the sense of the
world at large, people are traveling now to different countries for many
different reasons because of the lack of opportunity in their own
countries, because of war and my wife is, you know, she was born in
Saigon. You know, she came over here in 73 and she’s like - if you will -
with Datak and Stahma in the sense of their being a refuge - a
displaced person who had to come to come to another country for
opportunity. And then I think it’s for anybody who comes from another
country because they’re forced to do so and to come into a society. And
arguably the greatest country in the world America - I wouldn’t even say
arguably - for opportunities for people from all over the world. I mean
that’s why America started in the sense of when people came from Europe
and people came from South America and, you know, they founded the
United States. It was other cultures within the American - well
obviously the American Indians were here first. People started creating
opportunity and that’s what - that’s what America’s been based on. So
the political cultural similarities between America and the planet today
with Defiance. I think people are going to find very - especially for a
science fiction show that you might not think has that depth or clout
or progressive sort of message to say no to people. I think that’s what -
within this wonderful fantastical backdrop of the science fiction
world. You’re going to find some very, very human stories with it - no
pun intended - about people being alienated within their societies
wherever they come from. And I think that’s what Datak and Stahma and a
lot of other characters in the show that we talk about, that we discuss
and I think that’s what makes it - this show could go far in many ways
because it’s holding a mirror up to like any good drama. It’s like
holding a mirror up to society and saying this is what we are. You don’t
like those bits. These are some good bits but we can’t deny what we
are. And the question is what are we going to do about it? Are we going
to try to make it better or are we going to turn a blind eye to it and
just go backwards basically because if we don’t land from our past then
our future can be very bleak. Jesus it all got very heavy all of the
sudden. As Gandhi said, an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.
So he was a good bloke.
Q) Have either of you played the game yet and if they have any plans for your characters to be in the game?
Jaime:
My character’s not in the game. As I was saying I’m kind of quite a
lady. A few unknowns or a few in the next season but I did play the game
at Comic-con and I played it a couple of months ago in the UK and I
wasn’t very good at it at all. I think for the qualities that drew me to
acting like kind of getting into things and kind of having empathy and
kind of getting excitable and like kind of following my impulses make me
a horrible, horrible gamer because I get really excited and I squeal
like a little girl and I get really nervous when I’m playing the game.
And so I’m better off kind of watching other people play the game
because it think you need to be cool, calm and kind of cool headed when
you play these games and they’re not qualities really that I have. But I
enjoy watching the game because you see the grass blowing in the wind
and it’s so intricate and the world is really kind of beautifully
created. So that kind of enriched me as an actor but unfortunately I’m
not a very good gamer at all.
Tony: With the way Jaime says that, I think I’d like to watch Jaime playing the game actually.
Jaime:
I do have this picture of me playing the game. I’m all like elbows and
hunched and worried like I’m an anxious little child.
Tony: I’ve
played the game at Comic-con. I’ve got it at home. When I get a chance,
I get on there. But the thing is the video games - once you get on it -
it’s not like yes, I’ll play for ten minutes. You can waste hours
playing video games. And some people don’t have that much time. But I
think they’ve done a great job with it.I think when I was in a Syfy
event in New York recently; I spoke to some of the gamers. I played
there and the guys who created the game. And God, there’s like 300
people who have been involved in it over the past five years. And they
said characters like Stahma and Datak and Alak will be integrated into
the next stage of the game.
Jaime: Including me?
Tony: Oh
yes, including you. Yes because you’re like oh, what have I got? Oh,
I’ve got to really challenge blade and I’m sure Stahma’s going to have
some little maybe Stahma will have some special powers. Who knows? But
yes, I think so. I don’t think they could put me in the game and not put
you in.But if I’m going to have to get into a little black tight motion
capture outfit, You’re coming along with me sister. You look like an
Olympic runner. But I think the characters are going to get empty
because this game it’s slowly hopefully going to expand more and more.
So then I think it would be fun to be part of and then they’ve already
mentioned that some of the main other characters are going to be part of
the game. So Julie and Jaime and myself and Jesse and so on. So that’ll
be quite exciting to play yourself in the game.
http://starrymag.com/content.asp?ID=7399&CATEGORY=Interviews&PAGE=1
Defiance - Conference Call Transcript - Tony Curran and Jaime Murray
SYFY CONFERENCE CALL - DEFIANCE
Moderator: Brenda Lowry
May 1, 2013
3:30 pm CT
Operator:
Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for standing by. Welcome to
theSyfy conference call for Defiance. As a reminder, this conference is
being recorded Wednesday, May the 1st 2013. I would now like to turn the
conference over to Brenda Lowry. Please go ahead.
Brenda Lowry:
Thank you. Hi everyone. Thanks so much for joining us on our call
today with Tony Curran and Jaime Murray - two of the starts of Defiance
who portray Datak Tarr and Stahma Tarr - members of an alien race
called the Castithans.
Hi guys, thanks so much for doing this call today. We’re really excited.
Jaime Murray: Hi. Thanks for having us.
Tony Curran: Thank you. Hi.
Brenda Lowry: And in case anybody doesn’t know by now, Defiance airs Monday nights at
9:00 PM onSyfy. So I think without further ado, let’s kick off the call.
Operator: Our first question comes from the line of Jamie Ruby with
scifivision.com. Please go ahead.
Jamie
Ruby: So can you talk about - especially in this next episode
coming up, we’re learning more and more that Stahma seems to be the one
in charge of the whole council thing and everything. Can you guys talk
just kind of in the general sense about how that dynamic is shifting and
how we’ll continue to see more of that through the season?
Jaime
Murray: Well, you know, it’s really an interesting role to me
because although I’m playing this woman who I see five years in the
future, really I sometimes felt like I was in a period piece because
there are two things about the Castithans which are very similar to, you
know, where we came from, you know, hundreds of years ago. And that is
that they come from very patriarchal society. So based on gender, Stahma
is quite repressed and her job would really be, you know, what
historians might think well, you know, a breeder and a bleeder.
And she could have been expected to be a good mother. However
this is actually complicated by the fact that Stahma and Datak come from
a society with a really strict cloth system and that they have very
strict cost. And Datak would almost have been an untouchable. He would
have been on the very lowest end of that kind of cloth system. And
Stahma would have been at the very top almost like aristocracy or
royalty.
So they would never on their own planet have
been together. But when, you know, it’s a whole new world that they’re
on now and in many ways, the qualities that Datak had to employ to
survive back on Caspi made him very powerful and strong in the new world
of Defiance because, you know, he’s - and she’s now with this very
powerful man.
But there’s this interesting dynamic in
their relationship and it’s almost like there’s an interesting power
struggle because she’s more highly educated than him and she’s - I mean
they’re both intelligent but she has, you know, she’s probably been to
more schools than him and maybe seen at the lumber game where he’s very
shroud and sharp and he has lived on his instincts all his life.
And so together they’re an awesome combination but because of
the fact that she’s a woman, she can’t really - she can’t tell him what
to do - not outright. So she has to be very cunning and shroud and go
sideways about how she communicates ideas to him and suggests, you know,
ways of dealing with situations to him and I think that he is sometimes
at the whim of his emotions more than Stahma. Stahma is very controlled
and so sometimes she’s often counseling him to be more patient, to take
more time, think of the long term and try to do it without injuring his
pride.
Tony Curran: Yes, I think as you see - as an
interesting question - as you see the season progress and each episode
unfolding, as Jaime says, you know, you see so many interesting dynamics
with a lot of the characters but one of, you know, they’re all
compelling but one of the one’s we thinks’ quite interesting is the fact
of Jamie as of Stahma and Datak coming from another planet but also
coming from very different ends of the spectrum within a very sort of
social sort of society, culturally very different.
And I
think that - I think Datak - I think they’re both - they’re trying to
reinvent themselves basically which they have been doing like Stahma
would have had - wouldn’t have had as much power like she has now the
way she’s able to will it in her very subtle manner what she has to do
with Datak and thinking, you know, giving him the feeling that, you
know, he’s holding all the cards or he’s got the ideas when actually,
you know, she doesn’t want to upset him because he gives such a volatile
character.
But back on their own planet she was
obviously - as Jaime said - it’s a very clear patriarchal society. She
would not be able to wield her cunning sort of ways as she’s doing in
Defiance. And then Datak and his sort of journey as well - I think he’s
beginning to, you know, become a little wiser and Stahma’s almost
unconsciously or she wants it to be unconsciously skewing Datak in the
sense of no honey, don’t react too quickly because, you know, you have
to keep your volatility and your temperament in check because when you
behave like that, it doesn’t do you any good. It doesn’t do your family
any good.
So I think that as the season progresses and
hopefully, you know, we will cross for next season. You’ll see that
Datak becomes a little - he wizens up to Stahma’s sort of cunning
approach to things because as, you know, he’s a bit of a blunt
instrument and she’s much more of a refined tool if you like. And both
of them together are obviously – they are, you know, quite a formidable
couple.
Jaime Murray: So one thing that I thought was
interesting for me as an actor is I realized that we all wear masks and
sometimes there’s an act where you kind of work out which mask your
character is wearing when. And sometimes, you know, you’ll start as an
actor - you’ll have a relationship that you can show where your
character’s not wearing that mask. And as Stahma she’s wearing the mask
all the time and she wears the mask even with Datak and it’s not that
she doesn’t love him and obviously she does.
But it was
interesting for me - as the season progressed, I felt as though there
were times when the mask slipped and that was very interesting for me.
Not completely - I’m hoping that it will next season though.
Tony
Curran: No, that’s an interesting point because it’s sort of -
and as Jaime said, you know, it’s a very human thing because it’s
something that we - because to cast the fans in the show, me and Jaime’s
characters Jesse who plays Alak. They started shooting and we had not
actually even, you know, we were supposed to start shooting but we
hadn’t actually completed, you know, finished on our makeup and how we
will look. And I think that was an important thing about playing the
aliens.
Yes, so aliens, different languages. We look
different. We sound different. But we wanted it to put people to be able
to see the actors, to see your eyes, to see your emotions. And I think
that’s an important fact of playing them and the way we’re designed and
the way we look that you can relate to them. They are aliens but they
have many, many, many traits that are very similar, especially the, you
know, the patriarchal, matriarchal society within especially what it’s
like, you know, in Asia cultures and Saudi Arabia where, you know, women
are still looked down upon in many, many cultures which is, you know,
which is completely wrong.
But within - it’s the similar
similarities within outcasts in society and I think that’s what makes
the women in Defiance so very, very powerful and very relatable I think
to young women or any women out there because of the way they approach
the characters. And I think that’s very compelling of them for people to
watch, you know.
Jamie Ruby: Well thank you very much.
Tony Curran: Oh sure. Sorry, I thought I lost you there.
Operator: And now our next question comes from the line of Steve Eramo from Scifi & TV Talk. Please go ahead.
Steve
Eramo: Before I begin, I have to tell you I’m thoroughly
enjoying your work on the show so far. You guys have created a couple of
really intriguing and rather creepy characters and I’m really looking
forward to see where they take them this season.
Tony Curran: Thank you.
Jaime Murray: We’re going for creepy.
Tony
Curran: If you have nothing to do with day talk, it’s all
Stahma. I would trade, you know, I was a shy kid just going about my
work, you know.
Steve Eramo: My first question for both of
you - I wanted to find out if you could tell us a little bit about
maybe what initially attracted you to your respective roles and also
maybe what are some of the initial acting challenges you both found
stepping into these executive shoes.
Tony Curran: It’s a
good question and the first thing that attracted me to well reading the
script, there was the size and scale of it all and how challenging this
would be and also that the, you know, playing an alien and what that
would entail I think for me was just sort of - it was going to be a
challenge for anybody really. But I think for me it was that to break it
all down with the characters, you know. If you don’t, you can have this
fantastical backdrop of these amazing sort of aliens and the statistics
of backdrop.
But if you don’t have the - if you don’t
have these interesting characters that people can relate to then I think
for me that was the most important thing, you know. And also playing
someone who’s from a difference of, you know, different planetary system
and also who is actually a kid from, you know, from the gutter as well.
And this interesting dynamic that I found worth having, you know,
something like sense and sensibility if you will when someone from the
gutter ends up marrying someone from the upper edge lawns of society.
So for me it was just interesting to play a character who had
that sort of - who had that interesting dynamic with, you know, within
someone who came from a different star cast system.
Jaime Murray:
Yes, I agree. Definitely my relationship with Datak - the Stahma
Datak relationship was very interesting to me and I felt as though it
was, you know, a lot of play that we could have with that and, you know,
a very complex relationship. But also, you know, just playing another
specifies was just so interesting to me because, you know, this is the
wonderful thing about Syfy. It just skews things, you know, it just
offers access just enough that it gives you a whole new way of looking
at things - a really fresh perspective on things.
And,
you know, I knew instinctively but in my quest to play an alien, it
would make me take a fresh look at what it means to be human because,
you know, you want these - you want these things that the - have I lost
you guys? You’re so quiet.
Operator: No, we’re listening intently.
Tony Curran: No. On your every word my darling, I’ll just make some noises now and again.
Jaime Murray: Keep breathing or something.
Tony Curran: Keep breathing. Don’t die on me. Don’t die on me. Okay.
Jaime
Murray: You know, you have to kind of choose things which you
are universal enough that the audience wants these different species to
kind of make it work. They’re recognizable, you know. You don’t want to
just play, you know, an animal or, you know, you want to play something
which is human enough but different enough.
