Ryan Kwanten Honored with Australian GQ Award

The Sydney Morning Herald just reported on the winners of the Australian GQ Magazine Awards which were held in The Great Hall of Sydney University this past Thursday night. The GQ awards honored leading Australian men across the arts, sport, politics, business and community service. Australian born actor, Ryan Kwanten, who plays Jason Stackhouse on True Blood, was awarded the 2009 GQ Actor of the Year Award. Ryan won in recognition for his breakthrough Hollywood role on the phenomenal hit show, True Blood. Congratulations Ryan for the well deserved recognition!

SOURCE:  Sydney Morning Herald

Photo Credit:  vogue.com.au

Allan Hyde: Rising True Blood Star

“That was a fantastic experience when tiny little me stood in front of the camera

and my two meter tall cast mate Alexander Skarsgard fell to

his knees in front of me. I felt the magic of

being an actor then.”

Allan Hyde, the twenty year old Danish actor, has made quite an impression on HBO’s True Blood fans. Allan plays the 2000 year old vampire Godric, Eric Northman’s (Alexander Skarsgard) maker in the hit HBO series. Although he appeared in only four episodes of True Blood’s second season, Allan Hyde’s Godric has become extremely popular with True Blood’s viewers.

He is a man of many talents. Besides his native Danish, he also speaks English, German and French. He has won the literary Robert Award for Best Short Story (2009) and amazingly, he also finds the time to play the guitar and sing. In Denmark, Allan Hyde has a string of appearances on both the Danish stage and screen. On stage, he has, for example, played Gavroche in Les Miserables but he is perhaps best known for his part in Denmark’s TV3’s 2900 Happiness. He has also provided the voice dubbing for Ron Weasley in the Danish release of the Harry Potter films. However in 2009, he was cast in the critically acclaimed HBO series True Blood as the 2000 year old Godric and the rest, as they say, is history.

In 2009, international acclaim came knocking on Allan Hyde’s door. Allan Ball happened to need a Scandinavian teenager for True Blood. Allan Hyde’s agent heard about it and convinced Hyde to send a tape to Alan Ball who was so impressed with it that there was no need for Hyde to undergo a formal audition. Hyde, at this point, was two months away from graduating from his high school in Zealand, Copenhagen, but he seized at the chance and moved to Los Angeles immediately. He explains his seemingly hasty decision,

“It was my dream. To be a professional (full-time) actor. To live off what I love. And it wasn’t the most important thing about high school to get a certificate with grades on. Most important were the knowledge and friends I’d already won through those three years.”

We are thankful for his decision because the character Godric has proved to be highly popular with viewers and with creator Alan Ball. Hyde’s performance of Godric has brought Hyde acclaim, catapulting him into the hearts of True Blood’s fans. In a recent interview, Allan Ball has also hinted at the possible return of Allan Hyde as Godric in flashbacks in Season 3.

Of his role as Godric in True Blood, Allan Hyde says,

“When I agreed to do it, I had no idea how big it (True Blood) was. I hadn’t heard about True Blood yet. And to be completely honest, I felt that a vampire series was a little boring. I only knew Buffy and that was a girl’s show.”

True Blood, set against a vivid Southern Gothic mise-en-scene, has captured viewers’ imagination with its gloriously gory, fiendish, darkly funny script. Populated with charismatic vampires, small town kooks and other assorted supernatural beings, True Blood is hardly filled with the usual vampire clichés which were the initial responses of critics and naysayers who subjected True Blood to lukewarm reviews.

Instead, proving his critics wrong, Allan Ball, Academy Award-winning writer, has sprinkled his magic dust over the HBO series and bewitched critics and viewers alike. According to HBO, True Blood’s Season 2 averaged 10.8 million viewers per episode, up 39% from last season, proving to be an even bigger hit than HBO’s The Sopranos. Indeed, True Blood’s biggest strength lies in its ability to appeal across a wide demographic spectrum.

As Allan Hyde further explains,

“I realized at once that this would be a unique and intelligent series. Vampires are an allegory for the darkside of humanity. Their race is prone to a mixture of homophobia and racism, and that’s what the series deals with in a brilliant way, I think. That’s why I fell for True Blood – instantly and completely.”

