chiller blog

Posted Nov 23, 09 12:51 PM

Knight Cap

Pre-Lugosi, F.W. Murnau's silent era Nosferatu (1922) gave us the nightmare-inducing image of vampire Count Orlok. Bleached white skin tight on the skull, his movement akin to a scoliosis posture, this precursor to Dracula vulcanized to pioneer audiences the unholy image of those creatures of the night. Seduction through revulsion. Lifeforce through lifeblood.

But decades of classy capesters and oddly romantic undeads refined a throat-ripping icon into life-o'-the-party alpha male Christopher Lee or charming, smoldering Frank Langella. Nowadays, fang-flashers sport leather, RayBans and the latest in NRA artillery...when they're not coo-cooing to adolescent angst.

Somewhere between the soap bubbly of Dark Shadows and the arrival of Anne Rice, this particular monster cycle took a sharp right turn. The vampire wanted to regain his humanity, its immortal curse exposed as an addiction. And the penance for bloodsucking? Take up a badge in service to mankind. No, I'm not speaking of Moonlight (2007-08), the short-lived Joel Silver series (also running on CHILLER in November). The resemblance is uncanny, for sure, but viewers need only rewind to 1989-96 for the immediate cult hit – and, quite possibly, a new modern classic -- Forever Knight.

An intensely loyal international fan base -- ironically preceding (by two years) Forever Knight -- rallies from genial meet-and-greets to philanthropy to official "GWDFC events." That's quite a personal fourth wall embrace to the show's professionally graced star, the Welsh-born gentleman Geraint Wyn Davies. So signature is he in the role of Nick Knight, 800-year old vampire turned detective, that Quinn (the club's president) and I both shared the "oh, really???" afterthought to this little tidbit: Geraint stepped into a part initiated by Rick Springfield.

CHILLER put its best crucifix forward and donned a turtleneck to catch up with Geraint Wyn Davies, currently onstage in a one-man Dylan Thomas production. He's also preparing to sink his incisors into theatre roles from New York to San Francisco to Calgary to Stratford, Ontario. Of course, he's played MacBeth. "It's always," observed Geraint. "the classical actors who end up doing horror..."

CHILLER: You're a classically trained stage veteran with a plethora of Shakespearean credits. In addition to film, you've done extensive television work, including 24 and Alfred Hitchcock Presents. How did Forever Knight come about?

Geraint: I had just finished playing Hamlet at a festival in England. I was back on break and everyone said, "Stop sitting around. You've got three and a half weeks. Go out and audition, for God sake." I did. I met with (executive producer) Jim Parriott , and got along very well. Jim said, "I think you're my guy." So I did the scenes with blood. CBS flew down three people to do the screen test. And I had to decide whether or not I was going to go back to England. So I said, "What are my chances?" "Well, I want you," he said. And I thought that was a done deal.

It turns out it wasn't as easy as I thought. A couple of the network execs thought, "Ah, not so convinced!" So I flew back to Canada and Jim said, "No, (I'm) not going to let it go." He hired a little studio and we got fans and fangs and sent the tape to them. They said, "That's the guy we want!" And Jim said, "He was the one down there last week!!!"

We always thought it was going to be 13 episodes. It just kept going (Writer's note: To 70 episodes strong).

CHILLER: The vampire myth, moreso than any other horror legend, has resulted in countless onscreen incarnations. What do you think makes Forever Knight so enduring?

Geraint: I think we were the only gang going in the '90s, when the whole cell phone/internet thing kicked in. And because it's got a whole culty feel to it, it allowed people to join chat clubs and fandoms whereas, before, people would have just enjoyed Forever Knight on their own. Also, Anne Rice -- that's when she kicked in. I did a book signing with her. That kind of vampire -- the good vampire who wants to change and atone for his sins – was hers as well as Nick Knight. The outsider is always a character for people to identify with... He represented the time – a very positive time. Maybe he was A-positive. Or B-positive.

CHILLER: Immediately, I picked up on the subtext of your character. Is it a fair assumption that your approach to the role was not to play a vampire, but rather a soul grappling against an addiction?

Geraint: Absolutely! It was a much deeper approach. It was not just going to be fangs and eyes. The addiction was the kernel that really got me: I was addicted to playing a guy struggling with an addiction...to explore a character who wanted to belong to something pure, to become more self-reliant.