And so, you
know, as an actor I had to kind of think how am I going to make this
woman different enough that people can think she’s an alien but similar
enough that they’re not completely kind of turned off by her and they
can actually invest in the drama of these people and this family.
And so we kind of - we talked a lot about, you know, cultural
and social things which are jarring and make you feel very
uncomfortable. And you can have fun with that. Some of those things are
quite harmless, you know, and others are really horrendous. So in the
second episode, you know, one of the, you know, fairly harmless ones was
that creepy scene in the bus somewhere, you know, and I’m very scantily
caught and I’m hugging my grownup son.
I think that’s
sort of super creepy. But, you know, you could go to European country
or, you know, an African country and, you know, nudity is handled in a
completely different way. So that was, you know, that was just kind of
like an interesting kind of quirk that shows that you’re not in Kansas
anymore but then obviously in the second episode as well you see
something far more disturbing and grotesque when you see a man strung up
and tortured before the whole town because he’s ashamed of the cast of
some people.
So it was - I think there’s almost elements
where you can have fun with these differences and other areas where you
can make really valid important points and which aren’t too far removed
which is what’s going on in, you know, other places in the world today.
So I thought so there was a lot of power and there was a lot of scope in
playing these characters and I was really excited about that.
Tony
Curran: And you know the thing you mentioned Jaime about the
moment in the bath scene. I spoke to Kevin Murphy about that. That
moment where, you know, Stahma’s sort of half semi-clad and, you know,
her son is wearing his denim jacket and I’m in the bath. And she gives
me a look as if to say oh you be quiet. And then I give her this weird
smile which is obviously - everybody’s tweeting out going what was going
on there?
And apparently NBC were like well we’re not
too sure about that moment and apparently they weren’t going to put it
in the show. And...
Jaime Murray: They put it in the show. It was so upsetting.
Tony
Curran: It was so weird and people - I said to Kev - but that’s
exactly what we people should be reacting to. We’re not doing it for
some sort of well let’s do something to surprise them in some sort of
emotional response. We’re doing it because the towels are not from
Kansas. The towels are from another planet. And there weird and
wonderful and then their weirdness should definitely, you know, it
should be odd but it should be hopefully people should think it’s kind
of different and interesting and intriguing enough to go.
These people are - how many eccentric wonderful weird people do you
look at and go wow, he’s odd or she’s odd but then you go I’d like to
see them again. And I think that’s what I think the Tarr's are like. You
know, as Jaime said you want to make them relatable but at the same
time they have to be, you know, we have to make them, you know, a little
different, yes.
Jaime Murray: Different enough that you
can believe that they’re organically a different species because
obviously I’m a human woman playing this alien. So I’ve got to do a few
somersaults so you can see...
Tony Curran: Allegedly Mrs. Murray, you are human. I’ve heard otherwise.
Jaime
Murray: Only on the outside, exactly. But you know, actually
that point that you made, you know, it - didn’t necessarily, you know,
you have to kind of think, you know, I didn’t want to move like a human
woman, you know. And so when it kind of came to challenges, you know,
there’s part of, you know, my acting technique is, you know, I focus on
the other actor and I read and respond to their behavior. And then I
allow my own impulses - I try not to sensor my impulses - and I allow my
own impulses to come up.
That’s kind of like basically,
you know, a very basic description of sometimes, you know, how I try and
make it work on set. But, you know, in playing this alien, a lot of my
impulses are human. Sometimes I would have an impulse and I would think
oh well what is the opposite of that impulse? So for example in the
pilot, you know, I knew that I had to get into this bath and, you know, I
realized that there were things that I would do if I’m scantily clad as
a human woman. There is a certain self consciousness that I have about
my body and a certain way that I would hold myself which is very
recognizably female and human.
And I thought well why
would this alien species have the same hang-ups and the same and hold
their body in the same way as a human female, you know. Why would this
alien - why would she not necessarily stand like a cat or a serpent or
ballerina, you know, kind of erect and proud, you know. You know,
they’re not the same species.
So you kind of try and make
as many choices which shows that they are different and I think that,
you know, obviously we work with amazing makeup artists and costume
designers and, you know, the lighting with the DP, what he did in the
tar house lighting wise I think really elevated our scenes.
Tony
Curran: And we’ve also been on the planet - it’s interesting
because we still - as Jaime said - we still have sort of a trace of our
own cultural and alien background physically. But the tars have also
been on planet earth since 2013. It’s now, you know, 33 years later. So
we have integrated it. Me and Jaime talked about it a lot with the
producers direct about how we would sound when we were speaking English.
And we were going to try some interesting accents. But then we decided
that because it was set in America that we would, you know, have to talk
about this vocal side of it.
We would try and integrate
best into the society as much as possible. So we would have sounded like
the American people around us. But Jaime made a wonderful way of
speaking as Stahma where she tries - she’s very slowly deliberate and
tries to find the words as if it’s still tricky for the Castithans to
speak English but it’s, you know, they’re very deliberate about it
whereas the way I sound and we thought, oh we have to sound the same and
then we decided well if someone’s from Oxford in England and someone’s
still from England but from the east end of London, you know, they are
going to sound very different and that’s why, you know.
That’s why obviously Datak and Stahma you know, when we speak with certain vocals but...
Jaime
Murray: No but Tony, Tony also you - you are integrated. You
learn your - the American language from other Americans on the streets
of Defiance and, you know, in the Shanty Town. Whereas I’ve learned to
do that and actually I rarely leave the house. I mean you’re the only
person, you know, I rarely go out. I start to in this season, you know, I
start to integrate a little bit more. But up until this point, I think I
really very rarely - Christie’s probably one of the first humans I’ve
really spoken to.
Tony Curran: Indeed, she’s someone like
Lady Diana back in the day or, you know, there’s these public
engagements. Stahma wouldn’t be out on the street very much at all
really so whereas, you know, I won’t say too much about it but there is -
there’s many avenues of back story to go down in the coming weeks and
you’ll find out some interesting things about the tars by going by, you
know, by going back which they may do. I’ll put it like that. I beg you
that’s enough.
Steve Eramo: Well listen. I cannot wait and
again, I’m big fans of you both so again, it was an absolute pleasure
speaking to you and best of luck and success with the show.
Operator: And now our next question comes from the line of Tony Tellado with Scifi Talk. Please go ahead.
Tony
Tellado: Hey. I have a question about your relationship on the
show and one thing I’ve noticed so far - she obviously manipulates him a
little bit. Do you think it’s - for both of you - do you think he knows
he’s being manipulated and do you think he’d ever do something about
that?
Tony Curran: Sorry, that’s a good, good question.
It’s an interesting question, aye, Jaime; because I don’t think
anybody’s ever asked that question. I’ve thought about it myself. I’ve
thought about it and...
Jaime Murray: It kind of depends on how they do it. And sometimes if it feels good, I’ll just go with it.
It’s
like, you know, there’s sometimes moments, you know, and I would be in
scenes with Tony and Tony’s like such an in the moment organic actor.
And, you know, it was almost kind of - sometimes we would have these
scenes and they were so charged because it was like, you know, it was
almost like a love scene sometimes because it was so volatile but kind
of - it didn’t kick off, you know, because I think that he kind of knew
and he kind of appreciated it but it was kind of a thing that they
didn’t talk about because, you know.
Tony Curran: Yes, you
know, I think that it’s interesting, especially, you know, in episode
one in the bath and she starts saying, you know, I have to get some
changes and I’m going to kill, you know, it’s pretty intense stuff to
say I’m not going to kill him but I’m going to kill his whole family.
You know, it’s like I’ll tip toe, I’m going to wake up in the middle of
the night and burn his house down and piss on his ass, you know.
So he’s in the bath and, you now, as Stahma does - she gently
puts the idea in his head that, you know, maybe we should marry these
kids off and then we could take over the mines. And I think definitely
with Datak or with anybody really - if someone gives you an idea -
someone gives you their opinion that just happens to be, you know, more
informed or a great idea. I think that Datak - I think he admires
Stahma. I think he definitely knows in the back of his mind that there
is this culture class system which realistically he isn’t part of - he
was never part of.
She, you know, with her husband from
the past, you know, he would have been telling her what to do. But now
he knows that she’s smart. He knows that. But obviously as Jaime said
before, it’s the unsaid. You know, she’s not going to come out and say
oh for God’s sake Datak don’t do that. Do this. She does it - Stahma
does it in a very suggestive and very, you know, very manipulative cat
like way. But she’s manipulating Datak for the better of the two of them
of their drive to the top. She’s not manipulating him in a detrimental
way - well not yet anyway.
But she’s - I think Datak you
know, subconsciously he knows she’s smart and I think he likes the way
she approaches him with her ideas and sometimes they would later write
the episodes where they talk about being refugees and things to do with
Alak. And it isn’t manipulative. It’s more, you know, you see Stahma
come out of her shell and she just can’t deal with Datak. Sort of a
subtle approach - if you will - from Stahma.
Sometimes
Stahma just puts her foot down and says listen Datak you fucking get a
grip here. Pardon my French. Get a grip here or we’re going to lose what
we’ve got. So yes, I think he knows what she’s doing and I think he
respects her and stuff like that. But at the same time I think Stahma
has to - she still has to watch her step in many ways which is
unfortunate but I think that’s what makes the two of them then sort of
quite the dynamic between them quite compelling.
Jaime Murray:
I think at the beginning, you know, when you first meet Datak he’s -
he listens to her much more and then as the season progresses, I think
maybe he does - he enjoys some success in kind of the social climbing
that they’re both kind of trying to achieve even from the beginning. And
I think that actually her control over him listened.
He
becomes more - wouldn’t you say Tony - he becomes more confident in his
abilities and he thinks obviously he doesn’t need her council quite so
much.
Tony Curran: Yes but I think that’s because he’s
getting these good ideas but he doesn’t actually - I think he has to
realize that these good ideas are coming from not just her ideology and
her philosophy about things but also it’s about calming him down and
also giving him good ideas but also I think Datak’s going to change and I
think Stahma’s molding him into - he’s always got the power there and
the sort of the blunt instrument and the volatility there which is
required in a town like Defiance. But that can get you only so far.
But I think Stahma - I think Jaime I think that Stahma’s - she’s
fine tuning the attack and to someone - she’s educating them I think. I
think she’s educating them.
Jaime Murray: So usually when
Stahma councils Datak it’s to fulfill their long-term aspirations
whereas the difference between them is Datak will have good ideas how to
win something in the moment. But sometimes the repercussions of those
choices are, you know, not worth that win.
Tony Curran: Yes, it’s like winning the battle but losing the war if you will.
Jaime
Murray: And sometimes also he will make good decisions to win in
that moment but what he’s actually winning is the satisfaction of his
own ego.
Tony Curran: Yes, it’s very much about his own - he needs that fix in that moment of sort of...
Jaime
Murray: It’s that narcissistic fix. She’s not a narcissist.
She’s almost vampiric in her avaricious kind of materialistic social
climbing aspiration but she never needs to take credit. She never needs
to see it be seen as the victor and she never needs to be right whereas
he needs all those things really badly. And she plays on those in order
to kind of achieve her means.
But there is a real shift
in power as the season goes on and they both end up in kind of territory
- kind of new territory and they have to kind of find a new way of
dealing with each other.
Tony Curran: I think that’s
interesting that Jaime says that sort of the unsung heroin if you will -
she’s the stoical and, you know, she said that she may have that
egotistical say to her but as like with Datak she’s the quiet - she’s
the silence of them - the stoical sort of, you know, stealth like
serpent that comes through the grass and takes its prey down.
And then you turn around and she’s gone, you know. She’s so - she’s
smarter. She’s probably arguably the smartest, you know, alien of
person in town and God knows what she would be like if she did - if she
did good things for the community which I’m sure Stahma will. But I
think that she’s just a stoical character Stahma. Very quiet and I think
that one day hopefully - or maybe that will never happen - that Datak
and Stahma can really relate to each other in maybe a more sort of
equality - yes with an equality sort of approach. I don’t know if that
would happen.
Yes, you know, I think that would be
interesting. But right now I think the dynamic between the two of them
has got so many possibilities because there’s things in the next few
episodes that show up which I obviously can’t talk about but Stahma does
things that maybe Datak doesn’t know about and that, you know, if your
better half - your husband or your wife start doing things that you
don’t know that they’re doing and then you find out about them. You
know, that can definitely stir the pot if you will.
Jaime Murray: What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.
Tony Curran: Exactly.
Tony
Tellado: Well from a viewer standpoint, if I were each on their
bad side, I would fear her more because I mean I could see him coming
from a mile away but her - I’d always be watching my back and that’s
really what...
Tony Curran: I know, exactly. You’d hear a
silverback coming through the jungle before you’d see a snake in the
grass. Let’s put it that way. I’m watching the Twitter feed here and
everything we’re saying’s coming up. It’s quite funny.
Jaime Murray: Hooray. It’s not live is it?
Tony
Curran: Stahma is the silent stealthy one, probably the smartest
in town. There you go. It’s all down there in the tweets darling. You
can’t hide from it.
Jaime Murray: You’re so rude.
Tony Curran: It’s so rude. I thought this was between us. That’s cool.
Operator: Our next question comes from the line of Erin Willard with Scifi Mafia. Please go ahead.
Erin
Willard: Hi, thanks so much for being on the call today. I was
already a big fan of both of your work and so I’m so glad you’ve been
given these such great parts in Defiance. And I got to say this subtlety
that each of you bring to your parts are what I really, really enjoy
about watching you to do it overall.
Tony Curran: Thank you. Jaime’s very subtle as Stahma. I’m trying to be a little more subtle.
