Wonder Woman: Bloodlines is the newest DC animated film. At New York Comic-Con, actress, Marie Avgeropoulos, answered questions about her and her character.
Discussing the recent Wonder Woman animated original, Wonder Woman: Bloodlines, the talent behind the solo feature came to the famed New York Comic-Con to delve into the latest incarnation of arguably the most famous female superhero, Wonder Woman, the Princess of Themyscira.
The Workprint sat down with Marie Avgeropoulos, star of the Emmy-nominated The 100, chats about her first voice-over role in a roundtable interview.
What can you tell us about your character, Silver Swan?
That she’s the best. I can tell you a few things about her without spoiling this evening’s premiere. It’s my very first animated feature I’ve ever done in my life so I’m really honored to tell such a kickass story, like Wonder Woman: Bloodlines. And you’ll see different stages of Silver Swan, where she starts off as young Vanessa, so I got to play her in the adolescent version until she goes to high school and becomes gothic and pissed off at her mom and resentful, as we do when we are teenage girls, and then the complicated relationship that she has with Diana. Diana quickly becomes the favorite child in the household, and, of course, that doesn’t make Vanessa happy. So to see the animosity between these two characters, especially as they grow into women, is really interesting, and I can’t wait for you guys to see it unfold.
What are some of the biggest challenges that you experienced doing an animated film for the first time?
One of the most challenging things for me was I did it completely Han Solo, by that I mean you’re in the booth by myself, and today’s the first time I’ve actually ever met any of the cast. So it’s really awesome to see how individually we all made our mark in this movie and how it’s all come together, and it’s such a fantastic project. I’ve seen it. You guys are going to freak out, it’s really good. Made with a lot of love.
What do you like about voice-acting as opposed to on-camera acting? A lot of actors love the freedom it gives them. How did you find the process?
I found the process totally different, such because I’ve never really done it before. And you’re right, you do get a lot more freedom because the cartoon doesn’t even exist yet. You’re just making things up into a microphone and going off a script and making it your own. And then, you do a second pass at it when then they’ve created the character, and you’ve seen it. And now you’re matching up, you know, you’re syncing up the flats they call it, that’s the technical term, from what I was told. So, yeah, it’s a weird process because you are alone doing it, but it’s incredibly freeing and liberating all at once, it’s both.
Do you see yourself relating to your character?
Yeah, I definitely can relate. I was gothic in high school at one point. I wore a dog collar around my neck, that happened, as if I just said that out loud. Yep, that happened. I can relate to being that rebellious, teenage girl; I was her at one point. I’m like “did the writers know that? Like how did they, is this a coincidence? Weird” And I appreciate how she can take bravery, even in the face of fear, and still move forward. I think that’s a pretty solid message to send out there to woman, to anyone really.
Would you like to act in a live-action version?
Would I like to do that? Absolutely. Oh my god, that would be amazing. I’m just so happy to be apart of this project, and I know the fans are just so incredibly loyal, and yeah. I hope I didn’t let them down.
What did you think about Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman?
Oh, yeah, she did an amazing job. Gal Gadot is just, wow, I totally look up to her, and she really, really hit a home run with that character that she played and how she portrayed it. Hands down.
Were you familiar with the comic book characters at all before you dived into this?
Yes (mouths no). No, I did do some research for sure, because I wanted to know for sure what kind of headspace I was getting into and know a little bit of the background. But I definitely appreciated the fact that i could make the character my own, so I didn’t want to go too far into that direction and really put a part of me into Silver Swan as well.
After playing a villain in and in your role on the 100, is there anything you like about playing a villain more than a hero?
I mean the best version of playing a villain is when you get to become a hero while doing it. Who doesn’t want to be both? But I do find myself play a villain a lot, I don’t know what that says about me. But anyways. It’s always fun to play different variations of them and how they decide to overcome their own obstacles and especially learning how to sword and doing all kinds of stuff like that isn’t a bad thing to do at work either.
Do you see yourself doing more animated features?
I would love to do more animated features after this. Yeah. Apparently, people like the deep raspy voice, who knew?
Is there anything you can tease about the final season of the 100?
Well, it’s the last season of the 100, I can tease that. Pretty sure everyone knows. It’s going to be a very wild ride, lots of twists and turns, and things that the fans are definitely not expecting for sure. You’re going to see another version of Octavia, again, which is incredibly exciting, because she’s always evolving, and that’s what I really love about her. She doesn’t bore me.
Where do you say Silver Swan ranks on the list of characters that you’ve played?
Oof. I mean, I would love to see Blodreina and Silver Swan get in a fight. I wonder who would win. The fact that silver swan could fly I think she’s got the upper hand a little. That’s what I think. But it would be entertaining.
How do you like the Comic-Con experience and connecting with your fans?
I like the Comic-Con experience because you can see real-life reactions to the stuff that we usually do, sort of in your own bubble secluded on your set. Especially when they come dressed up as you, and they put all this time and effort into it. Today, we were on the autograph signing, and a gentleman came up to us with a real live turtle, with a Go-Pro strapped to it. You don’t see that every day. All kinds of different things you see here.
Do you prefer the isolation of an audio booth or the make-up and costuming of the 100?
I definitely like being in the hair and make-up chair just because you get the chance to learn your dialogue for the rest of the day because that tattoo takes three hours to put on. I leave it on all week-long so I can sleep in later, and my white sheets look like they’ve had to some damage down to them by the end of the week because it just smears everywhere, but it’s worth it. It’s commitment.
Having not seen the movie, could you tell us if you think there is room for your character in any sequels?
I think so. I think it ends kind of open-ended. Did I just give something away that I didn’t die? Whoops.
Wonder Woman: Bloodlines is available on digital today. A physical release on 4K Combo Pack & Blu-ray Combo Pack will release on October 22.
Here’s the trailer for Wonder Woman: Bloodlines:
