Tag Archives: Denis O’Hare

Anna Paquin, Cast, Nelsan Ellis, News, Rutina Wesley, Sam Trammell, Supporting Cast

True Blood Cast are No Strangers to the Stage

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We all know what a talented cast of actors True Blood has.  We enjoy watching them every Sunday night as our guilty pleasure.  Well, we have found one thing that a lot of the cast members have in common.  A lot of them started their careers on the stage. Alan Ball who is the amazingly talented creator of the series began his career as a playwright.  Here is a look at 10 stunning True Blood castmates that have all shared the big stage!

Anna Paquin, who portrays Sookie Stackhouse on True Blood, was one of the youngest Oscar winners ever for her role in The Piano.  Anna has also had some great performances on stage.  She debuted as a baby-faced serial killer in 2001’s The Glory of Living, and went on to star in Neil LaBute’s, The Distance From Here and After Ashley, in which she starred opposite her former beau, Kieran Culkin.

Sam Trammell, who plays our dreamy bar owner and shapeshifter, Sam Merlotte, also made a big start on stage.  From 1997 – 1998, Sam starred in Dealer’s Choice, My Night With Reg, and Ah, Wilderness! Sam earning a Tony nomination and a Theater World Award for his stage work.

Rutina Wesley, who plays Sookie’s hard luck best friend, Tara Thornton, has also been spotted on stage.  She starred in the public theater production of In Darfur.  Before starring in that play, she also performed in the role of Julianne Moore’s student in the Broadway premiere of The Vertical Hour.  Rutina also has something in common with Nelsan Ellis, who plays Tara’s flamboyant cousin, Lafayette, on the show. Both actors attended Juilliard together.

Carrie Preston, who we know on the show as Merlotte waitress, Arlene Fowler, also made her debut on the big stage.  She starred as Miranda in the show, The Tempest, and she also played the character, Honey, in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Carrie has starred in many other Broadway and off-Broadway shows. She is married to another stage actor, Michael Emerson, who is known for his role as Ben Linus on the hit series Lost.

Nelsan Ellis who portrays our priceless, Lafayette, on True Blood, is also no stranger to the stage.  He starred in A Soldier’s Play in which he played Corporal Bernard Cobb. The cast included Taye Diggs and Steven Pasquale.  While attending Juilliard, Nelsan wrote an award-winning play about domestic violence, entitled Ugly in response to the murder of his sister at the hands of her partner.

Chris Bauer plays our endearing sheriff Andy Bellefleur, but what you may not know is that Chris is also a long time member of the Atlantic Theater Company. His wife Laura is a costume designer within the same company.  In 2005, Chris received amazing reviews for his performance as Mitch in A Streetcar Named Desire and performed in that production opposite the late Natascha Richardson.

Denis O’Hare plays the Vampire King of Mississippi on True Blood and has also been seen by many theatergoers.  He has played everything from baseball fan Mason Marzac in Take Me Out, for which he won a Tony Award, to Oscar Lindquist in Sweet Charity, which he performed opposite of Christina Applegate.  Denis won a Tony nomination for his role as President Garfield’s killer, Charles Guiteau, in Assassins, portrayed Nazi sympathizer Ernst Ludwig in Cabaret and had a title-role in the off-broadway production of Uncle Vanya. Now that is quite a stage resume!

J. Smith Cameron plays Sam Merlotte’s shapeshifting momma, Melinda Mickens, and is a stage actress as well.  She earned herself a Tony Award nomination for her role as an 18th century Australian sailor in Our Country’s Good.  She also starred in the off-Broadway hit, As Bees In Honey Drown.  Her most recent work has been playing opposite Matthew Broderick as his betrayed wife in Starry Messenger, which was written by her husband, Kenneth Lonergan.

Zeljko Ivanek portrays the scary Magister on True Blood.  Zelijko has starred in many stage plays with his most recent appearance on stage being Captain Queeg in The Caine Mutiny Court Martial.  The role earned him his third Tony Award nomination over a thirty year theater career.  His first nomination was for his role as Stanley Jerome in Brighton Beach Memoirs and the second nomination was for his role in Two Shakespearean Actors.  He has also starred in Cloud 9, The Pillowman, and the list goes on and on.

James Frain, who we know as creepy vamp, Franklin Mott, made his Broadway debut as Teddy in The Homecoming.  The British actor began his career at London’s Royal Court and Almeida Theaters.

So as you can see our True Blood cast has a long history on the big stage. These talented actors prove over and over again just how good they are, be it on the big screen or on Broadway!

SOURCE:  Broadway.com

(Photo Credits: Broadway.com)

News, Season 3 News, Supporting Cast, Supporting Characters, Video Interviews, Videos

VIDEO: Denis O’Hare Explains Fangs and Sucking Sounds

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Denis O’Hare talked with AP-Red‘s Jason Drew about his career, his method of character development and his role of Russell Edgington, True Blood‘s Vampire King of Mississippi.

Was he into vampires before his role as the 2800 year-old vampire king? At 8 years of age he pretended to be Dracula and even had a book titled “How to Care for Your Monster”.  He also watched Dark Shadows as a kid.

What’s great about Charlaine Harris‘ story, he says,  is that vampires come out into the open.  That’s her invention and it’s great.

