Nelsan Ellis Talks True Blood At The London MCM Expo

In True Blood, the character of Lafayette has taken on new life beyond his book existence, and Nelsan Ellis couldn’t be more pleased. The Julliard-trained actor is very different from the sassy, cross-dressing Merlotte’s fry cook, but that just makes the job all the more fun. At the MCM Expo in London, Nelsan answered audience questions and received lots of cheers from fans excited about the possibility of some Lafayette-Eric dream scenes.

In the beginning, Nelsan thought Lafayette would meet the same fate as his character had in Book 1 of Charlaine Harris’ Southern Vampire Series. He read the books before auditioning, and when he got the part, he signed a one-year contract with the understanding that he would die after 12 episodes. Nelsan says he was “cool with that,” but he was thrilled when he found out that he was surviving:

“[I was] elated! Because I still had a job! Alan Ball told me after we had the table read of the twelfth episode. So, up until that point, I thought I was dead. He went, ‘You know you’re not dying, right?’, and I said, ‘I didn’t, but thanks for telling me!’ “

That turn of events is just a testament to what a fantastic actor Nelsan is and the way that he channels Lafayette. Alan didn’t want to lose him from the show and viewers were overjoyed when they discovered that he was alive in the season two premiere. Nelsan is very flattered when people appreciate his work. I think we can all agree that he deserved to keep his job because he’s so good at it! He really enjoys getting to be bold and crazy as Lafayette:

“Every chance I get to where I could be something that’s not me, I jump at it. Because I’m guarded and I have these rules on how I should behave, but whenever I get to jump out of those rules and go f-ing crazy, I do! Lafayette is a dream role for me.”

His favorite scene to play was the AIDS-burger scene, which he thought was really well written and allowed him to show off his toughness. To create the character, he gathered inspiration from a variety of places:

“It was a collaboration. We all threw in some ideas. The scarf thing is ’cause my momma used to wear a lot of scarves. I think there’s some Prince influence in there. We did research, went to a whole lot of gay clubs, we’d go down on the strip, so we just came up with it. We also threw in some ideas into this stew of his wardrobe.”

The most difficult stuff to portray has been the post-traumatic stress disorder of the second season. That was tough for Nelsan because he was used to Lafayette being fun and then had to shift to being broken down by the disorder. Working on True Blood has allowed Nelsan to bond with his cast and crew and to learn a lot, as well. He has a close relationship with Rutina Wesley who plays Tara, especially because they went to school together, and he has also become good friends with Alexander Skarsgard. Nelsan is making use of all the opportunities he can to learn from Alan Ball:

“He’s a god among men. He really is a genius at what he does. I get to rub elbows with him on a daily basis. He writes some of the episodes, and he directs some of the episodes, so I end up being a sponge, soaking up all his genius. When he directs you – and I’m like, this dude has won Oscars – he knows what he’s doing.”

Nelsan adds so much flavor to True Blood with his portrayal of Lafayette! It will be amazing to see what else happens to him season three and beyond, especially since it will be a surprise even to fans who have read the books.

SOURCE: denofgeek.com

(Photo credit: backstage.com)

Nelsan Ellis Interviewed At London’s MCM Expo 16

True Blood’s Nelsan Ellis who portrays the always fabulous Lafayette Reynold attended London’s Movie Comic Media (MCM) Expo 16.  At a round table discussion with British press, Nelsan discussed his role as Lafayette and gave some great insight into his experience working on the show.

Nelsan spoke about meeting his fans, both in Britain and back in the United States:

It’s cool meeting the fans across the pond. They’re just like the fans over in America, and they say the same things about the show, so it’s like, wow, I guess the show makes the same impact….It makes you feel good that your work has translated across the screen and some person comes from Manchester just to go, “Wassup, I like your work.” You have to appreciate stuff like that.

When asked about his character, Lafayette, Nelsan gushed that he was attracted to the role because:

…he has so many colors! I mean, it’s just, it’s an actor’s wonderland when you can just play so many things and do so many things, and I love putting on lipstick and the eyeliner and the eye stuff and do all this crazy stuff!

While he loves the character, however, Nelsan insists that he is not really like the character he plays on True Blood:

Well, they [fans] think that I’m like Lafayette. I am kind of a shy dude, but I’m not Lafayette. The luxury with being an actor is that all the things you…all the courage you wish you had, you get it out in the character. Because I don’t have Lafayette’s character, his courage, and certainly I don’t have his sexual prowess. Many people think I do, so I’ve had some strange situations happen to me. But I’m kind of a reserved dude. But Lafayette is kind of reserved. He’s big when he needs to be big, but he’s also pretty chill.

Episode 5 of Season 1 is Nelsan’s favorite episode because of Lafayette’s AIDS burger scene in Merlotte’s.  He said he was thrilled when he read the script, because he was going to get to do so much in that episode:

I get to do all this stuff in one episode and so I love that! I know it’s egotistical of me to love the episode that I dominated, but I like that episode. Normally I have two scenes, and I have four in that episode and I got to do some fun, fun, fun stuff.

On the show, Nelsan does all of his own stunts, and in the round table discussion, he talked and laughed about that experience:

Well, I tell you this, bro. The first day that I had to do a stunt, they brought up some stunt dude and stunt dude was gonna do my stunt, and I was like, “Y’all just wasted money ’cause he’s gonna sit there…. I’m doing all my stunts.” And I’d do all my stunts and then they stopped giving me a stunt double. So I do all my own stunts. It’s weird, though, when I’m in a fight scene and I’m fighting another stunt double instead of the actor, ’cause nobody else does their own. Rutina does her own stunts too.

HBO is good like that. They listen to you. You can say, “I wanna do my own stunts” and they’ll go, “Okay.” ‘Cause HBO is cheap, so that helps them save money if they don’t have to hire a stunt double. So they’re like, “Cool!”

…I punched a dude in the face before! And I thought he was gonna hit me back!…It was a stunt man. He was like 6′4″, 235. I was like, “Bro, I’m sorry. It was a accident.” And they were like, “Go on! Why’d you stop? That’s the tape we coulda used, ’cause it was real!” I was like, “But he’s bleeding!”

Nelsan also opened up about some of the more explicit elements of True Blood, the way his family has reacted to the show, and the nudity in some of the episodes:

I don’t have to…well, I’m glad I don’t have to bare all like some of my other cast members, but I am from a very religious background. My father hates the show. My mother hates the show. I don’t care. It doesn’t bother me except if I have to show my ding-dong. Then I’m like, “Really? Really?” It bothers my parents, you know what I’m saying, but they’re closed minded, Southern Baptist, kooky people. The only thing that bothers me is if I have to show my…piece…my bits and pieces. Then I want a stunt double. Show his bits and pieces. I don’t wanna show all my bits and pieces. I don’t want everyone knowing my measurements. It’s crazy. Ryan Kwanten, they have all these zoom in pictures, they throw them up on the internet. I don’t wanna go through all that business!

The one character Nelsan thinks would be the most fun to portray is Eric Northman.  Nelsan says:

He’s 2000 years old, he does not know fear, so he’s just chillin’ all the time. All the chicks want him. All the dudes want him. You know what I’m sayin’? He’s just in the middle just cool, suave, collected, got it together.

Nelsan spoke about his break into showbiz, some of his other work before True Blood, and then said that the important thing he’s learned from working on the show is:

Stay committed to your instincts. Keep listening to that small voice inside of you that tells you what to do. ‘Cause when you start listening too much to people, you can sabotage yourself. That small voice has guided you through life and it keeps you true to the character.

For British fans just now getting a taste of True Blood, Nelsan gave a few hints about what they could look forward to in Season 2, just enough to whet their appetites, but giving nothing away.

The folks at Geek Syndicate posted a link to the full fascinating and humorous ten minute interview. Click here to listen to Nelsan speak, which is fantastic and should not be missed.

SOURCE: Geek Syndicate

(Photo credit: Geek Syndicate)

Nelsan Ellis At The London MCM Expo: A Fan Encounter

Our dear friend in the UK, Joao Vasconcelos, was so kind to send us a write up of his experience attending the London MCM Expo and meeting True Blood’s Nelsan Ellis. Many thanks to Joao for sharing his experience with all the True Blood readers for it must have been a fantastic experience to meet Nelsan in person!  So let us sit back and enjoy Joao’s encounter with the very talented Nelsan Ellis.

During the weekend of October 24th and 25th, the ExCeL Center in East London was the host to the London MCM Expo in which many people gather to celebrate many cult classics. Around the center, there were people dressed as characters from the Star Wars series to Master Chief from the Halo Series. However there was one person that I was particularly excited to see. Nelsan Ellis was there to sign and take pictures with fans. Nelsan was really kind to the fans and had no problem signing the many things that they brought to him or taking many pictures with them.

Nelsan looked completely different to his alter-ego on the show. He was dressed very smart and was unshaven. I first saw Nelsan being shown around the center before he started signing and on first look, I wasn’t too sure if it was him. It wasn’t until I looked over my shoulder that I noticed that it was him. There was a reasonably sized queue waiting to see Nelsan with many carrying various merchandise consisting of DVDs, posters and the Sookie Stackhouse novels. Those without anything had a choice of two promo shots from Season One featuring Nelsan.