Erin
Willard: Well, you know, it’s those troubled times that you kind
of make us like him that I really appreciate because, you know, it’s
one thing to be kind of big and loud and mean but then every once in a
while you’ll pop in something like, you know, I really kind of like this
but I don’t want to...
Jaime Murray: Yes and I think that
I - whether the audience sees it - but when I’m in scenes with Tony,
you know, he’s like there’s a lot of hot air that comes out of Datak but
there’s so much vulnerability. You know, I would be in a scene with
Tony with Datak you know, and it’s confusing as an actor sometimes. And
just see this little boy or this little alien.
Tony Curran: Yes, no it’s true. It’s true.
Jaime
Murray: And I often, you know, there were real moments as Stahma
that I just wanted to take care of him. I just wanted to save him from
himself. And I loved him. I love him.
Tony Curran: Now
going down that straight through as a gentleman just said who was on the
phone, I think that, you know, those big characters like Datak as a lot
of men who have got a volatile temper and it’s probably from their
unfortunate past that they’ve had. So then Stahma’s obviously had more
of a, you know, silver spoon in her mouth - if you will - upbringing.
But she is definitely - I don’t think she’s as vulnerable as Datak can
be. He is like a - yes, he can be like a spoiled child. Yes, that’s a
good point.
Jaime Murray: So I wanted to ask...
Tony Curran: Which makes people interesting to play I guess. It makes them interesting to play, yes.
Erin
Willard: And that’s kind of what I wanted to ask is what - do
you have like a greatest joy about your part and maybe your biggest
challenge?
Tony Curran: Yes I think what you mentioned
there that I think is fun because, you know, there’s a lot of rules out
there that anchors play and, you know, and I think for me playing a role
that it’s, you know, when I was doing the pilot there was the rule of
this oh aggressiveness - oh he’s this aggressive type alien type
character. But I always - I always look to movies like him - angels with
dark faces or white heat. I was always a big fan of Jimmy Cagney.
And when people like you are playing an alien and you’re
watching Cagney movies, I’m like yes because - like he was a kid from
the street as well. And at the end of the day he was as hard as a shell
that he perceived to have. He was damaged. He was damaged goods. He had
issues and the reason that he behaved the way he behaved was because of
his upbringing because obviously like we all - our past shapes, our
future. And definitely Datak’s past is shaping his present and his
future.
But just to be all about sort of blowing all air
and behaving in an aggressive manner would be very dull. I think it’s
interesting to see that and you’ll see in episodes to come how Stahma
you know, takes care of Datak because he is like a big kid in many ways
and he is a vulnerable individual who tries to have this, you know, he
is a strong character. There’s no doubt about it but at the same time
like any human being - to talk about humans again. Yes, I think that he
is - there are huge vulnerabilities in him.
Anyway, a lot
of the characters in Defiance - they have many skeletons in the closet
and they’re almost trying to separate themselves from their past and
instead of facing the past and dealing with it. And I think as you see
the next few episodes come up, there are some back-story coming up which
will reveal things about many characters in Defiance that you don’t
know about now.
So yes, I think it’s - it’s good to have a
role - of course the regular character. If it’s all on the same level,
it becomes, you know, not so compelling I feel.
Erin Willard: And Jaime?
Jaime Murray: Sorry. I’ve lost a sense of what the question was.
Erin
Willard: Oh, okay. I was kind of asking what your biggest joy
was about your part that you really get the most out of.
Tony Curran: Apart from working with me obviously.
Jaime Murray: No, no way. I really lucked out there.
Tony
Curran: I thought you fell asleep there while I was talking. I
thought Murray - she’s fallen asleep again. She’s buying a pair of Jimmy
Choo shoes. Sorry.
Jaime Murray: The - well I mean I
think, you know, I talked about, you know, the challenge for me in
playing, you know, the unexpected delight in playing this alien is it
forced me to look at what it means to be human. And, you know, when
we’re talking and trying to look like these characters, you know, you’re
constantly talking about what human beings do. So that was really fun.
But also I just feel as though there’s so much scope for this
character. I feel as though and it will start happening in this season
but I feel as though Stahma doesn’t really know who she is. I don’t
really think she has any real idea of who she is. I think she only knows
who she is in terms of other people and I think that’s going to be
really exciting for it to suddenly dawn on her that she’s not on planet
Casti anymore, that she’s surrounded by free and emancipated women.
And
although she has power and although she is intelligent, she is so
defined by the men in her life and I think it will be interesting to see
it dawn on her that there might be other ways of existing in this new
world.
Erin Willard: Wow. I think she’s just going to be a force in nature. I can’t wait.
Tony Curran: She’s going to become more of a force than me.
Jaime Murray: I’m an existing mix of - she’s incredibly powerful and almost mach valiant. I can’t even talk this morning.
Tony Curran: Machiavellian.
Jaime
Murray: Machiavellian in the way that she behaves. But there’s -
a lot of, you know, I often felt very vulnerable playing her. I felt
very isolated. I felt very lonely because she doesn’t really let that
mask slip with anyone. So if you’re constantly hiding behind your mask,
you’re not really truly connected. And I think that she might actually
kind of realize how disconnected she is and she might kind of try and be
brave and connect with somebody and that might be quite of a profound
feeling for her. And let’s see how that turns out.
Tony Curran:
Yes, that’s interesting. If you’re held up in that sort of, you
know, in that castle all the time. I mean there’s not many...
Jaime Murray: She’s a bird in a gilded cage.
Tony Curran: Yes, exactly. I mean she’s not - she can’t release people.
Jaime
Murray: The way you behave in that moment - I mean there’s a raw
immediacy about who he is which, you know, I bet he sleeps quite good
at night whereas I bet Stahma doesn’t sleep so good.
Tony Curran: Yes.
Erin
Willard: Wow. I can’t wait to see any of it. Your performances
have been absolutely outstanding and I really appreciate the work. Thank
you both so much for your lovely responses.
Operator: Our next question comes from the line of Tim Holquinn with TV Over Mind. Please go ahead.
Tim Holquinn: Hi, I’m really thrilled to get to speak to both of you for the first time today.
After
Defiance I got to say “A Well Respected Man” is my new favorite episode
and the bit at the end between Stahma and Nolan says so much in so few
words. Simply brilliant.
My question is about Alak’s
radio station that’s coming up. Kevin Murphy said his plan was to
include bold earth vinyl which reminded me that when you first joined
Twitter, Jaime, you used to tweet out songs by Lily Allen and Vice and
dedicate those.
Jaime Murray: I’m not very technologically
clever and I think I probably got on that website because of Eddie
McClintock from Warehouse 13 and I need to find another way of streaming
music because I love music.
Tim Holquinn: And you would
dedicate like don’t hate me to Julie. So I’m wondering from both of you
as actors, not your characters but if you could add any contemporary
artist to Alak’s playlist just to get artists on the show under the
geyser called earth vinyl. Who might that be?
Jaime Murray: Oh Tony, you go.
Tony
Curran: Oh I think - it’s because old earth vinyl was - I love
that he’s bringing that into it because obviously, you know, I can speak
for all of us on the phone right now. That was definitely the first
musical format that I remember. The first album that I bought was a
Stevie Wonder album called “Hotter than July”. It’s an album with like
“Master Blaster” on it and songs like that. And I’ve always been a big
fan of Motown as well.
So I did well up for my boy - oh
boy play some Motown. Play some, you know, some things like Stevie
Wonder for instance or, you know, Diana Ross. I don’t know. Did I say
that? Yes.
Jaime Murray: I can’t really imagine like Diana Ross in the most...
Tony Curran: I was going to say Diana Ross is the right thing to say.
Jaime Murray: A bit tweaked. A little bit unsettling like something like I can imagine Pearl Jam.
Tony Curran: Yes.
Jaime
Murray: And I imagine like, Jeremy, like there’s kind of like
some rage in all those Pearl Jam songs or, you know, or maybe something a
little bit kind of quirky like the Cure, you know.
Tony Curran: Yes, that would be cool as well, yes. Adam and the Ants.
Jaime
Murray: Exactly. There was some real kind of like because it’s
cool. I’m left in the 80s. There’s some of those kind of 80s, early 90s
song I think are quite kind of apt to have sound guard.
Tony
Curran: I think Alak is going to have a fun time of suggesting
things because (Jessie) for us - he’s such a Syfy aficionado and he
loves his music as well that he’s having such a blast playing Alak and
he’s so wonderful that he’s going to have a tall, you know, ball. He’s
like I’ve got a radio station. And I don’t know if you noticed but
(Jessie)’s been tweeting as Alak talking about recaps in the episodes.
If you see the tweets, you know, he’ll go so last week, what
happened on Defiance. Have you seen that Jaime? Have you seen his
tweets?
Jaime Murray: Yes.
Tony Curran: And he’ll basically recap the episode. It’s a little video like a little video he does.
Tim Holquinn: Like a radio station.
Tony
Curran: Yes, the radio station. And it’s like, you know, show
Nolan or you. And my mom doesn’t like Nolan. He doesn’t like her. And he
talks about it and then it’s a little video feed which, you know, that
boy’s a genius he is. He’s a genius.
Jaime Murray: You didn’t even like Alak particularly.
Tony Curran: You don’t like him?
Jaime Murray: No, you don’t.
Tony
Curran: I don’t like him. I don’t. But if you’re talking about
music, see the end of episode one. There’s a lovely scene between
Fionnula and the train carriage. And there’s some beautiful - I’m not
sure who it is but it’s like from the 20s or 30s - this old sort of
speak easy music that was just added in as sort of background music. And
it was the very last scene in the pilot.
Jaime Murray: Yes.
Tony
Curran: Yes, it really took you into the scene. You were like oh
hang on a minute. Yes, it’s very evocative and where is this taking you
and what is sort of the ambiguity of the scene and what they were
talking about or what they weren’t talking about was very interesting I
thought and the music really brought you into that, yes.
Jaime Murray: Yes. I love the music in our show.
Tony Curran: Yes. It’s some interesting fun stuff.
Tim Holquinn: Thank you so much for that and thank you so much for your talent. I really - I treasure it.
Operator: Our next question comes from the line of Lisa Macklem from SpoilerTV.com. Please go ahead.
Lisa Macklem: I’m just going to join everybody in gushing about how much I love your characters.
Tony
Curran: That’s so nice. I don’t think I’ve done a phone call
like this before Jaime. I don’t know about you but it’s nice to see and
we’re very privileged to have to speak between me and my wonderful
fellow actress and my TV wife. We’re very - yes, it’s very nice to speak
to everybody like this and to have everybody say nice things.
Lisa
Macklem: Well I’m sure I speak for everybody in saying just how
wonderfully in depth your answers are and I mean they’re just terrific.
So I’m going to try and stay on that sort of same track.
So sort of along the lines of what we’ve been talking about them being
from sort of different ends of the spectrum, I mean Datak has kind of
had to embrace his evil because he’s had to sort of fight his way out to
the streets and Stahma is, you know, it’s part of the patriarchal
society that she has to operate the way that she does.
And I’m just wondering because we’ve seen - well Datak can be evil. He’s
definitely not a coward. I mean he’s very brave every time that he has
to fight or defend his family. But I’m just wondering if at some point
he may end up putting the town first. Is he maybe going to get sucked
more into the town politics at some point?
Tony Curran:
Yes, it’s an interesting point actually. And some people have said to me
isn’t there sort of a - Stahma has such a stoic way about her that, you
know, wouldn’t it be the case one day where Stahma might get what she
wants and then, you know, and then Datak is superfluous to requirements
as it were. So to reverse what you said there, it may not be Datak who
puts the tone first. Maybe it’s Stahma but that is yet to be seen.
But yes, to be totally honest, my first instinct of that would
be I don’t know how far Datak will get without Stahma. I think he can
get to a certain point but to talk about or just to mention that the bar
- the house of ill repute is called the need want in Defiance. And it’s
interesting between Datak and Stahma - how much do they need each other
and how much do they want each other?
So I find that
quite an interesting, you know, question which is basically will they
always need each other and will they always desire each other because I
think they desire each other but to get to where they both got to, I
think they definitely needed each other.
So it’s
interesting because I’ve heard some talk through the grapevine of what
may happen in the future and a lot of it is in...
Jaime Murray: I’d like to talk about that Tony.
Tony
Curran: Exactly. But that’s what I’m saying. I’m not going to
talk about it but it’s like oh really, you think that may happen, you
know. So it’s...
Jaime Murray: How do you feel about that? You don’t like it, do you?
Tony Curran: What might happen in the future?
Yes, Datak ends up dying his hair red and I just thought that
was - no I was like a ginger. I can’t be a ginger. I’m already a ginger.
No, I think that there are things that happen in the future that are
going to be, you know, that are going to be very - it’s going to be
tough for Datak and Stahma but I think that it’s a very interesting road
to go down after what’s happened in season one but obviously...
Jaime
Murray: But they are so much a part of each other. The kind of
the two only really exist as a part of each other, you know. And so it’s
very interesting who are they as individuals.
Tony Curran:
Yes and I think that once you take one away from the other - if that
was ever to happen physically I mean - then I think then you would maybe
- as Jaime said - the last lady chatting online. You’d see maybe who
Stahma really is or who she thinks she is or how does she feel about
Datak. Yes, who would fail Datak, yes.
Lisa Macklem: That’s better away from the other. I wonder I think - I think - yes well I don’t know if I can.