Denis described the differences between the soft fangs and hard fangs.  The soft are for biting but not for talking.  He actually lost his during one scene! They are not held in with adhesive.  In addition to having a fang wrangler, Denis said he spends a lot of time creating the various sounds required for sucking blood and biting.

Talking about his True Blood role, Denis said it was decided before he was cast that they wanted a more charming, powerful and deadly king.  That differs from the book’s Russell.

When the correlation between some of the vampire issues was made, such as the Vampire Rights Amendment and the current gay marriage controversy, Denis said it’s rather interesting that Russell and Talbot have the most stable relationship on the show.  After 700 years together, they’re still committed to each other.

Watch the video.  And do not miss True Blood‘s Episode 7 on Sunday on HBO.

Anna Paquin, Cast, Deborah Ann Woll, Events, Joe Manganiello, Kristin Bauer van Straten, Nelsan Ellis, News, Rutina Wesley, Sam Trammell, Season 3 News, Stephen Moyer, Supporting Cast

My True Blood Experience at Comic-con 2010

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Exactly a week ago today, I was at Comic-Con, pumped up for the True Blood panel and everything else True Blood related that I could see and do. There was a TON of True Blood stuff at Comic-Con, and regardless of what someone told me, True Blood was THE talk of Con once again! (That person told me Inception would be all people were talking about.)

For me, the True Blood experience started Wednesday when I arrived in San Diego for Preview Night at Comic-Con. I was lucky enough to be staying at the San Diego Bayfront Hotel, which is the hotel that had the True Blood elevators. I loved those elevators, and each trip up and down was an absolute pleasure!

I did attend Preview Night, and while there, I did get my hands on the True Blood comic book issue #1 with the IDW exclusive cover. However, Preview Night was pretty overwhelming for me, so I left early in order to get extra sleep and prepare for the first official day of Comic-Con.

On Thursday, the first day of Comic-Con, I went to the composer panel that featured not only True Blood scorer Nathan Barr, but many other composers who I really admire. As a massive surprise to myself and the rest of the audience, Charlaine Harris opened the panel. It was great, and hearing Charlaine talk about how important music is was a great treat!

As the panel went on, Nathan (who was third from the right on the panel) had a lot to say about scoring, but one thing that really stood out to me in the panel was when Nathan talked about how he has some weird instruments, including one made from human bone! (It’s a human bone trumpet, it came from Tibet, and it’s made from a femur.) Talk about something that’s both creepy and cool! Of course, lots of things were said that were really interesting. Musicians and composers often have great tales about their projects you wouldn’t hear about otherwise, so if you have a chance, take advantage of that and talk to the composers of the shows you like! You never know what you may hear from them!

After the panel, I had the chance to say hi to Nathan again (I’ve met him a couple of times previously) as well as send him another hello from my godfather, who knows him. Nathan was super sweet, as always, and I’m grateful that he and the other composers were all willing to take time for the fans.

Thankfully, that was an easy and very fun part of Comic-Con. I only wish Friday had gone as well as Thursday did.

Friday at Comic-Con was absolutely insane. Not only was I surrounded by 125,000 of my closest friends, my first experience of the day was an absolutely frustrating one. I made sure to arrive early so I could say hello to a friend at a booth before heading towards the WB booth to wait for hours until the True Blood signing.

Once I got over to the area where the WB Booth was, everything was pure pandemonium. First, I had to find a place to sit near the wall, and security at Con was not very good. Every time a new security person came around, new directions were issued at me and everyone sitting around me. It was very frustrating, and only got worse as the hours went on.

During that wait, I sat and talked to tons of True Blood fans about what they liked about Season 3, and everyone had nice things to say about how intense True Blood is and how waiting for a new episode every Sunday can be painful because everyone wants more, and they want it now! To me, it was like being in TrueBloodNet’s fan community, where I’ve heard the same thing over and over again!

There was one strange surprise during that wait time, though. Sarah Palin was at Comic-Con. I didn’t believe it was really her until I walked up to her (as a nice fellow fan saved the area I was sitting at) and saw that it really wasn’t Tina Fey in costume. I did say hi, then walked back to where I was sitting. The other True Blood fans and I all joked around about the reasons Sarah might have for being at Comic-Con, but really could’t come up with any reasons. Either way, it was a nice distraction during the long wait for the True Blood signing.

This is where the pandemonium began. The line setup for the True Blood signing line was absolutely horrific. There were probably around 1,000 fans eagerly awaiting the True Blood signing, and all had been told different things by security. By the time lining up for the panel was approved, there was a whole set of new usurpers in the “official” line, and those people were the ones who got in over everyone else. Security also allowed a smaller aisle near the WB Booth to be entirely blocked by even more fans waiting for the True Blood signing! The final effect was that a lot of people, myself included, could not get into the panel and were very upset. Were I to have been in charge of security and lines near the WB Booth, I would have done a lot of things differently. First, I would have put the signing in a different room and not on the dealer’s floor. Second, I would have held drawings to get in line for the signing. The insanity would have been prevented had that done been done. Hopefully next year, the True Blood signing line will be set up differently.