The vampire is such a classic character – and that was attractive as well. Although at the time, being a vampire wasn't as hip as it is now, damn it! We were sort of "odd." I'd be flown down to NY to do something on Entertainment Tonight. People would see you wearing the long jacket and think you were strange -- as opposed to cool.

CHILLER: Each episode crosscuts to flashbacks of Nick's "former lives," and the souls he's met who parallel the contemporary stories. You've gone toe to toe with Nazis, been on Egyptian archaeological digs, met Joan of Arc, took on McCarthyism and the mob. In your opinion, what was the series' defining moment?

Geraint: I was directing an episode, Blood Money...I asked a friend of mine, one of the great classical actors, Colm Fiore -- and we created the backstory. We had done a lot of swordfights in the past: Three Musketeers, Richard III. So we created this betrayal, had this classical set built -- we had the best stage fight director in North America. And that, to me was the perfect synthesis: The physicality, the story of betrayal. The perfect balance between theater and television.

The other thing I loved about the idea of the show: The chance to go into different periods. Obviously, our budgets didn't allow us to go crazy.

CHILLER: Your character speaks French frequently...

Geraint: My French is school-learned, up here in Canada. I lived here for twenty-something years before we started. Subsequently, I lived in Paris...and lived with a French girl. So now I'm living the life of a French guy.

CHILLER: Your work on the show garnered three Gemini noms for Best Actor. What's it like attending the Canadian Emmys?

Geraint: I was there for a lot of other shows as well. It was like a reunion of old friends, really. Canada is a smaller community -- every acting community is a pretty small community. It's an opportunity to reacquaint yourself because, when you're on a series, you never get to see anybody. It's a great night. I think award shows are more important to the production companies and the audiences, but to the actors it's a chance to commune with one's fellows.

CHILLER: You also directed several episodes (seven or eight). How would you describe the challenge of directing oneself?

Geraint: It was Jim who suggested, "You're going to go crazy if you just do this" (acting). So it felt second nature. I really enjoyed working with the actors - really, I enjoyed the collaboration with all of the departments. You know everyone from a different perspective. You're not just the guy in the trailer waiting to come on and do his thing. You're completely involved in every aspect of the production. It was good for me and it was good for the series.

CHILLER: Gotta ask: The cows' blood in the fridge. What was it, and what did it taste like?

Geraint: A ribena syrup mixture (I believe it's British). Really, really thickly sweet. Sickly.

CHILLER: And those fangs-on vampire contact lenses -- were they uncomfortable?

Geraint: The first ones we had were just yellow ones -- like contacts. And the other things were like sclera lenses. They were large and went over your whole eyes. You could only leave those in for a short time because they sucked the oxygen out and you could never get them off. Very uncomfortable. But like everything else, we got used to it. Mandy -- the eye technician, she was as important as anyone on the set -- she knew when it was like, "Guys, that's it." Yeah, horrible. (But) the fangs were in and out.

I had a bunch of maggots on my chest in one episode. Really unpleasant. One of my best friends was a stunt coordinator on Forever Knight -- Rick Forsythe. We had to develop our own goofy way of flying. In the first episodes, they hung me from a crane on a wire 80 feet above the ground and I'd be like a guppy trying to flap. It was really embarrassing.

So we thought of challenging ways of making it believable as a story as opposed to the technical. We couldn't compete with other programs that had bigger budgets. We made the story really clean and (used) swish pans for flying -- basic methods. Much more creative.

I don't think anyone complained about the simplicity, and that was an important element of the show. One of the battles is that we shot this at night. Our whole lives became a negative image of what everyone else was living. You'd have your after-day cocktail on the front porch at seven in the morning when the man was delivering the mail. Very odd to work the "knight shift," as it were.

We had the best time working on the series -- we laughed on Forever Knight as much as anyone has on a series. I think that's what makes the show work. There's a "play" in it -- the whole cast had a theater background and everyone knew how to step up...except when John Kapelos and I worked together. Then, we were laughing too hard. We were lucky to have that balance -- a testament to Jim Parriot and everyone else who cast us. A tight-knit group of people to work with.

CHILLER: Geraint, a pleasure. Continued success to you.