Upon meeting Nelsan, he was very kind and gracious. He signed both promo pictures for me and my Dead Until Dark book. After signing, he took a picture with me and wished me a good day and I wished him one back. Before letting the next fan in the queue walk up to Nelsan, I wished him good luck on Season 3 and congratulated him on Season 2 in which he replied, “Thank you very much good sir”.

Joao Vasconcelos

Nelsan Ellis Will Be Appearing At The London MCM Expo

Calling all UK True Blood fans!!! Nelsan Ellis who plays our hysterical and beloved Lafayette on Alan Ball’s hit HBO TV vampire series True Blood has confirmed that he will be attending the London MCM Expo to sit on the True Blood panel. The Expo will take place on October 24th and 25th at the Excel in London. You may purchase tickets for the event from The London MCM Expo website. If you are planning on attending the Expo why not get a picture with Nelsan! That’s right, the Expo will be offering a chance for you to get your photo taken with the star of your choosing. What an amazing keepsake that would be! For more information on these photos you can visit the Expo’s webpage here.  The prices for the photos will be listed on the Expo’s website as the event date gets closer. Who would pass this opportunity up?? So get your tickets now!!

A very special thank you has to go out to the people at UK Truebies on facebook who posted the information first.

SOURCE:  London MCM Expo

Photo Credits: HBO Inc.

Nelsan Ellis And Ashley Jones Also To Attend EyeCon’s True Blood Convention

We now have more exciting updates about the EyeCon guest list! Nelsan Ellis and Ashley Jones are scheduled to appear, along with Sam Trammell and Allan Hyde. So True Blood fans who are able to go to this convention in Orlando, Florida, November 13-15, will not only get the chance to hang out with Sam Merlotte and Godric, but Lafayette and Daphne, too!

EyeCon is a fan-friendly multi-genre celebrity autograph convention for science fiction, horror, television and movie fans! There will be Celebrity Autograph sessions, Celebrity Photo Op sessions, a Celebrity Banquet, a Cocktail Party with the stars, Panels, Games, Guitar Hero, Celebrity Breakfast auctions and so much more! There will always be something to do during the busy, fun-packed weekend!

The variety of events spread out over three days allow fans many opportunities to interact with the actors in a relaxed atmosphere. There are parties on Friday and Saturday night. At the panel sessions, you can ask questions about what it’s like working on the show. Sounds like a very fun convention–spending time with 2 shapeshifters, 1 vampire, and a party-loving human! Who knows, maybe more people from the cast will be added between now and November? Most importantly, it’s going to be thousands of people sharing their love for True Blood.

For fans interested in more information about tickets and programming, check out www.eyeconfla.com.

SOURCE: eyecon.com

(Photo credits: Albert Ortega/PR via exposay.com, Robert Voets/CBS via soapoperasource.com)

Casting Call For Nelsan Ellis’ Movie: Secretariat

Want the chance to appear as an extra in a movie alongside True Blood’s  Nelsan Ellis (Lafayette Reynold)?  Have experience as a horse trainer?  Think you look like Nelsan Ellis? A casting call for extras, horse handlers, and photo doubles to appear in his new project, Disney’s “Secretariat,” will be held Sunday, September 27, at the Cajundome in Lafayette, Louisiana.

According to local news source, The Advertiser:

More than 4,000 extras are needed for the film, much of which is being shot and produced in Acadiana this year. People of all ages, races and ethnicities are needed, as are actors and actresses to play hippie-type characters, military and police officers and media reporters.

In addition, the casting company is asking for experienced horse handlers and trainers, 1970s cars, horse trailers and RVs and photo doubles for stars Diane Lane, John Malkovich, Dylan Walsh and Nelsan Ellis.

The casting call begins at noon Sunday. Those attending are asked to bring a 4×6 photo of themselves and enter through the north entrance in the back. All extras will be paid, but signing up does not guarantee a person that they will be an extra.

Nelsan Ellis will portray Secretariat’s groom, Eddie Sweat, in the underdog story of the Triple Crown winning horse. The film is set for release in the fall of 2010.

SOURCE: The Advertiser.com

(Photo Credit: Jaimie Painter Young)

Nelsan Ellis Cast in Disney Film Secretariat

Even when they’re not filming True Blood, the actors keep coming back to Louisiana! Nelsan Ellis is set to begin filming Secretariat, a movie about the famous Triple Crown race horse.