That’s not the end of my story, though. I was lucky, once again, to get into the True Blood panel, thanks entirely to a friend. Once I got in (a couple panels early), I searched for a seat and even found a really good one. I was in the second set of seating (behind the first main aisle) on the left side of the room. My seat was not as close as it was in 2009, but it was pretty close! However, I was not in that seat for very long. Instead, as soon as the question line was announced, I walked over to it and sat there for the majority of the panel.

The panel was fantastic! The moderator of the panel was awesome, and he made sure to spread his time and questions amongst everyone on the panel. There was also a very amusing moment where Stephen Moyer and Anna Paquin brought a cardboard cutout of Alexander Skarsgard to the panel and jokingly caressed it as they set it down. The panel audience was howling with laughter!

There were several great moments throughout the panel, and a few really stick out in my mind. One was a joke aimed at Rutina Wesley about how Tara should try dating using Match.com. I thought it was really funny, and a lot of the audience agreed! Another great moment was hearing directly from Alan Ball that Joe Manganiello is now going to be a full cast member for Season 4. Lots of cheering and hooting was heard after that announcement.

For me, though, the top moments of the panel over anything else were Alan Ball’s declaration that Bill and Sookie are soul mates and getting the chance to ask a question during the panel.

I was the second to last question that the panel answered, and I asked Stephen Moyer about how Bill’s evolution as a character has affected him as an answer. I swear I could feel myself glowing when Stephen told me that I’d asked a good question!

I had one other True Blood experience while at Comic-Con. Like the previous year, True Blood hosted the annual blood drive (which it turns out that my godmother named), so on Saturday, I went over and donated blood. In exchange for the blood, I got a really cool “My Blood is True” t-shirt, a True Blood water bottle, and a couple of other minor things. The other thing I came home with from donating blood? A giant bruise that’s still healing now. However, even without the stuff, I’m really happy that I gave blood, as blood banks everywhere need the donations!

All in all, even though some of the things that happened to me at Comic-Con were sincerely frustrating, I had a great time. I just wish it all hadn’t happened so quickly, because I can barely remember a lot of what I experienced. Thankfully, though, you all can join me in seeing what I saw live by clicking here and watching the videos of the True Blood panel!

(Image Credits: Isis Nocturne and @mariluvsHP)

Cast, Characters, Interviews, News, Season 3 News, Supporting Cast, Supporting Characters

Denis O’Hare Says It’s Good To Be King

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Fancast.com had a few questions for the vampire king of Mississippi.  True Blood‘s King Russell Edgington, played wonderfully by Denis O’Hare, is causing a great deal of angst this season for Bill and Sookie fans.

When asked about the king’s intended plans for the vampire blood addicted werewolves in his employ, Denis said that all his plans have to be revised due to certain events occurring in episodes 7 and 8.  “Things start to go really crazy.”

Now we’re intrigued.  What about more somewhat disturbing scenes such as the eating frenzy of the stripper in the king’s limo?  All Denis would share is that Russell is in bed with someone in episode 10 when stuff happens.  He would not say what things, nor would he admit to his bed partner being male, female, human, vampire or werewolf.

Of course playing with wolves has been one of Denis‘ more fun experiences on the show.  He said working with real wolves is incredible.

“I got to meet one young wolf and actually sit down and pet him before he knocked me over on my ass.  They’re fantastic animals.”

Stating that it is, indeed, good to be king, Denis admitted that Russell can do whatever he wants – order people around, eat who he wants.  “It’s fantastic.”  And yes, the show should move from Bon Temps to Jackson, where there are better restaurants and large plantation houses.

Asked if he was rooting for Bill or Alcide, with regard to Sookie, Denis put it simply.  “I’m on Team Russell.  My team.”

Watch more True Blood drama unfolding Sunday night on HBO.

Source:  fancast.com

(Photo credit – afterelton.com)

Cast, Characters, Interviews, Kristin Bauer van Straten, Lafayette Reynolds, Nelsan Ellis, News, Pamela Swynford De Beaufort, Rutina Wesley, Season 3 News, Supporting Cast, Supporting Characters, Tara Thornton, Video Interviews, Videos

VIDEO: True Blood Cast Reveals Season 3 Moments

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“Tied up to a toilet?!” Rutina Wesley recounts what she said at discovering what was in store  for her character Tara when she, as well as other cast members, did a video interview with PopSugar.

For Rutina, True Blood isn’t nerve racking but challenging. What makes it all worth it is the fans; Rutina gushes that what she loves about the fans is that they truly care about the characters and the actors who portray them. She is blessed and excited to be at Comic-Con for a third time.

Also, interviewed was Kritin Bauer, who reveals that Season 3 is the season where fans will get to see Pam’s loyalty and love for Eric. Her history as well as her feelings are explored this season.

For Nelsan Reynolds the shocking scene of Season 3 was hands down between Bill and Lorena, during the head twisting incident. Like the fans, Nelsan saw it as freaky and crazy…exactly what True Blood is all about. As for his own character, Nelsan only reveals that Lafayette falls in love.

Denis O’Hare, who plays the Vampire King of Mississippi Russell Edgington, applauds not only the cast, but the crew of True Blood, saying that they are a team; they take care of one another and make even the nude scenes comfortable.