Jaime
Murray: Yes, I don’t know if I can answer. I keep on coming at
an attempt to answering your question, Lisa, and I keep almost giving
spoilers away. So it’s a good question because it’s obviously a question
that the writers want you to ask and answer and I think that you might
find the answer to your question, you know, this season.
Tony Curran: Next week, yes.
This is lovely because Kevin - he’s obviously a writer or
producer or wonderfully talented but I’ve worked with directors
sometimes who will come up to you before a scene and they’ll whisper
something in your ear and tell me something that they haven’t told
Jaime. And so I love organically - we use that world - what can Jaime be
because we can do things to each other during a scene, you know, that’s
not scripted that she doesn’t know it’s coming or I don’t know it’s
coming and it just keeps the scene fresh.
And Kevin
Murphy will come up to you in a bar, you know, if you’ve done a
rehearsal and he’ll tell you something about what’s to come and you’re
like seriously, you’re going to write that? And he’s like yes, yes but
don’t tell anybody I told you that, you know.
Defiance (Syfy) Episode 6 “Brothers in Arms”
http://www.tvequals.com/2013/05/20/defiance-syfy-episode-6-brothers-in-arms/
This lucky Ginger beggar took @juliebenz @MsJaimeMurray for a ride to Oblivion in his space balls ship.
https://twitter.com/TonyCurran69/status/338113117210959873/photo/1
Defiance - The Point: Jaime Murray & Tony Curran Audio Interview
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/05/defiance-point-jaime-murray-tony-curran.html?spref=tw
Defiance: Jaime Murray and Tony Curran Discuss Syfy’s Castithan Power Couple
Published on May 20th, 2013
Written by: Nightfly
Earlier
this month Defiance co-stars Jaime Murray and Tony Curran, who play
Stahma & Datak Tarr respectively, graciously spent 90mins on a
highly informative conference-call with members of the press to answer
in-depth questions about their Castithan characters, the show and more.
One
of the first questions asked was what first attracted them to their
individual roles? Curran revealed, “The first thing that attracted me
was the script – the size and scale of it all and how challenging this
would be, and also playing an alien and all that would entail. For me it
all comes down to the characters. Having interesting characters that
people can relate to is the most important thing. I was also attracted
to playing someone from a different planetary system who’s actually a
kid from the gutter as well. It’s an interesting character I wanted to
explore, something like Sense and Sensibility, when someone from the
gutter ends up marrying someone from the upper echelons of society.”
Jaime
affirmed, “I agree. The Stahma/Datak relationship was very interesting
and I felt as though there was a lot of room to play within that very
complex marriage. But playing another species was also interesting to me
because the wonderful thing about sci-fi is that it just skews
perspectives. It offers actors a whole new, really fresh way of looking
at things. I knew instinctively that in my quest to play an alien it
would make me take a fresh look at what it means to be human. You have
to make choices which are universal enough that the audience wants these
different species to make it work because they’re somewhat
recognizable. You don’t want to just play an animal, you want to play
something which is human enough but different enough. I thought, “how am
I going to make this woman different enough that people can think she’s
an alien but similar enough that they’re not completely turned off by
her and they can actually invest in the drama of these people and this
family.” So we talked a lot about cultural and social things which are
jarring and make you feel very uncomfortable and how to have fun with
that. Some of those things are quite harmless, you know, and others are
really horrendous. So in the second episode one of the fairly harmless
ones was that creepy scene in the bathroom where I’m very scantily clad
and hugging my grown up son. I think that’s super creepy. But you could
go to a European country or an African country and, you know, nudity is
handled in a completely different way. So that was kind of an
interesting quirk that shows that you’re not in Kansas anymore, but then
obviously in the second episode as well you see something far more
disturbing and grotesque when Elah Bandik is strung up and tortured
before the whole town because he’s shamed the Castithan people. So
there’s elements where you can have fun with these differences and other
areas where you can make valid, really important points which aren’t
too far removed from what’s going on in other places in the world today.
So I thought there was a lot of power and there was a lot of scope in
playing these characters and I was really excited about that.”
Tony
concurred, “The Tarrs are definitely not from Kansas, the Tarrs are
from another planet. They’re weird and wonderful and their weirdness
should definitely be odd but it should also be just different and
interesting and intriguing enough to make people want to see more of
them. I mean, how many eccentric wonderful, weird people do you look at
and go “wow, he’s odd” or “she’s odd,” but then you go, “I’d like to see
them again.” I think that’s what the Tarrs are like. As Jaime said, you
want to make them relatable but at the same time we have to make them a
little different.”
“I didn’t even want her to move like a human
woman would,” confessed Murray. “The biggest challenge in playing Stahma
is that doing so runs counter to my personal acting technique. My
technique is to focus on the other actor and to read and respond to
their behavior without censoring my impulses; that’s a very basic
description of how I try to make it work on set. But in playing an alien
I have to remember that my impulses are that of a human, so I’ll often
portray the exact opposite of my own initial impulse. I have to think,
“why would this alien species have the same hang-ups or hold their body
in the same way as a human female would?” So you end up making choices
that highlight their alien differences which is, of course, aided
greatly by working with amazing makeup artists and costume designers and
even the lighting which all serve to help elevate our scenes. One thing
that I thought was interesting, as an actor, is I realized that we all
wear masks and sometimes as an actor you kind of work out which mask
your character is wearing when. Sometimes you’ll have a relationship
that you can show where your character’s not wearing that mask but
Stahma wears her mask all the time, even with Datak. It’s not that she
doesn’t love him, obviously she does, but it was interesting for me as
the season progressed, I felt as though there were times when the mask
slipped, not completely, but I’m hoping that it will next season
though.”
A dramatic element the Tarrs deal with, as a couple, is
the fact that they come from decidedly different social strata. Jaime
explained, “It’s really an interesting role to me because although I’m
playing this woman who lives over thirty years in the future, I
sometimes really felt like I was in a period piece because there are two
things about the Castithans which are very similar to where we humans
came from hundreds of years ago. That is that they come from a very
patriarchal society. So, based on gender, Stahma is quite repressed and
her job would really be what historians might’ve called a breeder and a
bleeder. She would’ve been expected to be a good mother. However this is
actually complicated by the fact that Stahma and Datak come from a
society with a really strict caste system. Datak would almost have been
an Untouchable. He would have been on the very lowest end of that kind
of caste system. While Stahma would have been at the very top, almost
like aristocracy or royalty. So they would never on their own planet
have been together. But it’s a whole new world that they’re on now and
in many ways the qualities that Datak had to employ to survive on Casti
made him very powerful and strong in the new world of Defiance. It’s an
interesting dynamic in their relationship, almost like a power struggle,
because she’s more highly educated than him and maybe sees the longer
game whereas he’s very shrewd and sharp and, though very intelligent,
has lived on his instincts all his life. So together they’re an awesome
combination but because of the fact that she’s a woman, she can’t really
tell him what to do – not outright. She has to be very cunning and
shrewd and go sideways about how she communicates ideas to him and
suggests ways of dealing with situations and I think that he’s sometimes
at the whim of his emotions more than Stahma. Stahma is very controlled
and so she’s often counseling him to be more patient, to take more
time, think of the long game and try to do it without injuring his
pride.”
Curran confirms, “As the season progresses you’ll see so
many interesting dynamics develop between a lot of the characters that
are all so compelling. One we think is quite interesting is the fact of
Stahma and Datak coming from another planet but also coming from very
different ends of the spectrum within a very social sort of society
that’s culturally very different. I think they’re both trying to
reinvent themselves basically. Back on Casti, with its very patriarchal
society, Stahma wouldn’t have had as much power like she has now that
she wields in her very subtle manner with Datak. She would not be able
to wield her cunning sort of ways as she’s doing in Defiance. And to
Datak’s journey, I think he’s beginning to become a little wiser thanks
to Stahma’s helping him keep his volatility and temperament in check.
He’s a bit of a blunt instrument and she’s much more of a refined tool,
if you like, but the both of them together are obviously quite a
formidable couple.”
One might wonder if a part of Datak possibly
resents Stahma’s subtle manipulations? “I think he admires Stahma and he
knows that she’s smart,” Tony clarified. “I think he likes the subtle
way she approaches him with her ideas and I don’t believe he sees it as
manipulative. Stahma does it in a very suggestive, cat like way. She is
manipulating Datak but she’s doing it for the betterment of the two of
them and their drive to the top. She’s not manipulating him in a
detrimental way – well not yet anyway. Sometimes Stahma needs to put her
foot down and say, “Listen Datak, get a grip here or we’re going to
lose what we’ve got.” So while Stahma has to sort of watch her step in
many ways with how she gives her advice, I think Datak respects her and
why she does what she does. I think it’s what makes their dynamic
compelling. She gives him these good ideas but he doesn’t actually
realize that these good ideas are coming not just from her ideology and
her philosophy but also in an attempt to calm him down. I think Datak’s
going to change and I think Stahma’s molding him and helping to fine
tune him. He’s always got the sort of blunt instrument volatility there
which is required in a town like Defiance, but that can only get you so
far. I don’t know how far Datak would get without Stahma. I think
Stahma’s arguably the smartest person in Defiance and hopefully she and
Datak will one day be able to relate to each other as equals. Their
relationship has so many possibilities.”
Jaime confided, “There’s
a lot of hot air that comes out of Datak but there’s also so much
vulnerability. There are scenes we’d be in where I’d just see him as a
little boy and there were real moments where, as Stahma, I just wanted
to take care of him. I just wanted to save him from himself. They are so
much a part of each other. They only really exist as a part of each
other, you know? So it’s very interesting to consider who they are as
individuals. Usually, when Stahma counsels Datak it’s to fulfill their
long-term aspirations. Datak’s good ideas are usually about how to win
something in the moment. But sometimes the repercussions of those
choices are not worth that win, what he’s actually winning is the
satisfaction of his own ego. It’s that narcissistic fix. Stahma’s not a
narcissist. She’s almost vampiric in her avaricious social climbing
aspirations but she never needs to take credit. She never needs to be
seen as the victor and she never needs to be right, whereas he needs all
those things really badly and she plays on that in order to kind of
achieve her means. I think he listens to her much more at the beginning
of the season and then as it progresses he enjoys some success in the
kind of social climbing that they’re both trying to achieve causing her
control over him to actually lessen. He becomes more confident in his
abilities and he thinks he doesn’t need her counsel quite so much. So
there’s a real shift in power as the season goes on and they both end up
in kind of new territory and they have to kind of find a new way of
dealing with each other.”
What might become of them if they
weren’t so cohesively united? Tony speculated, “Without having her
around to kind of sooth and counsel him he might act even more rashly,
more like a cornered rat. He’d likely revert back to how he was before
they met. I think without her, yes, he could definitely fall back into
his old ways and I think maybe the complete opposite of that is true for
Stahma. Without him in her life she could start soaring – soaring far
above him and going in a completely opposite direction because she’s so
bloody smart. Then you would see a woman being able to – if she had the
opportunity – wield her power without the help of a man, because she can
stand alone and that would be very interesting for her. Whereas Datak
might be more like a little boy, more like he was to begin with, saying
“Where’s my other, better half?” Along the lines of “Where’s my Mommy?”
Murray confirmed, “Yes, she might discover a new strength in new ways of
being while he might revert back to old behaviors.”
Asked
whether or not [showrunner] Kevin Murphy tells them tidbits about their
characters’ futures, Curran conceded, “Kevin Murphy’s lovely in that
regard. Obviously he’s a wonderfully talented writer-producer but he’ll
also come up to me sometimes before a scene and whisper something in my
ear that he hasn’t told Jaime so it can organically seep into a scene in
ways that aren’t scripted, things that the other actors in the scene
don’t know are coming. It helps keep it fresh. He’ll tell me something
he’s going to write about Jaime’s character and I’ll be like,
“Seriously?! Oh my God.” And I’m sure he does the same to Jaime as well
about other characters. He’s told me some things recently that’re going
to be really challenging, exciting and bracing for our characters to
play in the near future and forward into Defiance‘s second season.”
Read more at
http://www.tvovermind.com/syfy/defiance-jaime-murray-tony-curran-discuss-their-characters-215019?utm_medium=referral&utm_source=t.co
http://www.tvovermind.com/syfy/defiance-jaime-murray-tony-curran-discuss-their-characters-215019/2
Defiance - Syfy Video: 'Brothers in Arms' Sneak Peek - Airs May 20 '13
An
old war buddy (Rob Stewart) of Nolan’s (Grant Bowler) comes to town
chasing after an arms dealer, who quickly becomes a dangerous threat to
Defiance.
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/05/defiance-syfy-video-brothers-in-arms_14.html?spref=tw
“Brothers in Arms” brings ghosts from the past to Defiance.
http://geeksmash.com/tv-show/defiance-review-brothers-in-arms627
Defiance, intervista a Tony Curran e Jaime Murray
http://www.serietivu.com/defiance-intervista-a-tony-curran-e-jaime-murray-165809.html
Defiance - Syfy Video Featurette: 'VFX Before & After - Episode 6'
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/05/defiance-syfy-video-featurette-vfx_24.html?spref=tw
Defiance - Syfy Video: 'Brothers in Arms' Sneak Peek - Airs May 20 '13
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/05/defiance-syfy-video-brothers-in-arms_14.html?spref=tw
Defiance - Syfy: June 2013 Schedule
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/05/defiance-syfy-june-2013-schedule.html?spref=tw
Defiance - Syfy: Marathon Schedule May 25 '13
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/05/defiance-syfy-marathon-schedule-may-25.html?spref=tw
Defiance - Monday at 9/8c - Recap: Episode 105
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXKpi5KnFO8
Defiance - Syfy Video Featurette: 'Mid-Season Recap'
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/05/defiance-syfy-video-featurette-mid.html?spref=tw
Tony Curran & Jaime Murray Talk "Defiance"
The
series Defiance is about a town shared by both humans and aliens alike,
while they try to learn to coexist. Two of the main protagonists of the
story are Datak Tarr, played by Tony Curran, and his wife, Stahma,
played by Jaime Murray. The Tarr family, including their son Alak,
played by Jesse Rath, are of the Votan race called Castithans.