Allan Hyde’s portrayal of Godric, an immortal being who also happened to be older than Jesus, was pitch perfect. But at the same time, Hyde acknowledges that, as the youngest cast member, he felt the least experienced,

“I was utterly inexperienced and everything was overwhelming. To be the show’s alpha among the vampires on top of all this felt like immense pressure on me. The directors wanted me to be exactly like I was on the videotape they fell for. But they had never seen me ‘live’. That’s why I had a certain insecurity in the beginning. Would I really be able to deliver or was the tape just a lucky coincidence? [...] There I was, in a foreign country and was supposed to play a character who was as different to mine as may be. At the same time, everything took place in English which meant that I needed to repeat my lines many times before every take or I’d stumble over the words.”

But it is a testimony to the highly talented and mutually supportive ensemble cast of True Blood that Allan Hyde rapidly became comfortable in his role as Godric,

“[...] I felt I caught the character and people around me backed me with praise and recognition. That was a fantastic experience when tiny little me little me stood in front of the camera and my two meter tall cast mate Alexander Skarsgard fell to his knees in front of me. I felt the magic of being an actor then.”

Now that Season 2 of True Blood has finished its run in the US, Allan Hyde has been a very busy man. He has, for example, auditioned for a new Gus van Sant movie. Allan Hyde explains:

“It is as if all the big shots want to see what I am able to do now. I’m going to lots of auditions that aspiring actors who have lived in Hollywood for years don’t even get close to. There’s no doubt that I have to play my cards now. I have to try and get more parts as my name is hot over here because the clock is ticking in L.A. It’s all business.”

Meanwhile, a stage role awaits him in Denmark in 2010. However, when it comes to English language roles, Hyde feels that one of the hurdles he faces is the language. While he speaks the language fluently (he has a Danish mother and a British father), he feels that it’s difficult for him to hide both the British and Danish accents. He elaborates,

“That’s the biggest issue right now. I’m doing everything I can to change it. I practice all the time and work with a dialect coach on a daily basis. I almost got the accent now because at my last audition they didn’t even realize that I’m a foreigner.”

However, it is new found fame that Hyde admits take some getting used to. He admits:

“It needs some getting used to and one has to forget about Danish Jantelovn. Over here, people would be offended if you wouldn’t show your pride and appreciate the chance you got. To downplay your own results is a Danish thing and one you should avoid here [...] At home, it’s not like everybody and anybody is writing to me that I’m ‘suerpcute’ and ‘superhot’ and therefore I’m immensely flattered. But on the flipside, I have no idea what kind of people they are. I’m not looking for praise on the internet but sometimes it’s unavoidable. And my mom’s reading it too. She’s my biggest fan and she’s sending me links whenever she finds something funny about me online.”

Judging from the recent interview with Allan Ball, fans of Allan Hyde can no doubt look forward to his appearances in Season 3 of True Blood. As to further appearances in his subsequent Hollywood career, we wish Allan Hyde all best wishes for his future roles.

SOURCE: www.fri.dk via alexanderskarsgardfans.com

Photo credit: HBO Inc.

True Blood and the Vampire Genre

We are all madly fascinated with our True Blood and with its undead characters. Our show is obviously not the first to showcase the vampire. Zap 2 It news recently wrote an article comparing the many facets of this up and rising genre. In each of these stories though, the vampires are portrayed with a variety of different abilities and weaknesses.

It all started with the original “Dracula”. A character taken from the pages of Bram Stoker’s novel the Count who could transform himself into a vampire as a way of escaping death. He had super strength, enhanced speed, could climb walls, and crawl across ceilings. He also had the power of hypnosis, mind control and could transform into animals and into an eerie mist. His weaknesses were lessened strength and abilities in the daylight, garlic, and crucifixes. He was forced to rest near Transylvanian soil.  In order to enter someone’s house, the Count needed to be invited.

Some of these traits sound familiar, huh? Some other notable qualities included the fact that he was able to come out in the sunlight and he did not cast a shadow or reflection. If a would be hero wanted to kill the Count, he would have to drive a wooden stake into his heart and then to be thoroughly sure the job was done, decapitate him.