How do the screaming fans make him feel? He reveals it’s fun and terrifying, which sounds exactly like True Blood! Though it does take a few minutes for fans to realize who Denis is, given that in real life he doesn’t wear the wig he uses for the show. Sometimes he can try to escape, but True Blood fans don’t let him get too far.

The cast reveals their joy and excitement about Season 3; watch for yourself as they reveal secrets as well as string fans along with the teasers about the show.

SOURCE: popsugar.tv

Alcide Herveaux, Joe Manganiello, News, Season 3 News, Supporting Cast

Entertainment Weekly Spotlight on “True Blood’s New Blood”

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True Blood’s third season has been shaken up by the presence of fascinating new characters added to the mix of our familiar favorites. Five of these newcomers to the cast are featured in the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly. They talk about their characters and some of the things they faced on the job.

Denis O’Hare, the veteran thespian behind Russell Edgington, discussed the difficulties of portraying a vampire–having to ingest large amounts of the sugary syrup used for blood, and trying to pronounce S’s when wearing the sharp speaking fangs. Neither Denis nor any of the other actors hinted at their longevity on True Blood, but the article does say that the King’s “never-ending appetite for political play is his downfall.” According to Denis,

“My trajectory is a tragic one. At one point I end up with rotten teeth.”

Russell’s companion, Talbot, is portrayed by Greek actor Theo Alexander. The character was initially envisioned to be British, but Theo wanted a chance for the part:

“When I read it, I said, ‘He’s very sensual, he’s very Dionysian, he’s very Socratic.’ He reminded me of Greek royalty. I wore my kimono [to the audition] because he’s wearing his robe in the first scene.”

Theo and Denis enjoyed spending time together before the filming to come up with some backstory for their characters’ 700-year relationship. Talbot’s not just there to be a pretty face with the snarky comebacks–executive producer Alan Ball hinted that his actions as the season continues would have “pretty far-reaching consequences for a lot of people.”

In league with Russell and Talbot is Franklin Mott, played by James Frain. He says it was a mark of his inexperience playing a vampire that he struggled to remove his fangs when everyone else could just pop them right out. According to James, Franklin truly does have feelings for Tara, but “his idea of love proves he’s a psychopath” in that his view is so skewed and narcissistic.

Moving on to the werewolf of the group, Joe Manganiello entered the show as Alcide Herveaux, protector of Sookie as she ventured to Jackson, MS. In the article, EW actually acknowledges a fan site for being the first to nominate Joe for the role–that’s the power of popular demand, folks! On the subject of the nudity that’s expected to play a werewolf (or any supernatural creature, or any human, really!) on True Blood, Joe mentioned that there are a few options for actors to cover–or not cover–themselves:

“A sock, a thong, and the ‘manty’ or man panty. You can go sans sock, [but] I come from a good Pittsburgh upbringing that raised me to wear a sock.”

Finally, we’re introduced to Lindsay Pulsipher, who is still a great mystery to viewers because we’ve only glimpsed her twice thus far in the season. Her character, Crystal Norris, grabs the attention of womanizer Jason Stackhouse. Lindsay says she’s different from other girls Jason has been with:

“She’s not so eager to jump into bed with him. She’s unaware of how courtship works.”

It seems that her storyline is going to be revealed slower than others, but Alan said that the people of Bon Temps will face danger directly related to Crystal. (How’s that for cryptic…)

Of course, there are a few other newbies in Season 3, but this was a great feature on these characters/actors and definitely gets us interested for what’s in store for them!

SOURCE: Entertainment Weekly

(Photo credit: HBO Inc.)

Behind the Scenes, Bill Compton, News, Stephen Moyer, Uncategorized

Russell Edgington’s Home Has a History

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Mississippi has been very welcoming to the cast and crew of True Blood. Since the vampire king of Mississippi, Russell Edgington (played by Denis O’Hare) resides in Jackson, the area is now full of werewolves and vampires.

An article in clarionledger.com described the historic antebellum home of King Edgington.  It is Longwood, located in Natchez.  This beautiful home was discovered by production designer Suzuki Ingerslev when she visited Mississippi looking for the right location.

“We were drawn to the grandeur, the timeless elegance and the unusually octagonal architecture,” she said.  “As far as we could see, Longwood was the most unique antebellum home we’d ever seen.

“There’s something about the land that surrounds Longwood that made it a little foreboding, but at the same time, it was absolutely lovely.  It had to be the king’s house.”

Many stills were shot to get the flavor before building the set.  The crew all commented on Longwood’s beauty.  Seeing it lit up at night gave them a sense of magic.

Suzuki said that walking around and shopping in Natchez was as if she travelled back in history.  It gave her the perfect ideas and props for the re-creation of the king’s house.  From the photos they took they were able to produce the centuries old feeling with a true Southern flair.

In Jackson, Suzuki and art director, Cat Smith, visited the locations highlighted in Charlaine Harris‘ books, on which the True Blood series is based.  “We just wanted a feel of what it looked like everywhere.”

Getting into the history of Longwood, tour guide Harry Boschieri explained that it is a great example of mid-19th century architecture and is the largest octagonal house in the United States.