Castithans have a strong caste system, at which, at least on Earth,
Datak is now at the top of. As the series progresses, however, it seems
that Stahma may be the more cunning of the two. Alak, however, does not
share in their views of grandeur, and plans to wed the human girl,
Cristie. His parents, unbeknownst to him, plan to use this to their
advantage.
Curran and Murray recently talked to the digital media about their time working on the series, which airs Mondays on Syfy.
Murray
talked to SciFi Vision about the dynamics of Stahma and Datak's
relationship. "...There's this interesting dynamic in their relationship
and it's almost like there's an interesting power struggle, because
she's more highly educated than him - I mean they're both intelligent
but she has probably been to more schools than him and maybe been at the
[number] game where he's very shrewd and sharp and he has lived on his
instincts all his life.
"And so together they're an awesome
combination but because of the fact that she's a woman, she can't really
tell him what to do - not outright. So she has to be very cunning and
shroud and go sideways about how she communicates ideas to him and
suggests, you know, ways of dealing with situations to him, and I think
that he is sometimes at the whim of his emotions more than Stahma.
Stahma is very controlled and so sometimes she's often counseling him to
be more patient, to take more time, think of the long term and try to
do it without injuring his pride."
Curran added, "As you see the
season progress and each episode unfolding...you see so many interesting
dynamics with a lot of the characters...they're all compelling, but one
of the one's we think is quite interesting is the fact of Jaime as of
Stahma and Datak coming from another planet but also coming from very
different ends of the spectrum within a very sort of social sort of
society, culturally very different.
"And I think they're both -
they're trying to reinvent themselves basically, which they have been
doing. Like Stahma wouldn't have had as much power like she has now, the
way she's able to will it in her very subtle manner, what she has to do
with Datak, and thinking, giving him the feeling that he's holding all
the cards or he's got the ideas when actually, she doesn't want to upset
him because he gives such a volatile character.
...So I think
that as the season progresses, and hopefully, you know, fingers crossed
for next season, you'll see that Datak becomes a little - he wizens up
to Stahma's sort of cunning approach to things because, as you know,
he's a bit of a blunt instrument, and she's much more of a refined tool,
if you like. And both of them together are obviously, you know, quite a
formidable couple."
SyFy Conference Call
Defiance
Tony Curran and Jaime Murray
May 1, 2013
2:30 pm ET
SCIFI
VISION: Especially in this next episode coming up, we’re learning more
and more that Stahma seems to be the one in charge of the whole council
thing and everything. Can you talk in the general sense about how that
dynamic is shifting and how we’ll continue to see more of that through
the season?
JAIME MURRAY: Well, it’s really an interesting role
to me because although I’m playing this woman who I see five years in
the future, really I sometimes felt like I was in a period piece because
there are two things about the Castithans which are very similar to
where we came from hundreds of years ago. And that is that they come
from very patriarchal society. So based on gender, Stahma is quite
repressed and her job would really be what historians might think well, a
breeder and a bleeder.
And she could have been expected to be a
good mother. However this is actually complicated by the fact that
Stahma and Datak come from a society with a really strict class system
and that they have very strict class. And Datak would almost have been
an untouchable. He would have been on the very lowest end of that kind
of class system. And Stahma would have been at the very top, almost like
aristocracy or royalty.
So they would never on their own planet
have been together. But when it’s a whole new world that they’re on now
and in many ways, the qualities that Datak had to employ to survive
back on Casti made him very powerful and strong in the new world of
Defiance because he’s - and she’s now with this very powerful man.
But
there’s this interesting dynamic in their relationship and it’s almost
like there’s an interesting power struggle because she’s more highly
educated than him and she’s - I mean they’re both intelligent but she
has, she’s probably been to more schools than him and maybe been at the
[number] game where he’s very shrewd and sharp and he has lived on his
instincts all his life.
And so together they’re an awesome
combination but because of the fact that she’s a woman, she can’t really
- she can’t tell him what to do - not outright. So she has to be very
cunning and shrewd and go sideways about how she communicates ideas to
him and suggests ways of dealing with situations to him and I think that
he is sometimes at the whim of his emotions more than Stahma. Stahma is
very controlled and so sometimes she’s often counseling him to be more
patient, to take more time, think of the long term and try to do it
without injuring his pride.
TONY CURRAN: Yes, I think as you see
the season progress and each episode unfolding, as Jaime says, you see
so many interesting dynamics with a lot of the characters but one of,
they’re all compelling but one of the ones we think [is] quite
interesting is the fact of Jamie as of Stahma and Datak coming from
another planet but also coming from very different ends of the spectrum
within a very social sort of society, culturally very different.
And
I think they’re both - they’re trying to reinvent themselves basically,
which they have been doing. Like Stahma wouldn’t have had as much power
like she has now, the way she’s able to will it in her very subtle
manner, what she has to do with Datak, and thinking, giving him the
feeling that he’s holding all the cards or he’s got the ideas when
actually, she doesn’t want to upset him because he gives such a volatile
character.
But back on their own planet she was obviously - as
Jaime said, it’s a very clear patriarchal society. She would not be able
to wield her cunning ways as she’s doing in Defiance. And then Datak
and his journey as well - I think he’s beginning to become a little
wiser and Stahma’s almost unconsciously, or she wants it to be
unconsciously, skewing Datak in the sense of no honey, don’t react too
quickly because you have to keep your volatility and your temperament in
check because when you behave like that, it doesn’t do you any good. It
doesn’t do your family any good.
So I think that as the season
progresses, and hopefully, you know, fingers crossed for next season,
you’ll see that Datak becomes a little - he wizens up to Stahma’s
cunning approach to things because, as you know, he’s a bit of a blunt
instrument, and she’s much more of a refined tool, if you like. And both
of them together are obviously, you know, quite a formidable couple.
JAIME
MURRAY: So one thing that I thought was interesting for me as an actor
is I realized that we all wear masks and sometimes there’s an act where
you work out which mask your character is wearing when. And sometimes,
you’ll start as an actor - you’ll have a relationship that you can show
where your character’s not wearing that mask. And as Stahma, she’s
wearing the mask all the time and she wears the mask even with Datak and
it’s not that she doesn’t love him and obviously she does.
But
it was interesting for me - as the season progressed, I felt as though
there were times when the mask slipped and that was very interesting for
me. Not completely - I’m hoping that it will next season though.
TONY
CURRAN: No, that’s an interesting point because it’s sort of - and as
Jaime said, it’s a very human thing because it’s something that we -
because to Castithans in the show, me and Jaime’s characters… Jesse who
plays Alak. They started shooting and we had not actually even, we were
supposed to start shooting but we hadn’t actually completed, finished
our makeup and how we will look. And I think that was an important thing
about playing the aliens.
Yes, so aliens, different languages.
We look different. We sound different. But we wanted it to put people to
be able to see the actors, to see your eyes, to see your emotions. And I
think that’s an important fact of playing them and the way we’re
designed and the way we look that you can relate to them. They are
aliens but they have many, many, many traits that are very similar,
especially the patriarchal, matriarchal society within especially what
it’s like in Asia cultures and Saudi Arabia where women are still looked
down upon in many, many cultures, which is completely wrong.
But
it’s the similar similarities within outcasts in society and I think
that’s what makes the women in Defiance so very, very powerful and very
relatable I think to young women or any women out there because of the
way they approach the characters. And I think that’s very compelling of
them for people to watch.
QUESTION: I’m thoroughly enjoying your
work on the show so far. You guys have created a couple of really
intriguing and rather creepy characters and I’m really looking forward
to see where they take them this season.
TONY CURRAN: Thank you.
JAIME MURRAY: We’re going for creepy.
TONY CURRAN: If you have nothing to do with Datak, it’s all Stahma. I would trade, I was a shy kid just going about my work.
QUESTION:
I wanted to find out if you could tell us a little bit about what
initially attracted you to your respective roles and also maybe what are
some of the initial acting challenges you both found stepping into
these executive shoes.
TONY CURRAN: The first thing that
attracted me to reading the script, there was the size and scale of it
all and how challenging this would be and also playing an alien and what
that would entail I think for me, it was going to be a challenge for
anybody really. But I think for me it was that to break it all down with
the characters. If you don’t, you can have this fantastical backdrop of
these amazing aliens and the statistics of backdrop.
But if you
don’t have these interesting characters that people can relate to then I
think for me that was the most important thing. And also playing
someone who’s from a different planetary system and also who is actually
a kid from the gutter as well. And this interesting dynamic that I
found worth having, something like “Sense and Sensibility” if you will,
when someone from the gutter ends up marrying someone from the upper
edge lawns of society.
So for me it was just interesting to play
a character who had that interesting dynamic within someone who came
from a different star cast system.
JAIME MURRAY: Yes, I agree.
Definitely my relationship with Datak - the Stahma-Datak relationship
was very interesting to me and I felt as though it was a lot of play
that we could have with that and a very complex relationship. But also
just playing another species was just so interesting to me because this
is the wonderful thing about [sci fi]. It just skews things, it offers
access just enough that it gives you a whole new way of looking at
things - a really fresh perspective on things.
And I knew
instinctively but in my quest to play an alien, it would make me take a
fresh look at what it means to be human because you want these things
that the - have I lost you guys? You’re so quiet.
TONY CURRAN: No. On your every word my darling, I’ll just make some noises now and again.
JAIME MURRAY: Keep breathing or something.
TONY CURRAN: Keep breathing. Don’t die on me. Don’t die on me. Okay.
JAIME
MURRAY: You have to choose things which are universal enough that the
audience wants these different species to make it work. They’re
recognizable. You don’t want to just play an animal or you want to play
something which is human enough but different enough.
And so as
an actor I had to think, “How am I going to make this woman different
enough that people can think she’s an alien but similar enough that
they’re not completely turned off by her and they can actually invest in
the drama of these people and this family?”
And so we talked a
lot about cultural and social things which are jarring and make you feel
very uncomfortable. And you can have fun with that. Some of those
things are quite harmless, and others are really horrendous. So in the
second episode, one of the fairly harmless ones was that creepy scene in
the bus somewhere, and I’m very scantily [clad] and I’m hugging my
grownup son.
I think that’s super creepy. But you could go to a
European country or an African country and nudity is handled in a
completely different way. So that was an interesting quirk that shows
that you’re not in Kansas anymore. But then obviously in the second
episode as well you see something far more disturbing and grotesque when
you see a man strung up and tortured before the whole town because he’s
ashamed of the caste of some people.
So I think there’s almost
elements where you can have fun with these differences and other areas
where you can make really valid important points and which aren’t too
far removed which is what’s going on in other places in the world today.
So I thought so there was a lot of power and there was a lot of scope
in playing these characters and I was really excited about that.
TONY
CURRAN: And the thing you mentioned, Jaime, about the moment in the
bath scene. I spoke to Kevin Murphy about that. That moment where
Stahma’s sort of half semi-clad and her son is wearing his denim jacket
and I’m in the bath. And she gives me a look as if to say, “Oh, you be
quiet.” And then I give her this weird smile which is obviously -
everybody’s tweeting out going what was going on there?
And
apparently NBC were like, “Well, we’re not too sure about that moment,”
and apparently they weren’t going to put it in the show. And...
JAIME MURRAY: They put it in the show. It was so upsetting.
TONY
CURRAN: It was so weird and people - I said to Kev - but that’s exactly
what we people should be reacting to. We’re not doing it for some sort
of, “Well, let’s do something to surprise them in some sort of emotional
response.” We’re doing it because the towels are not from Kansas. The
towels are from another planet. And they’re weird and wonderful and then
their weirdness should definitely, it should be odd but hopefully
people should think it’s kind of different and interesting and
intriguing enough to go.
How many eccentric wonderful weird
people do you look at and go wow, he’s odd or she’s odd but then you go
I’d like to see them again. And I think that’s what I think the Tarrs
are like. As Jaime said, you want to make them relatable but at the same
time we have to make them a little different.
JAIME MURRAY:
Different enough that you can believe that they’re organically a
different species because obviously I’m a human woman playing this
alien. So I’ve got to do a few somersaults so you can see...
TONY CURRAN: Allegedly Mrs. Murray, you are human. I’ve heard otherwise.
JAIME
MURRAY: Only on the outside, exactly. But actually that point that you
made, it - didn’t necessarily, you have to think, I didn’t want to move
like a human woman. And so when it came to challenges, part of my acting
technique is I focus on the other actor and I read and respond to their
behavior. And then I allow my own impulses - I try not to censor my
impulses - and I allow my own impulses to come up.
That’s a very
basic description of sometimes how I try and make it work on set. But
in playing this alien, a lot of my impulses are human. Sometimes I would
have an impulse and I would think, “Oh, well, what is the opposite of
that impulse?” So for example in the pilot, I knew that I had to get
into this bath and I realized that there were things that I would do if
I’m scantily clad as a human woman. There is a certain
self-consciousness that I have about my body and a certain way that I
would hold myself which is very recognizably female and human.