From Dracula we move on to two shows that invited vampires into the world of television: Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. In these shows vampires are considered demons. Through the seven seasons on Buffy and the five seasons of Angel we met many varieties of vampires with many different abilities and weaknesses. Some of these powers included super strength, enhanced senses, speed, healing, and an immunity to psychics. The vampires didn’t need to breath either. The older and more powerful vampires had the ability to hypnotize and cloud the minds of humans. Weaknesses included amputation because they were unable to regrow limbs. They also could be burned by crosses, crucifixes, and holy water. They too had to be invited into a home in order to enter it. As for their sensitivities to sunlight, it was very inconsistent. It seemed some could go out in the daylight as long as they were shaded, such as Angel and Spike. Other vampires would burst into flames as soon as they were exposed to the sunlight. One notable attribute to these shows was that they could wear magic rings that gave them immunity to most weaknesses. In order to kill them, you would have to stake them in the heart with a wooden stake or you could burn them, but fire was not always the quickest option. Decapitation and the ingestion of large amounts of holy water could also do the trick.

These shows in some ways paved the way for our beloved True Blood. The major difference between True Blood and the other vampires we have gone over is that in this story their existence is public knowledge. Yet humans are not aware of all their abilities or weaknesses. Our vampires have super strength, speed, and enhanced healing and senses. They can heal humans by feeding them their blood. They also have the ability to hypnotize, which we True Blood fans know as “glamoring”. Some of the vampires have the ability to fly and they have a strong connection to their makers and those that drink their blood. Their weaknesses include wood, the need to rest during the daytime, fire, silver, and hepatitis D. They too must be invited into a house before entering it. Sunlight is harmful to them, but the older vampires are much more vulnerable to it than younger ones. A twist that we see in True Blood is that the humans are after the vampire’s blood for its hallucinogenic and aphrodisiac qualities. In order to kill these vampires you would either expose them to sunlight or the classic, wooden stake through the heart.

Another popular vampire show is The Vampire Diaries. This show is fairly new with only a handful of episodes since they are still in their first season. The vampires we have met so far in this series are extremely attractive and brooding. We will not know the full extent of their powers until we watch the show unravel. Right now we know they have super strength, speed, and hearing. They have an ability to turn into birds. They have the ability to control minds and alter memories. All the vampires thus far in this series don’t all have the same powers. Their weaknesses also include wood, but the difference is they can also be injured if staked somewhere other than the heart. They are also sensitive to a plant called Vervain. The plant can protect the humans from the vampire’s mind control abilities and make their blood poisonous. They too, once again, must be invited in to a home in order to enter. One notable point about this series is that human blood magnifies the vampire’s powers. One of the lead characters, Stephan, only drinks the blood of animals but this weakens his powers. To kill them, you would again have to stake them through the heart.

This brings us to the fan obsessed Twilight film. This movie by far has reawakened the vampire genre, though these vampires are the least vampiric. Their powers include super strength, speed, and enhanced senses. They have an exceptional sense of smell and are invulnerable to most injuries. Some of the vampires possess special abilities such a reading minds or foreseeing the future. Their weaknesses include other vampires and werewolves. They are able to be in the sunlight but they sparkle like diamonds. The heavy cloud cover of Forks, Washington is enough to keep them from exposing themselves. The Cullen Clan doesn’t drink human blood, they feed off of animals, but this does not diminish their powers. They can cast shadows and be photographed. If you want to kill them you have to chop them into pieces and burn those pieces.

So now we have completed this small vampire journey and see that all these shows possess different qualities that make their shows what they are. With so many books, movies, and TV shows fulfilling our vampiric needs, it doesn’t look like this obsession is going anywhere, anytime soon.

SOURCE: Zap 2 It

(Photo Credits: HBO Inc.)

Alexander Skarsgard On The Cover Of Swedish Magazine Cafe

Alexander Skarsgard seems to be keeping busy while on hiatus from True Blood.  Not only has he been busy working on other projects but has been doing interviews, attending events and posing in photo shoots such as this one.  Here Alexander graces the cover of the December issue of the Swedish Magazine, Cafe. What more is there to say but, enjoy!