“It features a six-story octagonal rotunda and a byzantine-Moorish dome with a 24-foot fenial.”  “The 30,000 square foot structure is filled with furniture from the 1840s and 1850s.”

Construction on the home began in 1860 by a wealthy cotton planter named Dr. Haller Nutt.  The Philadelphia architect, Samuel Sloan, left his tools and fled north a year later when the Civil War began.

Only the basement level was completed for living quarters (local workers were used).  A year before the war ended, Dr. Nutt died of pneumonia, leaving his wife and children to continue living in the 10,000 square foot basement of the unfinished home.  She died in 1897.

Longwood was occupied by 3 generations of the Nutt family until 1968. Today it is maintained by The Pilgrimage Garden Club.

The Natchez Convention and Visitors Burueau seem pleased to have the True Blood crew filming in their area.  The scene where Russell and Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer) rode together on horseback to the king’s house was described by Sally Durkin, media liaison for the bureau, “they really made Longwood look spectacular”.

The Natchez folks would like True Blood to come back and do more filming.  The production designer said she would love to go back and hang out “because everyone was so nice”.  Sounds like true Southern hospitality.

Source:  clarionledger.com

(Photo credit – clarionledger.com)

Cast, Characters, News, Supporting Cast, Supporting Characters

Denis O’Hare talks about True Blood and Wolves

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IF Magazine caught up with Denis O’Hare for a two part interview. During the second part of this interview he talks about his theater background, how he found out about True Blood, and working with wolves.

Denis O’Hare plays the King of Mississippi Russell Edgington on HBO’s True Blood. Denis is new to True Blood but he has been on stage most of his life. He started on stage in Chicago, and then later moved to Broadway in New York City. He has also been in some television shows such as Law & Order and CSI: Miami. Denis said that many of the actors on True Blood originated from New York like himself and Michael Hall also worked with him during Romeo and Juliet. So while he had never worked for Alan Ball previous to True Blood, he would seem logical that he had seen or heard of his work before.

When asked if Denis O’Hare was ready to bare it all like so many on the show do, Denis replied,

“No. Not yet. It hasn’t happened. I’ve gotten this far in my career without having to do that, it’d be nice to keep some things private, you know what I mean? If I’m called upon to, I will gladly, but Russell has dignity. I think he needs to keep his dignity.”

Denis does add that even thought the other actors have dignity they are also 25 years old!

The character that Denis has to play only rarely has to bite people but when he does, Denis makes sure to talk with the actor about what is getting ready to happen and make sure that the other person involved are comfortable. He explains that Russell is very much a southern gentleman, very knowledgeable in what he wants, he plans it and follows through down to every last detail. He does mention that Russell is also very much hot headed with a BIG temper.

While he hasn’t had to work with the wolves very often, he did have to work with them the very first episode he did. True Blood has decided to use real wolves rather than CGI wolves, this decision was mainly based on the “realness” of the wolves that were used in the Sookie Stakehouse series. The wolves are mainly kept away from the actors and separated by an electrical fence. So far, they have been very skeptical of everyone so the main issue is more with the wolves remaining focused during the shoot.
Denis said the one thing that has most surprised him about the show was,

” I have to say, I am bowled over by how friendly everyone in the cast and crew is, how hard everybody works, how professional everybody is. Everybody comes here to work. They do a really, really, really good job. Everyone is prepared to go, ready to go, and yet they manage to have fun while doing it. And it’s a really amazing balance. There’s no attitude from anybody, there’s nobody who has any sort of diva position. Everyone is great. It’s pretty amazing.”

We agree! This show has had two very amazing season and so far season 3 has had a lot to offer us. Tune in tonight for the brand new episode of True Blood where you can see more of Denis O’Hare and all your favorite characters.

SOURCE: www.ifmagazine.com

(Photo credit: HBO Inc.)

Anna Paquin, Cast, Events, Joe Manganiello, Kristin Bauer van Straten, Nelsan Ellis, News, Rutina Wesley, Sam Trammell, Season 3 News, Stephen Moyer

True Blood Takes Comic-Con 2010

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Comic-Con is getting closer and closer, and now information about panels is coming out day by day.

This year, unlike the last several years, Comic-Con is throwing the programming around to make it easier for fans to see everything they want to. (In the past, all the biggest shows, movies, etc. had panels on Saturday.) So far, only two days of Comic-Con panels have been announced, but True Blood is already a hot commodity with hands in several different panels.

As we announced today, Charlaine Harris and Nathan Barr will both have panels on Thursday at Comic-Con. Now we also know that True Blood will be prominent in Friday programming!

In one panel, True Blood‘s costume designer Audrey Fisher will be discussing Costume Designing.

Costume Designers: Designing for TV Production— Costume Designers work in collaboration with Directors, Production Designers, Directors of Photography and Actors in creating fantastic and memorable stories told via moving images. Characters created by Comic Book Writers and Illustrators are made real for the screen via the artistry of Costume Designers. Meet the men and women who are the Costume Designers on this year’s most popular television productions. Moderator  Kristin Burke, Costume Designer, a Member of  the Costume Designers Guild, Local 892, and creator of her own Costume Design website “Frocktalk.com”, hosts Costume Designers from CDG, local 892: Audrey Fisher (True Blood),Ane Crabtree (Justified), Shawna Trpcic (Firefly), Pamela Shaw (Assistant Designer,Vampire Diaries),  Jennifer Eve (Assistant Designer, Glee).