And
I thought, “Well, why would this alien species have the same hang-ups
and hold their body in the same way as a human female?” Why would this
alien - why would she not necessarily stand like a cat or a serpent or
ballerina, kind of erect and proud. You know, they’re not the same
species.
So you try and make as many choices which shows that
they are different and I think that obviously we work with amazing
makeup artists and costume designers and the lighting with the DP, what
he did in the Tarr house lighting-wise I think really elevated our
scenes.
TONY CURRAN: And we’ve also been on the planet - it’s
interesting because - as Jaime said - we still have a trace of our own
cultural and alien background physically. But the Tarrs have also been
on planet Earth since 2013. It’s now 33 years later. So we have
integrated it. Me and Jaime talked about it a lot with the producers
direct about how we would sound when we were speaking English. And we
were going to try some interesting accents. But then we decided that
because it was set in America that we would have to talk about this
vocal side of it.
We would try and integrate best into the
society as much as possible. So we would have sounded like the American
people around us. But Jaime made a wonderful way of speaking as Stahma
where she tries - she’s very slowly deliberate and tries to find the
words as if it’s still tricky for the Castithans to speak English but
it’s, you know, they’re very deliberate about it whereas the way I sound
and we thought, oh we have to sound the same and then we decided well,
if someone’s from Oxford in England and someone’s still from England but
from the east end of London, they are going to sound very different and
that’s why.
That’s why obviously Datak and Stahma, when we speak with certain vocals but...
JAIME
MURRAY: No but Tony, Tony also you - you are integrated. You learn the
American language from other Americans on the streets of Defiance and in
the Shanty Town. Whereas I’ve learned to do that and actually I rarely
leave the house. I mean you’re the only person, I rarely go out. I start
to in this season, I start to integrate a little bit more. But up until
this point, I think I really very rarely - Christie’s probably one of
the first humans I’ve really spoken to.
TONY CURRAN: Indeed,
she’s someone like Lady Diana back in the day or there’s these public
engagements. Stahma wouldn’t be out on the street very much at all
really so I won’t say too much about it but there’s many avenues of
backstory to go down in the coming weeks and you’ll find out some
interesting things about the Tarrs by going back, which they may do.
I’ll put it like that. I beg you that’s enough.
QUESTION: I have
a question about your relationship on the show and one thing I’ve
noticed so far - she obviously manipulates him a little bit. Do you
think he knows he’s being manipulated and do you think he’d ever do
something about that?
TONY CURRAN: It’s an interesting
question, aye, Jaime; because I don’t think anybody’s ever asked that
question. I’ve thought about it myself. I’ve thought about it and...
JAIME MURRAY: It kind of depends on how they do it. And sometimes if it feels good, I’ll just go with it.
There’s
sometimes moments, and I would be in scenes with Tony and Tony’s such
an in-the-moment, organic actor. And sometimes we would have these
scenes and they were so charged because it was almost like a love scene
sometimes because it was so volatile but it didn’t kick off, because I
think that he kind of knew and he kind of appreciated it but it was a
thing that they didn’t talk about.
TONY CURRAN: Yes, I think
that it’s interesting, especially in episode one in the bath and she
starts saying I have to get some changes and I’m going to kill, it’s
pretty intense stuff to say I’m not going to kill him but I’m going to
kill his whole family. It’s like I’ll tip toe, I’m going to wake up in
the middle of the night and burn his house down and piss on his ass.
So
he’s in the bath and as Stahma does, she gently puts the idea in his
head that maybe we should marry these kids off and then we could take
over the mines. And I think definitely with Datak or with anybody really
- if someone gives you an idea - someone gives you their opinion that
just happens to be more informed or a great idea. I think that Datak - I
think he admires Stahma. I think he definitely knows in the back of his
mind that there is this culture class system which realistically he
isn’t part of - he was never part of.
She, with her husband from
the past, he would have been telling her what to do. But now he knows
that she’s smart. He knows that. But obviously as Jaime said before,
it’s the unsaid. She’s not going to come out and say, “Oh for God’s sake
Datak, don’t do that. Do this.” Stahma does it in a very suggestive and
very manipulative, cat-like way. But she’s manipulating Datak for the
better of the two of them of their drive to the top. She’s not
manipulating him in a detrimental way – well, not yet anyway.
I
think Datak, subconsciously he knows she’s smart and I think he likes
the way she approaches him with her ideas and sometimes they would later
write the episodes where they talk about being refugees and things to
do with Alak. And it isn’t manipulative. It’s more, you see Stahma come
out of her shell and she just can’t deal with Datak. Sort of a subtle
approach, if you will, from Stahma.
Sometimes Stahma just puts
her foot down and says, “Listen Datak, you fucking get a grip here.”
Pardon my French. “Get a grip here or we’re going to lose what we’ve
got.” So yes, I think he knows what she’s doing and I think he respects
her and stuff like that. But at the same time I think Stahma still has
to watch her step in many ways, which is unfortunate but I think that’s
what makes the dynamic between them quite compelling.
JAIME
MURRAY: I think at the beginning, when you first meet Datak he listens
to her much more and then as the season progresses, I think maybe he
enjoys some success in the social climbing that they’re both trying to
achieve even from the beginning. And I think that actually her control
over him [lessened].
He becomes more - wouldn’t you say Tony? -
he becomes more confident in his abilities and he thinks obviously he
doesn’t need her counsel quite so much.
TONY CURRAN: Yes, but I
think that’s because he’s getting these good ideas but he doesn’t
actually - I think he has to realize that these good ideas are coming
from not just her ideology and her philosophy about things but also it’s
about calming him down and also giving him good ideas but also I think
Datak’s going to change and I think Stahma’s molding him into - he’s
always got the power there and the blunt instrument and the volatility
there which is required in a town like Defiance. But that can get you
only so far.
But I think Stahma - I think she’s fine tuning the
attack and to someone - she’s educating them I think. I think she’s
educating them.
JAIME MURRAY: So usually when Stahma counsels
Datak it’s to fulfill their long-term aspirations. Whereas the
difference between them is Datak will have good ideas how to win
something in the moment, but sometimes the repercussions of those
choices are not worth that win.
TONY CURRAN: Yes, it’s like winning the battle but losing the war, if you will.
JAIME
MURRAY: And sometimes also he will make good decisions to win in that
moment but what he’s actually winning is the satisfaction of his own
ego.
TONY CURRAN: Yes, it’s very much about his own - he needs that fix in that moment of...
JAIME
MURRAY: It’s that narcissistic fix. She’s not a narcissist. She’s
almost vampiric in her avaricious, materialistic social climbing
aspiration but she never needs to take credit. She never needs to see it
be seen as the victor and she never needs to be right, whereas he needs
all those things really badly. And she plays on those in order to
achieve her means.
But there is a real shift in power as the
season goes on and they both end up in kind of new territory and they
have to find a new way of dealing with each other.
TONY CURRAN: I
think that’s interesting that Jaime says that the unsung heroine if you
will - she’s the stoical and she said that she may have that
egotistical say to her but as like with Datak she’s the silence of them -
the stoical, stealth-like serpent that comes through the grass and
takes its prey down.
And then you turn around and she’s gone.
She’s smarter. She’s probably arguably the smartest alien person in town
and God knows what she would be like if she did good things for the
community, which I’m sure Stahma will. But I think that she’s just a
stoical character, Stahma. Very quiet and I think that one day hopefully
- or maybe that will never happen - that Datak and Stahma can really
relate to each other in maybe a more equality – yes, with an equality
sort of approach. I don’t know if that would happen.
Yes, I
think that would be interesting. But right now I think the dynamic
between the two of them has got so many possibilities because there’s
things in the next few episodes that show up which I obviously can’t
talk about but Stahma does things that maybe Datak doesn’t know about
and that if your better half, your husband or your wife start doing
things that you don’t know that they’re doing and then you find out
about them, that can definitely stir the pot if you will.
JAIME MURRAY: What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.
TONY CURRAN: Exactly.
QUESTION:
From a viewer standpoint, if I were each on their bad side, I would
fear her more because I could see him coming from a mile away, but her -
I’d always be watching my back and that’s really what...
TONY
CURRAN: I know, exactly. You’d hear a silverback coming through the
jungle before you’d see a snake in the grass. Let’s put it that way. I’m
watching the Twitter feed here and everything we’re saying’s coming up.
It’s quite funny.
JAIME MURRAY: Hooray. It’s not live, is it?
TONY
CURRAN: "Stahma is the silent stealthy one, probably the smartest in
town. (this was my tweet!)" There you go. It’s all down there in the
tweets darling. You can’t hide from it.
JAIME MURRAY: You’re so rude.
TONY CURRAN: It’s so rude. I thought this was between us. That’s cool.
QUESTION:
I was already a big fan of both of your work and so I’m so glad you’ve
been given these such great parts in Defiance. And I got to say this
subtlety that each of you bring to your parts are what I really, really
enjoy about watching you to do it overall.
TONY CURRAN: Thank you. Jaime’s very subtle as Stahma. I’m trying to be a little more subtle.
QUESTION:
It’s those troubled times that you make us like him that I really
appreciate, because it’s one thing to be big and loud and mean but then
every once in a while you’ll pop in something like, I really kind of
like this but I don’t want to...
JAIME MURRAY: Yes and I think
that I - whether the audience sees it - but when I’m in scenes with
Tony, there’s a lot of hot air that comes out of Datak but there’s so
much vulnerability. I would be in a scene with Tony with Datak and it’s
confusing as an actor sometimes. And just see this little boy or this
little alien.
TONY CURRAN: Yes, no it’s true. It’s true.
JAIME
MURRAY: And I often, there were real moments as Stahma that I just
wanted to take care of him. I just wanted to save him from himself. And I
loved him. I love him.
TONY CURRAN: Now going down that
straight through, I think tha, those big characters like Datak as a lot
of men who have got a volatile temper and it’s probably from their
unfortunate past that they’ve had. So then Stahma’s obviously had more
of a` silver spoon in her mouth - if you will - upbringing. But she is
definitely - I don’t think she’s as vulnerable as Datak can be. He is
like a - yes, he can be like a spoiled child. Yes, that’s a good point.
Which makes people interesting to play I guess. It makes them interesting to play, yes.
QUESTION: Do you have a greatest joy about your part and maybe your biggest challenge?
TONY
CURRAN: Yes, I think what you mentioned there that I think is fun
because there’s a lot of rules out there that anchors play and I think
for me playing a role that it’s, you know, when I was doing the pilot
there was the rule of this oh aggressiveness - oh he’s this aggressive
type alien type character. But I always look to movies like Angels with
Dark Faces or White Heat. I was always a big fan of Jimmy Cagney.
And
when people like you are playing an alien and you’re watching Cagney
movies, I’m like yes because he was a kid from the street as well. And
at the end of the day he was as hard as a shell that he perceived to
have. He was damaged. He was damaged goods. He had issues and the reason
that he behaved the way he behaved was because of his upbringing
because obviously we all - our past shapes, our future. And definitely
Datak’s past is shaping his present and his future.
But just to
be all about blowing all air and behaving in an aggressive manner would
be very dull. I think it’s interesting to see that and you’ll see in
episodes to come how Stahma takes care of Datak because he is like a big
kid in many ways and he is a vulnerable individual who tries to have
this, you know, he is a strong character. There’s no doubt about it but
at the same time like any human being - to talk about humans again. Yes,
I think there are huge vulnerabilities in him.
Anyway, a lot of
the characters in Defiance - they have many skeletons in the closet and
they’re almost trying to separate themselves from their past and
instead of facing the past and dealing with it. And I think as you see
the next few episodes come up, there are some back-story coming up which
will reveal things about many characters in Defiance that you don’t
know about now.
So yes, I think good to have a role - of course
the regular character. If it’s all on the same level, it becomes not so
compelling I feel.
QUESTION: And Jaime?
JAIME MURRAY: Sorry. I’ve lost a sense of what the question was.
QUESTION: I was asking what your biggest joy was about your part that you really get the most out of.
TONY CURRAN: Apart from working with me, obviously.
JAIME MURRAY: No, no way. I really lucked out there.
TONY
CURRAN: I thought you fell asleep there while I was talking. I thought,
“Murray, she’s fallen asleep again. She’s buying a pair of Jimmy Choo
shoes”. Sorry.
JAIME MURRAY: I talked about the challenge for me
in playing, the unexpected delight in playing this alien is it forced me
to look at what it means to be human. And when we’re talking and trying
to look like these characters, you’re constantly talking about what
human beings do. So that was really fun.
But also I just feel as
though there’s so much scope for this character. I feel as though and
it will start happening in this season but I feel as though Stahma
doesn’t really know who she is. I don’t really think she has any real
idea of who she is. I think she only knows who she is in terms of other
people and I think that’s going to be really exciting for it to suddenly
dawn on her that she’s not on planet Casti anymore, that she’s
surrounded by free and emancipated women.
And although she has
power and although she is intelligent, she is so defined by the men in
her life and I think it will be interesting to see it dawn on her that
there might be other ways of existing in this new world.
QUESTION: Wow. I think she’s just going to be a force in nature. I can’t wait.
TONY CURRAN: She’s going to become more of a force than me.
JAIME MURRAY: I’m an existing mix of - she’s incredibly powerful and almost mach valiant. I can’t even talk this morning.
TONY CURRAN: Machiavellian.
JAIME
MURRAY: Machiavellian in the way that she behaves. But I often felt
very vulnerable playing her. I felt very isolated. I felt very lonely
because she doesn’t really let that mask slip with anyone. So if you’re
constantly hiding behind your mask, you’re not really truly connected.