Diane Lane will star as Secretariat’s owner, Penny Chenery. Nelsan will be portraying the groom, Eddie Sweat. John Malkovich and Dylan Walsh have also been cast.

Shooting is expected to take place over a five-week period in either Baton Rouge, New Orleans or (very appropriately) the Lafayette area, each of which is located near a horse track.

The Disney film will be directed by Oscar-nominated screenwriter Randall Wallace.

Some of the big race scenes are also being filmed at Keeneland in Lexington, Ky., and at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. Hundreds of locals are showing up in their 1970s clothing to play extras.

When Secretariat ran in 1973, he was the first Triple Crown champion since 1948, setting records in the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes races that have yet to be beat.

The last movie of this kind to be made was Seabiscuit in 2004, which went on to receive nominations for several Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Let’s hope for similar success for Secretariat and our favorite cross-dressing fry cook, Nelsan Ellis!

SOURCES:

nola.com

kentucky.com

(Photo credit: zimbio.com)

Nelsan Ellis and Allan Hyde At The Nylon Magazine Party Video

Nelsan Ellis (Lafayette Reynold) and Allan Hyde (Godric) attended the Nylon Magazine Fall TV Issue Launch Party at the Skybar in the Mondrian Hotel in West Hollywood, CA on August 24, 2009, hosted by fellow True Blood castmate Anna Paquin.  WARNING:  This video features contains very rapid, repeating flashes from cameras. Use caution if you have a condition that makes you sensitive to such visuals.

Great to see Nelsan and Allan out and about at these various event.  Watch the video and you will see Allan playfully agree with Annalyne McCord’s request to bite her neck.  Enjoy the video.

SOURCE: MaximoTV

Nelsan Ellis Attends RCN Party In Chicago

RCN Corporation is a leading provider of all-digital and high definition video, high speed internet and premium voice services.  RCN hosted a Fangtasia event on Sept. 11 and Nelsan Ellis made a guest appearance.  Two hundred fans showed up for the event and the line stretched down the block.  To turn Hamilton’s into Fangtasia, the building was filled with coffins and tombstones.  Their version of True Blood was also being served along with food and other refreshments.

Twenty fans were able to meet Nelsan and get autographed photos.  Nelsan is a Chicago native and is best known for his role as Lafayette Reynolds on True Blood.  Tom McKay, general manager of RCN Chicago, says:

“The turnout for ‘Fangtasia‘ surpassed our expectations. Thanks to our partnership with HBO and Nelsan Ellis, who was very interactive with the crowd, the event was an excellent way for us to reach out to our customers including college students in the surrounding area.”

RCN will also be sponsoring blood drives at the University of Illinois Medical Center on Sept. 17 and 24 to continue with the True Blood theme.  Donors will be receiving giveaways.  Visit www.rcn.com/fangs for more information.

Source:  marketwire.com

Photo Credit:  (Vi Photography)

Ryan Kwanten Not Worried About Other Vampire Stories

Everywhere you look these days there is something on about vampires. Twilight’s sequel, the film Priest began filming last month, and the CW premiered The Vampire Diaries last week. Is there reason to believe that the genre might have a backlash or become over saturated? Not according to Ryan Kwanten, the actor who plays Jason Stackhouse in HBO’s True Blood. Ryan was recently in Chicago and made an appearance at the Enclave  and on Friday hosted, alongside True Blood co-star Nelsan Ellis,  the “Dusk Until Dawn” fashion show for of clothing boutique Akira’s.  Ryan took time out to speak with Luis Arroyave with the Chicago Tribune.

“Personally, I don’t [worry], purely due to the creative forces that are behind our show,” said Ryan. “We knew we were part of something special before the fans did,” He added. “But to hear the fans and critics speak out and watch the show in ways we couldn’t imagine, even an optimist couldn’t have predicted it.”

The season finale has aired and will returned for a third season in June. True Blood has been pulling in HBO’s best numbers since The Sopranos. On the August 23rd show alone, there was an impressive 5.3 million viewers.

What makes the show so popular? The creativity they are allowed to do on a cable channel. If True Blood was aired on a network television channel, Kwanten says the show would be 25 minutes long, due to the nudity, violence, and sex. He said True Blood can push topics in a way that network TV can’t. In the first two seasons we have seen racism, homophobia, drug addiction, and orgies.

Is Ryan Kwanten a fan of the vampire genre?

“I’m into a good story,” He says. “But I’m not answering your question.”

Aw, come on Ryan we’d love to know. Wouldn’t it be interesting if he began dating a vampire in a future season?

Credit: The Chicago Tribune

(Photo credit: HBO Inc)

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