BACK in 2010, British actor Theo James caused quite the stir when, as Turkish diplomat Kemal Pamuk, he showed up—uninvited—in the room of Lady Mary Crawley (Michelle Dockery) in Downton Abbey, which at the time was well on its way to becoming one of the UK’s biggest and best exports to the world.
Such effrontery may have been shocking in 19th-century Britain, but fans of the period drama forgave Pamuk as readily as Lady Mary did because, well, who wouldn’t if you look like Theo James—all dark brooding gorgeousness with a smile that can light up the darkest of nights.
Since then, James has gone on to star in a variety of films, including the blockbuster Divergent franchise opposite Shailene Woodley. Now, he’s back on the big screen in Underworld: Blood Wars, yet another popular franchise which he joined in 2012’s Awakening installment. Reprising his role as David, he stars alongside Kate Beckinsale, Bradley James (TV’s Merlin) and Charles Dance (Game of Thrones) in Columbia Pictures’s epic action-thriller, the fifth installment in the franchise.
Blood Wars follows Vampire death dealer Selene (Beckinsale) as she fends off brutal attacks from both the Lycan clan and the Vampire faction that betrayed her. With her only allies, David and his father Thomas (Dance), she must stop the eternal war between Lycans and Vampires, even if it means she has to make the ultimate sacrifice.
This is your second foray into the Underworld series. What is your character David like, and how does he fit into this chapter?
David is a young buck, young for a vampire; he’s probably 2,000 years old. He is the son of coven leader Thomas, who is played by Charles Dance. David is a little bit more modern in his thinking, shall we say. He doesn’t believe in the old school of the coven system, this kind of dictatorial reigning of the vampires, of the other people in the coven and also in the wider coven vampire society. But he essentially is an ally of Selene and he is trying to help her in any way he can this time around, especially since she brought him back to life at the end of the last film.
What is the new installment about?
This is really a fight for legacy, and also a fight for Selene’s blood. It’s become a weapon, essentially, and everybody wants to get a hold of it because they know the potential power to it. The one that is able to ingest it will have supremacy, so that’s really the key.
There is a new threat to Selene that is introduced in the film.
Basically, the history of the previous films is that there is an age-old war between vampires and werewolves, and there have been challenges Selene has come to face over the years. But now there is a new very dangerous leader who is searching for Selene and her blood because it’s a weapon.
So the world of Underworld is being expanded this time around?
The society is more complex and larger now, so you interact with more levels of the whole concept of the world, which is more interesting.
And you see how the vampires live and see them interact socially and at parties, and there are love affairs with other characters, and there’s a lot more hand-to-hand action, there’s a lot more sequences, long sequences, fight sequences, and, yeah, it’s got Kate is back kicking ass.
Love affairs? Does that mean there is more sexual tension between the characters?
Yes. I think the film before this one had maybe lost a little bit of that. The fun of these movies is the fact that it’s tongue-in-cheek with a wink and a nod. There’s also this sexuality, because what it’s also about is the inner animal. The first two movies are about that. But, I think, this just brings it back to embracing the fun of it, instead of taking it too seriously.
What was it like working with Kate again?
She barely speaks. She loves the iPad, so she is always browsing news on it. (Laughter) Yeah, she is really fun and, obviously, I knew her from before, so I felt like it was really easy with Kate. She has a similar dry sense of humor, which when you are making films like this, is good and useful.
Do you enjoy preparing physically to work on a film like Underworld?
David doesn’t have to be like megajacked, he is more lean and mean. But, yeah, that’s part of it. If you are doing an action film, then you have to do all the action sequences because that’s the fun part.
You guys shot the film in Budapest this time around. Did that affect the look and feel of the movie?
It was different this time, in a good way. We shot there so there was a more natural, Gothic architecture that kind of lent to the style of the film; so it’s quite a nice change. My first Underworld was shot in Vancouver, so it was not exactly a historic center of architecture. But this backdrop created a more complex, more moody visual style, which I liked.
The battle sequence looks really good.
Yeah, there’s a whole sequence with swords and spears and lances. And again, adding to the Gothic nature of the film and the medieval castles (the vampires) inhabit, there were a lot of locations to shoot from.
Did you get banged-up during shooting?
Bruises, but nothing too serious.
Since all the Underworld characters have Gothic-inspired costumes, does David finally get to wear something dramatic like his peers?
Sadly, no. (Laughs) The problem with David is that he’s supposed to be a bit more contemporary. But then when you go into a set where Lara (Pulver, who plays Semira) had these very amazing and elaborate costumes, and all these characters are dressed up in this kind of flamboyant, sexual Gothic dress, then you realize you are in an Underworld movie.
What was it like to work with Anna Foerster as a director?
Yeah, it was good. She knows her visual style and was open to development and changes and character. She also wanted to bring the story back to how it possibly was in the first Underworld, which had that more Gothic medieval vibe.
What do you think it is about Underworld that has managed to stand the test of time?
Kate. But it’s beyond that. I think it’s a level of escapism, which is fun, but it’s brutal enough to be engaging. And it’s also a very different world, and Kate is the anchor of it and people come to watch her, so I think that is definitely a huge part of it.
If there is room for another film, would you want to come back for another round?
I think Dave’s journey has ended because he completes his cycle, but I know there’s so many characters that have been introduced, that I think there is room for expansion of the story.
- Now in Philippine theaters, Underworld: Blood Wars is distributed by Columbia Pictures.