And I think that she might actually realize how disconnected she is and
she might try and be brave and connect with somebody and that might be
quite a profound feeling for her. And let’s see how that turns out.
TONY CURRAN: Yes, that’s interesting. If you’re held up in that castle all the time. I mean there’s not many...
JAIME MURRAY: She’s a bird in a gilded cage.
TONY CURRAN: Yes, exactly. I mean she’s not - she can’t release people.
JAIME
MURRAY: The way you behave in that moment - there’s a raw immediacy
about who he is which, you know, I bet he sleeps quite good at night
whereas I bet Stahma doesn’t sleep so good.
TONY CURRAN: Yes.
QUESTION:
My question is about Alak’s radio station that’s coming up. Kevin
Murphy said his plan was to include bold Earth vinyl, which reminded me
that when you first joined Twitter, Jaime, you used to tweet out songs
by Lily Allen and Vice and dedicate those.
JAIME MURRAY: I’m not
very technologically clever and I think I probably got on that website
because of Eddie McClintock from Warehouse 13 and I need to find another
way of streaming music because I love music.
QUESTION: And you
would dedicate like “Don’t Hate Me” to Julie. So I’m wondering from both
of you as actors, not your characters, if you could add any
contemporary artist to Alak’s playlist just to get artists on the show
under the geyser called Earth vinyl. Who might that be?
JAIME MURRAY: Oh Tony, you go.
TONY
CURRAN: Oh I love that he’s bringing that into it because obviously I
can speak for all of us on the phone right now. That was definitely the
first musical format that I remember. The first album that I bought was a
Stevie Wonder album called “Hotter Than July”. It’s an album with
“Master Blaster” on it and songs like that. And I’ve always been a big
fan of Motown as well.
So I did well up for my boy - oh boy,
play some Motown. Play things like Stevie Wonder for instance or Diana
Ross. I don’t know. Did I say that? Yes.
JAIME MURRAY: I can’t really imagine Diana Ross in the most...
TONY CURRAN: I was going to say Diana Ross is the right thing to say.
JAIME MURRAY: A bit tweaked. A little bit unsettling like something like I can imagine Pearl Jam.
TONY CURRAN: Yes.
JAIME
MURRAY: And I imagine like “Jeremy,” there’s some rage in all those
Pearl Jam songs or maybe something a little bit quirky like The Cure.
TONY CURRAN: Yes, that would be cool as well, yes. Adam and the Ants.
JAIME
MURRAY: Exactly. I’m left in the 80s. There’s some of those 80s, early
90s songs I think are quite apt to have sound guard.
TONY
CURRAN: I think Alak is going to have a fun time of suggesting things
because (Jessie) for us - he’s such a Syfy aficionado and he loves his
music as well that he’s having such a blast playing Alak and he’s so
wonderful that he’s going to have a ball. He’s like, “I’ve got a radio
station.” And I don’t know if you noticed but (Jessie)’s been tweeting
as Alak talking about recaps in the episodes.
If you see the tweets, he’ll go, “So last week, what happened on Defiance. Have you seen that Jaime? Have you seen his tweets?
JAIME MURRAY: Yes.
TONY CURRAN: And he’ll basically recap the episode. It’s a little video, like a little video he does.
QUESTION: Like a radio station.
TONY
CURRAN: Yes, the radio station. And it’s like, “Show Nolan or you.” And
“My mom doesn’t like Nolan. He doesn’t like her.” And he talks about it
and then it’s a little video feed which, that boy’s a genius, he is.
He’s a genius.
JAIME MURRAY: You didn’t even like Alak particularly.
TONY CURRAN: You don’t like him?
JAIME MURRAY: No, you don’t.
TONY
CURRAN: I don’t like him. I don’t. But if you’re talking about music,
see the end of episode one. There’s a lovely scene between Fionnula and
the train carriage. And there’s some beautiful - I’m not sure who it is
but it’s like from the 20s or 30s, this old sort of speakeasy music that
was just added in as background music. And it was the very last scene
in the pilot.
JAIME MURRAY: Yes.
TONY CURRAN: Yes, it
really took you into the scene. You were like, “Oh, hang on a minute.”
Yes, it’s very evocative and where is this taking you and what is the
ambiguity of the scene and what they were talking about or what they
weren’t talking about was very interesting. I thought and the music
really brought you into that, yes.
JAIME MURRAY: Yes. I love the music in our show.
TONY CURRAN: Yes. It’s some interesting fun stuff.
QUESTION: I’m just going to join everybody in gushing about how much I love your characters.
TONY
CURRAN: That’s so nice. I don’t think I’ve done a phone call like this
before, Jaime. I don’t know about you but it’s nice to see and we’re
very privileged to have to speak between me and my wonderful fellow
actress and my TV wife. Yes, it’s very nice to speak to everybody like
this and to have everybody say nice things.
QUESTION: Along the
lines of what we’ve been talking about, them being from different ends
of the spectrum, Datak has had to embrace his evil because he’s had to
fight his way out to the streets and Stahma is, it’s part of the
patriarchal society that she has to operate the way that she does.
We’ve
seen Datak can be evil. He’s definitely not a coward. He’s very brave
every time that he has to fight or defend his family. But I’m just
wondering if at some point he may end up putting the town first. Is he
maybe going to get sucked more into the town politics at some point?
TONY
CURRAN: Yes, it’s an interesting point actually. And some people have
said to me isn’t there sort of a - Stahma has such a stoic way about her
that wouldn’t it be the case one day where Stahma might get what she
wants and then Datak is superfluous to requirements as it were. So to
reverse what you said there, it may not be Datak who puts the town
first. Maybe it’s Stahma but that is yet to be seen.
But yes, to
be totally honest, my first instinct of that would be I don’t know how
far Datak will get without Stahma. I think he can get to a certain point
but to talk about or just to mention that the bar - the house of ill
repute is called the Need/Want in Defiance. And it’s interesting between
Datak and Stahma - how much do they need each other and how much do
they want each other?
So I find that quite an interesting
question which is basically will they always need each other and will
they always desire each other? Because I think they desire each other
but to get to where they both got to, I think they definitely needed
each other.
So it’s interesting because I’ve heard some talk
through the grapevine of what may happen in the future and a lot of it
is in...
JAIME MURRAY: I’d like to talk about that, Tony.
TONY
CURRAN: Exactly. But that’s what I’m saying. I’m not going to talk
about it but it’s like, “Oh really, you think that may happen?”
JAIME MURRAY: How do you feel about that? You don’t like it, do you?
TONY
CURRAN: What might happen in the future? Yes, Datak ends up dying his
hair red and I just thought that was – no, I was like a ginger. I can’t
be a ginger. I’m already a ginger.
No, I think that there are
things that happen in the future that are going to be very - it’s going
to be tough for Datak and Stahma but I think that it’s a very
interesting road to go down after what’s happened in season one.
JAIME
MURRAY: But they are so much a part of each other. The two only really
exist as a part of each other. And so it’s very interesting; who are
they as individuals?
TONY CURRAN: Yes and I think that once you
take one away from the other - if that was ever to happen physically,
then I think then you would see maybe who Stahma really is or who she
thinks she is or how does she feel about Datak. Yes, who would fail
Datak, yes.
JAIME MURRAY: Yes, I don’t know if I can answer. I
keep on coming at an attempt to answering your question, and I keep
almost giving spoilers away. So it’s a good question because it’s
obviously a question that the writers want you to ask and answer and I
think that you might find the answer to your question this season.
TONY CURRAN: Next week, yes.
This
is lovely because Kevin - he’s obviously a writer or producer or
wonderfully talented but I’ve worked with directors sometimes who will
come up to you before a scene and they’ll whisper something in your ear
and tell me something that they haven’t told Jaime. And so I love
organically - we use that world - what can Jaime be because we can do
things to each other during a scene that’s not scripted that she doesn’t
know it’s coming or I don’t know it’s coming and it just keeps the
scene fresh.
And Kevin Murphy will come up to you in a bar if
you’ve done a rehearsal and he’ll tell you something about what’s to
come and you’re like, “Seriously, you’re going to write that?” And he’s
like, “Yes, yes but don’t tell anybody I told you that.”
So you
he’ll tell me something he’s going to write about Jaime and I’ll be
like, “Seriously? Oh my God.” And I’m sure he does it to Jaime as well
about other characters but sometimes he’s told me some things recently
and I’m like wow, that’s going to be really challenging and really
embracing for our character to play that, when he slips a little jam in
my ear about what’s going to happen to another character, which I find
really exciting for the future of all of Defiance hopefully if we’re
going to go into a second season.
JAIME MURRAY: I was thinking
about your question and you were asking would Datak ever put the town
before his family and if so how his family would deal with that. Is that
really what...?
TONY CURRAN: Yes.
JAIME MURRAY: Well I
think that she would put the family first but she might get distracted
at some point this season. And so Datak might be, she’s still there.
She’s still involved but she might take her eye off the ball a bit and I
think that then Datak - it’s not that he is thinking of the good of the
town particularly. I can’t say it’s that noble or selfless.
TONY CURRAN: Yes.
JAIME
MURRAY: A little bit more time and space whereby he reacts to his own
ego and his own - he might act out a rash decision without kind of
having her soothe him and counsel him. And you might be interested to
see where that all leaves them both.
TONY CURRAN: Yes. I think
sometimes you can see distance makes the heart grow fonder but then you
can also see out of sight, out of mind. And I was thinking that Datak
might be like a little boy to begin with - maybe where’s my other half?
Where’s my better half? I need...
JAIME MURRAY: Where’s my mommy?
TONY
CURRAN: Mommy. And then he may revert back to where he was before he
met Stahma. There’s that list of the calmer rat if you will whereas
Stahma, several of you know they go - anything happened in the future
where they were not with each other. Then you would see a woman being
able to - if she had the opportunity - to wield her power without the
help of a man, of an alien man because she can stand alone and that
would be very interesting for her.
JAIME MURRAY: The new
strength. She might discover new ways of being whereas I think with
Datak, he might revert back to old behaviors.
TONY CURRAN: Yes,
without her by his side. Yes, definitely. I think that he’s trying to,
we’re both saying oh Datak. And in very subtle ways she’s trying to
improve his manners, his ways. But then I think without her yes, he
could definitely fall back into his old ways and I think maybe the
complete opposite of that is maybe Stahma could start soaring far above
him and going in a completely opposite direction because she’s like that
because she’s so bloody smart.
And who doesn’t think that
Stahma Tarr is quite - by the way my nephews, I’ve got to say this
quickly, my nephews go from 5 to like 23 and they keep texting me “Uncle
T, Uncle T. Man, that Stahma bud, she’s so hot.”
QUESTION: My husband said that right beside me on the couch.
JAIME MURRAY: I hope I’m confusing a whole generation.
TONY
CURRAN: You are messing their heads up. My mom is 79 years of age and
she was she was a bit tired. My nephew’s five and he was talking about
Jaime. And then one day my mom was like, “Would you please calm down and
relax?” And my mom sat down and you remember that moment when Trenna
plays the endogen darku and she puts a finger on Julie Benz’s head? It
was “Good Human.”
QUESTION: Oh yes.
TONY CURRAN: So
Mary’s lying down on the couch and Calin comes up to her and he puts his
finger on her head and he goes, “Good human. Good human.” I mean that’s
crazy. He’s watching the pilot. So it’s definitely getting out there at
a young age. I’ve got a couple of these stories.
QUESTION:
Jaime, the last three shows I’ve seen you in, you’ve been a bad girl,
you might call it villainous. Why do you think you keep getting chosen
for these roles?
JAIME MURRAY: Well I think that you play one
role like that and if people enjoy that, then they see you. And I look
so different in this role but maybe there’s something about my
physiology and my facial structure. I don’t know, but what I do know is
that I really enjoy playing these roles.
And they’re very
complex women dealing with very complex situations and the way I’ve
always approached these roles is even the worst person in the world,
including Mussolini and Hitler, they didn’t think that what they were
doing was wrong. They were committing the worst atrocities against
humanity and they thought that they were validated and that they were
doing the right thing.
People do what they think that they have
to do and they often do the thing they think is the only choice they
have or they’re making the best of a bad situation. So what’s really
interesting if an actor is looking at what might have brought that
person to that place and really getting to know that person. And in this
case it’s not.
TONY CURRAN: What shaped their past to make them, yes.
JAIME
MURRAY: Yes, what shaped those and brought them to making those
horrendous choices or what brought them to that value system - that
skewed, awful value system. And I have often - maybe that’s why I keep
getting these roles, because I try not to judge the character as bad
because you can’t play bad. If you play bad, you end up playing a
cartoon or playing a caricature.
So really you’ve got to be the
best lawyer that you can possibly be for these characters and Lila and
Dexter, I played her. She was a broken person and she was really looking
for a connection and she’d never really truly in her life had one
before. That’s why she was going to all those NA meetings. She was
trying to feel emotions that she’d never felt before and then when she
found Dexter, she saw his dark passenger straight away and she related
to it and she felt a connection for the first time in her life.
And
then when that connection was withdrawn from her, it made her go crazy.
Her wounded inner child just took over and she did some really, really
awful things. What other bad characters have I played?
QUESTION: Ringer.
JAIME MURRAY: Oh Ringer, yes.
JAIME
MURRAY: I think that Olivia and Ringer, she was one of those women that
really was very competitive and started competing with men in an
industry which was very male-dominated. And so instead of rising above
it, she actually became the worst type of aggressive mad. She took all
the worst traits of all the worst men that she’d ever worked with and,
except for what she adopted thinking that was the only way of her
winning.