In another panel, James Frain, who we all know as the chilling Franklin Mott will be discussing his new show The Cape.

One panel that will be discussing True Blood isn’t going to focus on the show. Instead, that one will focus on urban fantasy beyond the commercial appeal of vampires and will include writers of many other vampire series such as Tanya Huff (whose books were the basis for the vampire show Blood Ties), Mario Acevedo (who created the Felix Gomez series about a vampire detective) and Marjorie M. Liu (who writes lots of urban fantasy/paranormal books).

Another favorite True Blood villain will have a panel too. Michael McMillian (who we know and love to hate as Rev. Steve Newlin) will have a panel about his new comic book Lucid.

And finally, the actual True Blood panel will also be Friday.

True Blood Panel and Q&A session— Mixing romance, suspense, mystery, and humor, True Blood kicked off its 12-episode third season June 13 on HBO. The series, which has earned two Golden Globe nominations for Best Television Series—Drama, follows the romance between waitress Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin, Golden Globe winner for True Blood season one; Oscar-winner for The Piano), who can hear people’s thoughts, and her soulmate, 173-year-old vampire Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer). Alan Ball (creator of the Emmy-winning HBO series Six Feet Under) created and serves as executive producer of the series, which is based on the best-selling Sookie Stackhouse novels by Charlaine Harris. The series also features Nelsan Ellis as Lafayette Reynolds, Sam Trammell as Sam Merlotte, Rutina Wesley as Tara Thornton, Deborah Ann Woll as Jessica Hamby, Kristin Bauer van Straten as Pam, Denis O’Hare as Russell Edgington, the Vampire King of Mississippi, and Joe Manganiello as Alcide Herveaux. (Note: names in bold will be appearing on the panel.) Moderated by Tim Stack of Entertainment Weekly.

As we can see above, it appears that Ryan Kwanten will sadly not be making a Comic-Con appearance this year, and neither will be Alexander Skarsgard. It is going to be fantastic to see the cast at Comic-Con this year and the True Blood panel is going to be a definite MUST see!

To learn more about any of these panels, go to Comic-Con.org and take a look through the panel listings.

SOURCE: Comic-Con.org

(Image Credit: scifiscoop.com)

Alexander Skarsgard, Bill Compton, Cast, Eric Northman, Kristin Bauer van Straten, Latest, News, Pamela Swynford De Beaufort, Rutina Wesley, Sam Trammell, Season 3 News, Stephen Moyer, Supporting Cast, Supporting Characters, Videos

VIDEO: The Mythology of Vampires and Shape-Shifters

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HBO has released a couple of new videos on their YouTube page about True Blood and the mythology behind their vampires and shape-shifters.

The first video, found below, is about the mythology of vampires. In it, several cast members, including Stephen Moyer, Deborah Ann Woll, Alexander Skarsgard, and Kristin Bauer all discuss the powers (and a few weaknesses) of True Blood‘s vampires.

One comment in particular stood out to me about vampires and their makers. According to Alan Ball and the cast, the vampires on True Blood have deep connections with their makers. Should their maker command that they do something, then the child has no choice but to do what their maker says to do.

The next video is about the mythology of shape-shifters. In it, Sam Trammell, Marshall Allman, and a couple other cast members discuss what being a shapeshifter is like. They discussed how different shifters have specific “go-to” forms, how being a shifter can make for awkward situations, and a few other things.

In this video, I found the comments made about shifter genetics and the specific conditions needed for a child to be born a shifter to be quite interesting and very enlightening.

Both videos make watching True Blood that much sweeter because they give us a deeper glimpse into the laws that guide the True Blood universe.

SOURCE: HBO’s YouTube account

(Image Credit: HBO Inc.)

Alexander Skarsgard, Events, Kristin Bauer van Straten, Latest, News, Sam Trammell, Season 3 News, Supporting Cast, Videos

VIDEO: Stars at the True Blood Wrap Party

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True Blood has now finished filming Season 3, so they just had their wrap party on July 1. The party took place at STK Steak House in West Hollywood. Enjoy the videos below of some of our favorite True Blood stars!


Alexander Skarsgard


Sam Trammell


Kristin Bauer


Todd Lowe


Denis O’Hare


James Frain


Grant Bowler


(This video is long, but it includes several True Blood stars, starting at the 1:22 mark with Danielle Harris, who is an actress but not on True Blood.)

Cast, Characters, Interviews, News, Season 3 News, Supporting Cast, Supporting Characters

Denis O’Hare on Being a Vampire King

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Who would have thought that Mississippi was ruled by a 2,800 year old vampire king? In the HBO series True Blood, Russell Edgington is that vampire king and he’s looking to rule more than just Mississippi.

The king is played by Denis O’Hare, a Tony award winner for his role in Take Me Out; he is also known for his roles in Milk, as well as Brothers and Sisters. O’Hare sat on Bill Compton’s porch in between shooting to talk to iF Magazine.