SOURCE:  SkarsgardNews.com

VIDEO: Alexander Skarsgard on the Red Carpet at the GQ Awards

Alexander Skarsgard was interviewed on the red carpet at the GQ Men of the Year Awards where Alexander, along with Stephen Moyer and Ryan Kwanten were honored with the title of “The Men Who Saved HBO.”  Alexander explains how much he enjoys working on True Blood and you will see Alexander being playful with the interviewer when she asks him a question about Twilight.  A fun video with Alex which we know you will enjoy.

Real Vampires Walk Among Us

For some people, vampires are more than just a pop culture fascination or entertaining characters to read and watch but, rather, a way of life. A recent article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution looks at the Atlanta Vampire Alliance, one of several vampire communities in the US.

These people are serious and devoted to their lifestyle, having adopted the gothic culture of vampire legend. “Merticus,” the leader of the Atlanta Vampire Alliance, believes that vampires are physically and psychologically different:

They draw energy to feel good and stay healthy, and they absorb it psychically from close contact with ‘donors’ or from drinking a tablespoon of blood from them maybe once a week. They do not claim mythic powers such as immortality, and the screen depictions are often off-putting to members.

Suffice it to say, they are not fans of True Blood and Twilight, although they owe it to the popularity of these books, series, and films that people are interested in learning about them now, especially scholars who seek to study them.

One such man is Joseph Laycock, who spent time with the Atlanta group and then wrote and presented a paper about vampires, not as some sort of religious cult or cultural phenomenon, but as a self-identifying group. They are teenagers, stay-at-home moms, and professionals, who blend in with appearance and behavior, but identify as vampires. Most of them keep that part of themselves hidden because they fear discrimination, although there are those that don’t care what people think and wear fake fangs and gothic dress.

For his research, Laycock used a survey–the Advanced Vampirism & Energy Work Research Survey–that “Merticus” and his fellow members had distributed to more than 900 self-identified vampires.

Laycock’s observations were also published in May 2009 in the book Vampires Today: The Truth about Modern Vampirism. Since then, he has been doing interviews across the country. TV psychologist Dr. Phil McGraw was among those who contacted Laycock:

“He said he was doing a show about teenagers biting each other. I said, ‘Dr. Phil, have you ever heard of hickeys?’ “

Other academics are skeptical of the vampires as being anything more than people who love the power and mystique, so they adopt alternate identities. “Merticus,” however, claims that the survey he conducted presents many physical ailments that set vampires apart from normal humans. He says that he would welcome genetic testing and scientific examination.

Whatever that research would reveal, they are just people who want to be understood for their differences. That’s a feeling everybody can relate to.

SOURCE: ajc.com

(Photo credit: amazon.com)

Stephen Moyer, Alexander Skarsgard and Ryan Kwanten Honored at the GQ Men of the Year Awards

True Blood stars Stephen Moyer, Alexander Skarsgard and Ryan Kwanten were honored last night, November 18, 2009 at the GQ Men of the Year Awards as “The Men Who Saved HBO.”  The event was held at the Chateau Marmont Hotel in Hollywood, and while Stephen and Ryan are both busy with film project set outside of the country, Alex was able to attend the event to represent the men of True Blood at the Awards.

While at the event RadarOnline.com was able to catch up with Alex and ask him some questions about what we can expect to see in season 3 of True Blood and with his character, Eric Northman.  Alex stated that:

“There’s a lot of nudity,” he said. “As far as Eric goes, there’s going to be a lot violence and a lot of sex — with women and men! So it should be interesting.”

Asked if his love scenes with Anna Paquin are tense or uncomfortable (since she is engaged to co-star Stephen Moyer), Alex responded:

“No. I mean, I can’t wait to get back to my L.A. family,” he said referring to the True Blood cast. “I love Stephen, we’re friends and I love Anna. They’re great together. I actually think it makes things easier that way.”

Of course RadarOnline.com asked he if there was a special lady in his life, in particular they asked about certain rumors about who he may be dating currently to which Alex remarked:

“I’m not dating anyone, those are just rumors,” he laughed. When asked if there were any special women in his life, the hunky actor replied “my mom and my sister.”