And so it was really nice when the writers then wrote
the story where my character showed a softer side with Andrea Goss who
played Catherine. And it’s really nice when you’re able to show these
other sides.
So in Warehouse 13 with HG World, I start off as
the archetypal daddy at the beginning of the season, then I have this
amazing arc whereby I won over the team. And then in the next season I
save the team. So there’s a real chance for a redemption in that role.
And
also you were given insight into what made her lose it. She lost a
child and I think that there was a real charm to that character because
you understood that she made horrible, horrible decisions but you were
given some insight into her crazy and why she might have made those
choices.
So I love playing these characters because you’re never
really just playing, sometimes as a female you can sometimes be cast in
roles which are just really layering or coloring the male hero’s role,
giving insight into his character.
TONY CURRAN: Yes.
JAIME MURRAY: And those roles can be fun to play but sometimes these daddy female roles are so complex.
TONY CURRAN: They’re more complex. They’re more interesting, yes I suppose. The less black and white if you will.
QUESTION:
Yes. I’ve talked to a lot of actors and it seems like actors do usually
prefer playing bad guys one way or the other because they get more
complicated.
JAIME MURRAY: Yes, yes, they do.
TONY CURRAN: They’re not bad. They’re just misunderstood.
JAIME MURRAY: Right.
QUESTION:
Tony, I was going to ask you about your accent for the character. Did
you make the choice to make it different than your own or was it
somebody else’s choice or how did that work out?
TONY CURRAN: For Datak?
QUESTION: Yes.
TONY
CURRAN: Yes. Well I think at some frames some people said “Oh, we just
love your accent. Why don’t you do it in your own accent?” And I was
like, “Don’t be so stupid.” Oh, he’s a Scottish alien. Oh that’s really
clever. Yes, really smart.
I’ve got quite a strong accent.
There’s no doubt about that but I just think that these aliens, they had
integrated into their society. If it was set in Glasgow then it might
be different or if it was set in London but it wasn’t. It was set in
America.
So yes, especially playing an alien, if I was to use my
own accent I think that would be very odd for me. So I think that
losing one’s self in a different zone, it’s almost like - I don’t know
how Jaime feels about it but it’s not like I’m actually doing an accent.
It’s almost like I’d be in my room and I don’t know anybody else’s
process. I’d be in my room talking to myself as Datak or trying to find a
voice and some lines that we see and lines that we’re reading
paragraphs of the script.
I would be reading from a book I may
be reading at that time and I would try to find and it’s not like
leaving my accent but almost trying to find another sound that obviously
isn’t my own accent but is the sound that I feel comfortable in to
express what Datak has to express. So I think I feel quite comfortable
in it now.
And as I watch the episodes for characters that I
haven’t done scenes with or scenes that Jaime’s done. Arguably one of my
favorite scenes is the scene between Christie and Jaime on the train
carriage. I think that Jaime sounds amazing and the scene is amazing.
And
I think as actors you constantly keep learning because I’ve watched
last night’s episode and then I watch the last episodes and you’re
looking in the world that was created because there’s a lot of the time
when me and Jaime aren’t on the set and you’re looking at scenes that
was shot when you’re not there. And you’re like okay, that’s how that
part of the world looks, when as before it’s only been in your mind’s
eye as it were.
So yes, I think that you’re constantly learning
about how you sound, how you look, how you move and how other people do
the same. And it’s sort of interesting to try and learn something from
that.
JAIME MURRAY: We’re in Los Angeles. It’s so sunny here.
QUESTION:
As a political junkie, I really enjoy picking out the particle
undertones of Defiance and I think it’s very timely in that our American
Congress is about to start debating immigration reform.
And
we’ve heard the Defiance mayor insist on several occasions that
assimilation is the only way to really coexist whether it’s 2014 or 2040
something, it seems that aliens are always expected - whether they’re
space or undocumented - to assimilate here in the United States. With
such diverse culture lines drawn in Defiance, do you think assimilation
is possible and should it be?
TONY CURRAN: I think assimilation
is inevitable in many ways and especially with the unfortunate recent
events with the way terrorism is sweeping across the world. But I think
what we’re in many ways sometimes on the verge because of certain
religions been attached to certain terroristic attacks. I don’t mean to
go into that right now but I think it’s important.
But it could
be on the verge of turning really bad if humanity cannot see a way to
try and integrate societies and to have the American dream, the American
philosophy of acceptance and of equality.
JAIME MURRAY: You
know, I’m glad that you asked this question. After last episode, Tony
and I were emailing the show producers and backwards and forwards
because there were viewers that picked up on the points that you’re
making. And I was like yes, they’re seeing some of those really
important universal themes that we wanted to make sure that we showed in
a really nuanced and interesting way.
And what I would say is
that all societies need to evolve. And it’s when people become
entrenched in certain ways, that’s when you have a problem. And it’s
really interesting, that scene between Datak and Stahma in the bath,
where Stahma comes from the upper atriums of Casti and society and you
can tell that she has a little bit of distaste about what they’re doing
to Eli in the town square.
And Datak who really never got
anything good for his own society is the one holding on so tightly to
those old traditions and those old traditions did nothing for him. And I
think that was a really interesting point that the episode made which
is it is generally the disenfranchised of any society that carries on
doing damaging behaviors. And damaging behaviors, it doesn’t matter
where they come from. They’re damaging to everybody.
And I think
that you then have a child come into that scene and he’s dressed in his
modern clothes and he just wants to be connected and hang out with his
generation. He doesn’t really see the other species particularly. It’s
not about him retaining who he is. He wants to evolve and there’s always
these clashing generations and cultures in that one scene.
I
thought it was really kind of interesting what he done. And I would just
say that I think that universal desire is that human beings have is for
connection. And as you look at immigration and moving forward,
assimilation sounds, I don’t know - it has connotations which could be
really positive and sometimes really get people’s back slapped.
I
just think that we need to look at ways of different cultures
connecting with each other in an authentic way so that we don’t end up
with disenfranchised people who want to do damage to our societies.
And
whether it’s the UK and the British people or the American people, they
have to be prepared to evolve, too. You don’t want to stay the same.
Who wants to stay the same? And then other cultures that come into a new
place. They have to be willing to evolve as well and together we can
create something new and we can create something better maybe.
TONY
CURRAN: Yes, definitely. I think that’s what the more optimistic, the
more hopeful and progressive side of Defiance is trying to achieve. And
to get away from the secular nature of humanity that is that you stay
over there because you are a white middle class person and we have black
people over here. And we are Asians over here and we are whatever over
there. And we’re all going to integrate with each other because we get
on better separately.
I think in the sense of Defiance and in
the sense of the world at large, people are traveling now to different
countries for many different reasons because of the lack of opportunity
in their own countries, because of war and my wife is, she was born in
Saigon. She came over here in ‘73 and she’s like…Datak and Stahma in the
sense of their being a displaced person who had to come to come to
another country for opportunity.
And then I think it’s for
anybody who comes from another country because they’re forced to do so
and to come into a society. And arguably the greatest country in the
world, America - I wouldn’t even say arguably - for opportunities for
people from all over the world. That’s why America started in the sense
of when people came from Europe and people came from South America and
they founded the United States. It was other cultures within the
American - well obviously the American Indians were here first.
People
started creating opportunity and that’s what America’s been based on.
So the political cultural similarities between America and the planet
today with Defiance. I think people are going to find very - especially
for a science fiction show that you might not think has that depth or
clout or progressive sort of message to say no to people. I think that’s
what - within this wonderful fantastical backdrop of the science
fiction world. You’re going to find some very, very human stories with
it - no pun intended - about people being alienated within their
societies wherever they come from.
And I think that’s what Datak
and Stahma and a lot of other characters in the show that we talk
about, that we discuss and I think that’s what makes it - this show
could go far in many ways because it’s holding a mirror up like any good
drama. It’s holding a mirror up to society and saying this is what we
are. You don’t like those bits. These are some good bits but we can’t
deny what we are. And the question is what are we going to do about it?
Are
we going to try to make it better or are we going to turn a blind eye
to it and go backwards basically because if we don’t land from our past
then our future can be very bleak.
Jesus, it all got very heavy all of the sudden.
QUESTION: It did, didn’t it?
TONY CURRAN: The other thing I think is very, very interesting and I’m sure Jaime feels the same way. I love your question.
QUESTION:
Thank you very much. I hope that more people start to think of
assimilation as less of a melting pot and more of a stir fry.
TONY CURRAN: No. As Gandhi said, an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind. So he was a good bloke.
SCIFI
VISION: Have either of you played the game yet and do you know if your
characters are - if they have any plans for them to be in the game.
JAIME MURRAY: My character’s not in the game. As I was saying, I’m quite a lady. So I don’t know how they...
TONY CURRAN: I’m a lady.
JAIME
MURRAY: A few unknowns or a few in the next season but I did play the
game at Comic-Con and I played it a couple of months ago in the UK and I
wasn’t very good at it at all. I think for the qualities that drew me
to acting, like getting into things and having empathy and getting
excitable and following my impulses make me a horrible, horrible gamer
because I get really excited and I squeal like a little girl and I get
really nervous when I’m playing the game.
And so I’m better off
watching other people play the game because I think you need to be cool,
calm and cool-headed when you play these games and they’re not
qualities really that I have. But I enjoy watching the game because you
see the grass blowing in the wind and it’s so intricate and the world is
really beautifully created. So that enriched me as an actor but
unfortunately I’m not a very good gamer at all.
TONY CURRAN: With the way Jaime says that, I think I’d like to watch Jaime playing the game actually.
JAIME
MURRAY: I do have this picture of me playing the game. I’m all elbows
and hunched and worried like I’m an anxious little child.
TONY
CURRAN: I’ve played the game at Comic-Con. I’ve got it at home. When I
get a chance, I get on there. But the thing is the video games - once
you get on it, it’s not like I’ll play for ten minutes. You can waste
hours playing video games. And some people don’t have that much time.
But I think they’ve done a great job with it.
I think when I was
in a Syfy event in New York recently I spoke to some of the gamers. I
played there and the guys who created the game. And God, there’s like
300 people who have been involved in it over the past five years. And
they said characters like Stahma and Datak and Alak will be integrated
into the next stage of the game.
JAIME MURRAY: Including me?
TONY
CURRAN: Oh yes, including you. Yes because you’re like oh, what have I
got? Oh, I’ve got to really challenge blade and I’m sure Stahma’s going
to have some little, you know, maybe Stahma will have some special
powers. Who knows? But yes, I think so. I don’t think they could put me
in the game and not put you in.
But if I’m going to have to get
into a little black tight motion capture outfit, I’m sure as heck you’re
coming along with me, sister.
JAIME MURRAY: I’ll come and take some pictures and tweet them.
TONY
CURRAN: Yes. You look like an Olympic runner. But I think the
characters are going to get empty because this game is, it’s slowly
hopefully going to expand more and more. So then I think it would be fun
to be part of and then they’ve already mentioned that some of the main
other characters are going to be part of the game. So Julie and Jaime
and myself and Jesse and so on. So that’ll be quite exciting to play
yourself in the game.
SCIFI VISION: I like the game so far and I
love the show, and I think next week’s episode, the we got the screener
for, I think that’s actually the best so far, and I really enjoyed that
one and all the political stuff going on and everything.
JAIME MURRAY: Have you seen next week with the bio man?
SCIFI VISION: Yes, yes.
TONY CURRAN: Kenya gets kidnapped.
JAIME MURRAY: How about you giving a spoiler alert? [episode has already aired at time of posting]
TONY CURRAN: Well she’s already seen it. She’s already seen it. So this is live on NPR.
SCIFI VISION: Yes, I won’t tweet that part. I won’t tweet that part.
TONY CURRAN: Yes, no tweety, tweety. Thank you. Thank you.
http://scifivision.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1580:tony-curran-a-jaime-murray-talk-qdefianceq&catid=47:interviews
Defiance - Slice of SciFi: Tony Curran Audio Interview
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/05/defiance-slice-of-scifi-tony-curran.html?spref=tw
Defiance "Datak Tar" Tony Curran
Slice
of SciFi Exclusive Interview with Tony Curran who plays "Datak Tarr" on
Syfy's "Defiance". Tony talks about the ego-power struggles between men
and women in a relationship, working with Jamie in a bathtub while
wearing white paint on your skin, what happens below the water line,
being the victim and the victimizer, moving up in society, and he offers
a tease for another season of Defiance.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D0JaRnrkO_c&feature=youtu.be&a
http://www.sliceofscifi.tv/
http://blip.tv/slice_of_scifi/episode-6592632
http://www.frequency.com/video/defiance-datak-tar-tony-curran/98445774/-/5-252
Defiance “Datak Tarr”: Tony Curran
http://www.sliceofscifi.com/2013/05/29/slice-of-scifi-611/
Defiance - Syfy Video Featurette: 'One Word Descriptions'
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/05/defiance-syfy-video-featurette-one-word.html?spref=tw
Defiance - Syfy Video Featurette: 'Datak's Dark Ambition'http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/05/defiance-syfy-video-featurette-dataks.html?spref=tw
Defiance - The Point: Jaime Murray & Tony Curran Audio Interview - Part 2
http://antipodalarapaima.blogspot.ru/2013/05/defiance-point-jaime-murray-audio.html?spref=tw
Tony and Jaime discuss their roles....
http://www.fansshare.com/news/tony-curran-jaime-murray-discuss-their-tv-show-defiance/