O’Hare reveals he’s had some practice at portraying a vampire. When he was eight, O’Hare was a blood-sucker for Halloween, though he was also a werewolf at nine as well as Frankenstein at ten. As for playing a king, he portrayed the famous Scottish king, Macbeth. However, this is the first time he is playing a Mississippian.

During the interview, O’Hare kept his accent for the show, as he feels his own accent is boring. This led to a discussion about home, where O’Hare revealed he was born in Missouri, and raised in Detroit, Michigan before spending twelve years in Chicago and finally residing in New York. O’Hare notes,

” I’m from nowhere. I’m from everywhere.”

Many of the characters in True Blood seem to be from nowhere and from everywhere, which seems to help O’Hare in his portrayal as Russell Edgington. However, O’Hare hasn’t done much genre work as he has spent most of his career on stage and, in the last few years, in film. He does note that Changeling was a period piece and his new film, Eagles of the North, with Channing Tatum is a swords and sandal picture. He also did the horror movie Quarantine, where he was eaten by a dog in an elevator, but True Blood is O’Hare’s first taste of the fantasy genre.

Though he hasn’t been in this kind of genre piece and had no concept of how he’d portray a vampire, he was a fan of True Blood prior to being cast as the vampire king. For O’Hare playing a supernatural is a great experience. He muses,

“You’re always trying to explore the limits of your powers. ‘Can I do this, can I do that, can I fly, can I read minds, can I tell the future, can I read smoke?’ And this guy is particularly fun, because he may have anything, really. You can kind of be whatever you want to be… He’s king because he’s powerful. He’s king because he took it. And this is a guy who is 2,800 years old, who is more powerful than any of these other vampires, so he can do things physically that nobody else can do. I don’t think I have special powers, but my powers are more concentrated, so I’m just incredibly fast.”

For O’Hare, Russell Edgington can build and destroy. There is a depth to his character that makes him more real to the audience. Aside from creating a dynamic character, O’Hare believes the show is more than a plot driven monster fest; rather the show forces the viewers to ponder philosophical and ethical questions. For example, in a society where gay marriage is banned in certain parts of the country, True Blood showcases a vampire king who is gay and has been in a relationship with his partner for seven hundred years. There is love and a home between Russell Edgington and Talbot.  Edgington’s interest in the Queen of Louisiana is simply a political alliance.

In the books, the Queen marries the King of Arkansas instead of Mississippi. O’Hare feels that while Alan Ball has followed very closely to certain details of Charlaine Harris’ novels, Ball follows his own gut feelings. From a small and not so powerful character in the novels, Russell Edgington has become much more stronger…a vampire buying and selling power.

The power of this vampire king can be reflected in his mansion. O’Hare points out,

“They’ve made a plantation house for me, which is based on a house in Natchez, Mississippi, called Lionwood Plantation… You know, it’s funny, because when we go there… all of the crew are kind of going, ‘My liege,’ ‘Oh, the king is here,’ ‘Welcome home,’ and everyone’s joking, but after awhile, it does begin to have an effect. It helps you in a good way – it makes you feel like you have the power that’s attributed to you. So that’s actually fun, I actually enjoy that.”

With a mansion and a kingdom, also comes fangs. O’Hare notes that in order to have his fangs suddenly pop out, he must hide them in different areas during shooting. He’s hidden them in cigar boxes, behind a chair, clenched in his hand or simply given to him by someone off set. On performing with his fangs O’Hare notes,

“They add a little boost to everything, because you know that you look fearsome. They tell what you’re feeling in a strange way, they’re a way of telegraphing, I am now angry, lustful, hungry, whatever.”

Fans of True Blood are going to see a lot more of O’Hare this season. Whatever he’s feeling-angry, lustful, regal-fans are ready ready to sink their teeth into this dynamic character.

SOURCE: iFMagazine

(Photo Credit: HBO Inc.)

Bill Compton, Eric Northman, Interviews, News, Season 3 News, Stephen Moyer

After 2800 Years, King Russell Has a Passion for Life

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As a history buff, Denis O’Hare, who plays Russell Edgington on the HBO series, True Blood, has been creative enough to make up his own history for his character.

The vampire King of Mississippi is nearly 3,000 years old, according to series creator Alan Ball.  So, in a wonderful interview with the New York Post’s PopWrap, Denis shared that he was probably an ancient druid who migrated west.

“…one thing I do know from reading a lot of history, the ancient druids came from the area East of the Danube, and they migrated west searching for better land, better food and the bed of the sun.  They were sun worshippers, so I love the idea that inside of him, this vampire has memories of being a sun worshipper.”

In discussing backstories and motivation for his character, Denis said that each character in the show wants to obtain the same things – respect, affection and even food.  The vampires are often motivated by the human emotions and desires they were born with.  “I think even at 2800 years old, Russell has a drive for life.  A passion for life.”

PopWrap added that the king also has a thirst for power.  Calling back to history, Denis referred to “the old royalty of Europe” where marriage was based on politics.  Russell wants to form an alliance and being the crafty modern man, he will later start using the media to his advantage.

Evidently, this Sunday Russell will display a multi-layered personality that will show him as “deeply vicious, deeply sentimental, deeply vulnerable and deeply hostile all at the same time”.  Denis said he loved that scene.