Now that is a very sweet response.  Although Stephen, Alex and Ryan were honored at the GQ Awards with the title of “The Men Who Saved HBO” let us not forget about Sam, Nelsan, Todd, Jim, Chris, William and Alan who should have be included in the list.  All of them would have looked great in tuxedos in the featured photoshoot in the December issues of GQ which is available at newsstand now.

SOURCE:  radaronline.com

(Photo Credit: David Edwards – DailyCeleb.com via Hollywood.com)

True Blood in the Finals for the Open Web Awards

Good news True Blood Fans! The finalists for the Mashable’s 3rd Annual Open Web Awards for Social Media have been announced and there is plenty of True Blood to go around! The Mashable Open Web Awards is an international voting competition that celebrates innovation in web technology and social media. True Blood has been nominated in the following categories:

True Blood for Best Brand Use of Facebook

@TrueBloodHBO for Best Brand Use of Twitter

True Blood for Best Facebook Fan Page

@KitchenBitch for Most Interesting Twitter User To Follow

@SookieBonTemps for Twitter User of the Year

A big THANK YOU to all the True Blood fans that voted and put these pages in the top running! Make sure you go and vote now to make them number one!! Voting is open for this final phase from November 18th to December 13th. The winners will be announced December 15th. Good Luck to all these fabulous True Blood pages!!

SOURCE:  TrueBloodTwitter.com

Photo Credit:  HBO Inc.

Ryan Kwanten To Appear On The Chelsea Lately Show

Ryan Kwanten, who play the lovable Jason Stackhouse on Alan Ball’s hit HBO TV vampire series True Blood, will be making a guest appearance on the Chelsea Lately Show on Tuesday, November 24, 2009 at 11:00pm EDT on the E! Network. Chelsea will be in Australia recording four of her episodes at the Sydney’s Foxtel Studios in front of a live audience that will feature Australian guests to be broadcast to a worldwide TV audience.  Along with Ryan, Guy Branum, Heather McDonald, and Wil Anderson will be guests on the show.  So don’t forget to set up your DVR because it sounds like it is going to be lots of fun to watch.

SOURCES:

interbridge.com

talkshownews.interbridge.com

tvtonight.com.au

(Photo credit:  Christina Radish / Agency Photos)

Our Obsession with Vampires and Sex

Vampires and sex: they seem inextricably linked. Perhaps the title should have been re-phrased to ‘Why have Vampires started us obsessing over sex’? Whether it’s Dracula, True Blood, the Vampire Diaries or Twilight, vampires seem to have become synonymous with sex, sexuality and the forbidden. Given that the orgasm has been referred to as la petit mort (the little death), should we find it surprising that the act of vampirism is associated with sexuality?

Really, we can’t seem to escape these fanged creatures. They’re lurking everywhere and have become our newest obsession, or should I say, addiction? But why is this so? As Yvonne K. Fulbright suggests:

“In two words: vampire sex”

While some might throw up their hands in horror over the steamy hyper-sexuality exhibited by the inhabitants of HBO’s True Blood, vampires in books, films and television are and have always been associated with sex. The act of vampirism is, to put it mildly, an intimate one. It involves the mouth, an erogenous zone in itself, biting and sucking the victim. Need I say more? Hardly surprising then that this is intimately linked with forbidden acts, especially if we cast our minds back to Dracula’s Victorian London where sex and sexuality were as constrained as the corsets women had to wear back then.

As we now know, vampire legends predate Stoker’s Dracula; the traditional image of the vampire as a bloated creature feeding off decomposing corpses gave way to Polidori’s and Stoker’s re-imagination of the vampire. Through them, the vampire became linked with the aristocratic predator, which is also a staple of several fairy tales. For example, the character of the wolf in Little Red Riding Hood was a thinly disguised caricature of Louis XIV’s younger brother the Duke of Orleans, who ruthlessly seduced both men and women. The writers of Gothic fiction, such as Sheridan le Fanu, Polidori and Stoker probably devoured Baring-Gould’s account of the ruthless female serial killer Countess Elisabeth Bathory. Convicted in 1610 for murdering 80 young women, she became known as ‘The Bloody Lady of Cachtice’ for her bathing in her victims’ blood in the twisted belief that this would help her maintain her beauty and youth.

Polidori, Lord Byron’s physician, published The Vampyre in 1819, subsequently re-casting the blood drinking vampire as an attractive, charismatic anti-hero. Polidori, as we now know, based the vampire Lord Ruthven on his patient Lord Byron. Lady Caroline Lamb, Byron’s former lover, once described Byron as ‘mad, bad and dangerous to know’, also calling the villain in her novel Glenarvon Lord Ruthven. It’s widely believed that both Lady Caroline Lamb and Polidori were settling a score with the famous poet.

But it was Bram Stoker who gave us the image and characteristics of the modern vampire, although the book’s influence only grew in the 20^th century. Dracula also embedded the allegory connecting blood with sex whereby the sexual implications of the blood exchange between the vampire and his victim provides highly powerful psychosexual and erotic overtones. When Mina Harker drinks Dracula’s blood, giving Mina her first experience of sexual ecstasy, the sexual overtones are unmistakable,

Of course, F.W. Murnau’s German Expressionist Nosferatu undoubtedly returned the vampire to a gruesome monster. In Max Shreck’s performance, we see a vampire as a grotesque loathsome creature, not the charismatic fanged creature. But it was Bela Lugosi performance in 1924 that vampires are again re-made as the irresistible, polished, seductive and good-looking villain. Through Bela Lugosi, the modern vampire is rehabilitated, and now appears forever youthful inhabiting an in-between world where they are neither dead nor alive. As Y.K. Fulbright indicates:

“Bela Lugosi made vampires irresistibly handsome for modernity. But beyond hot bodies and good looks, it’s the male vampire’s depiction as the James Dean of Goth that holds the greatest appeal [...] these rebels are far from pure in thought and deed. Women can’t help but be drawn to these mesmerizing, misunderstood, moody bad boys.”

Moreover, unlike the earlier vampires, our modern bad boys are noticeably deviant and hyper-sexual involving

“Subtle storylines of sexual deviants flirting with fetishes [...] Since the 1950s, stories have become more overtly “sexplicit”, with more recent movies and TV shows depicting or alluding to frenzied, frantic sex with aggressive appeal.”

I guess we shouldn’t mince our words here because what the appeal modern vampire alludes to, how shall we say it…is that of S&M. As Y.K. Fulbright again notes:

“Vampires like it rough. They like to bite. And their victims love the bites, scratches and handcuffs as depicted in shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Sometimes sadomasochists attract what are known as “fang bangers” [...] people who have a thing for manhandle-me vampire sex role playing. The bondage, domination and submission themes mixed with ‘true love’ are perfect reason for stripping off your neck scarf or turtleneck.”

In short, these modern vampires allow us to get in touch with our primal side of sexual desires, which seldom see the light of day.

“The dangerous lust of a vampire torn between staying in control with very lick of his prey revs up your body much like a sexual response. And it’s delicious [...] When it comes to longing and lust, we love being preyed upon. Vampires go for one of the most sensitive erogenous zones, the neck, becoming even more magnetic as their victims beg for life, for death, for sex. ”

Needless to say, the vampires of HBO’s True Blood fulfill all these modern fantasies about vampire sexuality. Fascinating, dangerous, ambivalent and lustful. Yes, Vampire Bill and Viking vampire Eric Northman are all those. Creatures of uncensored sensuality, yes, the vampires who inhabit the Southern Gothic world of True Blood are all those too. Beautiful, immortal and titillatingly libidinous, these vampires aren’t afraid of their lustful natures. Nor do they fight them. They happily give in. They feel no guilt or shame. They are indeed bad and dangerous to know. In fact, these creatures of the night don’t ever need to do the walk of shame. These creatures don’t ever have to deal with the ‘morning after’. No sane human could ever be so free.

But let’s face it, they aren’t human either. Instead, they are something defiantly other, defying pragmatic reality, the creatures of our nightmares or fairy tales, depending on your leaning of course. And we are enthralled and obsessed by these wonderful creatures.

Source: Foxnews.com

Photo credit: HBO Inc.

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