“It is so beautiful that he has a moment of vulnerability during that speech where he’s attempting to manipulate Bill but ends up speaking about the emotional toll involved with being a vampire in love with a human.  He speaks the truth in the middle of this daunting chess game.”

Touching on the relationship between Russell and Talbot, Denis stated that vampires have different morals from humans.  Their relationship is extremely intimate and they are life partners.  But it is not considered a betrayal to be with a different partner.  It’s simply satisfying their lust which is another aspect of their love.  However, he admitted that theirs is “a tragic storyline”.

Fans want to know where Bill (Stephen Moyer) fits into Russell‘s plans.  Initially, Russell just wants to use Bill in a small way to obtain his goal.  But Denis said that, as in life, plans change for the characters as they move forward with them.  In Bill‘s case, the information he provides causes Russell‘s plans to expand.

“So Russell himself doesn’t always know what he’s doing.  There are times when you’ll see him with Eric [Alexander Skarsgard] or Bill where he’ll be dealing lies on at least two different levels – every character is lying about everything.  These people are playing a massive game that keeps shifting every episode.”

Denis described Season 3 as a non-stop rollercoaster ride.  Referring to episodes 9 and 10, he said we can expect scenes that “are the height of triumph and the abyss of despair”.  The emotional ride and darkness and images of lying in a pool of blood gives him nightmares.

Sunday nights are going to be white knucklers as we watch what unfolds this season.

Source:  nypost.com

(Photo credit: HBO, Inc.)

Anna Paquin, Cast, Characters, Interviews, News, Sookie Stackhouse, Supporting Cast, Supporting Characters

Grant Bowler is Coot, the Biker Werewolf

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Maybe it’s the pull of the moon that has Grant Bowler going from playing Wolf West in Outrageous Fortune to playing a werewolf in this season’s True Blood.  And speaking of fortune, his character is evidently sensitive about his name, Coot!

Grant told the New Zealand Herald that Coot is a biker werewolf that does pretty much what he wants.  But in addition to obeying his employer, the vampire King of Mississippi (Denis O’Hare), he also has to watch out for traffic cops and dog catchers.

According to how things work in True Blood‘s world, in order to be a were, both parents have to be weres.  As such, they are pure blood.  “They are at the top of the food chain in terms of any creature that can shift”.

“Every time someone does vampires or werewolves or ghosties or whatever, the trickiest part is figuring out the rules and sticking to them, I guess.  On True Blood there are times when werewolvess really, really want to shift – you know like maybe a full moon or whatever, they have a really strong desire to shift.  But they can also shift at will.”

When asked about his scenes where Coot shifts from human to wolf, Grant explained that because in the series you could be shifting 25 or 30 times, creator Alan Ball wants to focus on the story rather than the “bones popping, hair growing out of the face kind of thing”.  So “we shift quite simply and quickly”.

Does he enjoy playing roles like Coot?  In response, Grant said “the older I got, the stranger I found it that the jobs I tend to get offered are jobs where I bash the guys and kiss girls – and that was fine with me.”  And, as Coot, “Yep, I get to kiss girls, terrorize people and get into a bit of biffo”.  In other words, he can be an ignorant jerk.

Grant was asked if he considers himself an Australian or a New Zealander, since he was born in Australia and raised in New Zealand.

“No, I wouldn’t say that I was one or the other.  Whenever I have been asked that I say I am both.  I’m an Australian and a Kiwi.  I really do feel I have been influenced by two places for that very reason.  I call myself an Oziwi.”

So he and fellow Kiwi co-star, Anna Paquin (Sookie Stackhouse), have some things in common to talk about.  “Although she likes to tease me that I’m an Aussie.”

With lots of work on TV shows and films, Grant is staying very busy.  But he seemed pretty definite when he was asked if he would play another wolf.  “No, I am done with wolves.” But let’s see what happens on the next full moon!

Source:  nzherald.co.nz

(Photo credit: IMDb.com)

Episodes, News, Season 3 News, Supporting Cast

Vampire King is this Season’s Villain

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Every good television drama needs a well written villain.  In Season 1 of True Blood, we had Rene out to kill vampire lovers.  In Season 2 we had Maryanne out to destroy the entire town. Season 3‘s villain is shaping up to be Russell Edgington the Vampire King of Mississippi played by Denis O’Hare.

As we saw in Episode 2, Edgington was responsible for Bill’s kidnapping by werewolves, for which he is completely unapologetic, and is plotting against Queen Sophie Anne. Not bad for his introduction! We also see that Russell has a boyfriend of 700 years named Talbot played by Theo Alexander. In the books Talbot is Russell‘s human companion and not a vampire.

In a show about vampires, werewolves and various supernatural beings there are plenty of “bad guys” to go around, but Russell is 2800 years old and the “oldest, strongest vampire” around.  That doesn’t bode well for the residents of Bon Temps.  O’Hare spoke to People Magazine telling them:

“Russell intends to take over the world. He feels that human beings have squandered their stewardship of the earth by not treating it well. And he is an old Celt, a Druid, who was an earth-worshipper, and he feels like he needs to take over.”

O’Hare is listed as a Season 3 regular and said his character “has plans”. We can’t wait to see what those are!

Source: People Magazine

(Photo Credit: HBO Inc.)