Colin Morgan, NBC's Merlin, on talking to dragons and casting spells

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Colin Morgan, NBC's Merlin, on talking to dragons and casting spells

Colin Morgan, who plays the title character in NBC's upcoming fantasy series Merlin, told reporters that a new Merlin also means a new Arthur, Guinevere and Morgana. The BBC-produced series portrays young Merlin learning to hone his magical talents and get along with prince Arthur to fulfill their roles as wizard and king.

"Of course I interact with the other characters within the show as well," Morgan said in a conference call last week. "Arthur being the arrogant [one] and the young prince, who you see over the series, actually, develops in surprising ways. You see he actually has a good heart and his intentions are in the right place. Also we see Morgana and how she develops, and Gwen, her relationship as we've never seen her before. We normally see Gwen as the future queen, whereas [now] we see her as a maiden next door. Everyone's character, we've all got something new to show."

Merlin arrives in Camelot just as King Uther (Anthony Head) reinforces his ban on all magic, thinking there is no good use of mystical powers. Still, Merlin manages to secretly display his talents, particularly in a fight scene with Arthur (Bradley James) in which Merlin's spells save him from Arthur's sword.

The following Q&A features edited excerpts of Morgan's interview. NBC will air Merlin on Sunday nights at 8 p.m., starting June 21.

So we're dealing with a world where magic is outlawed and magicians are persecuted. Is that a metaphor?

Morgan: I don't think [so]. I think it is very much contained within that world. I think when you see the show and you see the look of it and the feel of it, especially, being inside of the castle, you completely buy into that world. You believe everything in it. Magic is a thing that just is there and is accepted. I think you become enthralled with that without, I think, being caught up in any sort of metaphor. It is very much within that world, and I hope the audiences will be connected with Merlin and against the villains that come into play and try to overthrow Camelot.

In the first episode, in your fight with Arthur, that's Merlin using all his magic, but, as an actor, you don't really get to do anything. Can you talk about shooting that scene, waiting for post-production to make you look good?

Morgan: When it comes to special effects and things of that [nature] within the show, for me, it was very new and very different but also quite exciting, because you just get to use your imagination. You get a bit of free rein with it, although you have to be quite technical in terms of where you look and how you look and what way you do it. It's kind of limitless. It's great to just sort of experiment with that and to have a bit of fun.

But, yeah, speaking to the dragon voiced by John Hurt is like, you're speaking to a green screen but in a room that looks like a cave. You've got one idea in your head of what you shot, and then you see the final product, and it's something that really wouldn't be out of place in a film.
What turned you on to this role and this project? What was it that made you want to be part of it?

Morgan: One of the things is many of the guest artists that were part of the stories as shown in the stories and the script, because they're constantly changing and evolving. That's one of the things that really works about it, is the variety that the show presents, because when you think Arthurian legend and you think about Merlin and Arthur, you think ... about that period in history. What's great is just an idea started with that and twisted it and turned it on its head and made it into something completely new and different. So I think that's what was so exciting about it. Plus, I get to do magic every day and sort of go through adventures. You find yourself in different places all the time, seeing things that you would never see under any other circumstance. The challenge of playing such a historical character as Merlin presented in a way that we've never seen before, all those factors just made it a really exciting project to be a part of.
Were you also attracted to the show's irreverent humor?

Morgan: Yeah. That's one of the great things in it. As soon as you hear the name Merlin, the immediate sort of image that will pop into most people's heads is a little guy with a beard or a little serious guy. Then when you get the opportunity to play Merlin like it's never been seen before, with a quirkiness and a clumsiness, then it was a trip.

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Enjoy The Prologue From My Upcoming Book.. "Strolok"............by R.Goldberg

"WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOUR RACE WAS TARGETED FOR EXTINCTION?"

The Sun is a powerful force in our Universe. It brings us light, warmth and a promise of a galaxy beyond the stars. Often we associate massive flashes of light with the reflection of our Sun's light bouncing off of another surface.

This is not always the case though, especially if you believe that we are truly not alone in the Universe. When we witness things that we can't readily explain we sometimes turn our heads and shrug our shoulders in a display of apathy.

A display such as this occurred on Friday January 29, 1982 at the Crater Lake National Park just outside of Chemult, Oregon. The snow had been falling steadily for a period of four days. The winds had been whisking about at 40 miles per hour.
Then there was one of those unnatural flashes of light. This created an eerie silence as a lanky boy, just nine years old, seemed to appear from out of that flash. If he had walked to this point there would have been a distinct trail in the newly fallen snow.
There was no trail and as a matter of fact the only tracks in the snow were the ones that outlined his feet where he was standing.

He began to trudge through the snow wearing what could only be described as dark brown long johns. He seemed dazed yet, at the same time, very clear about the direction that he was travelling. This boy with no identity or name seemed to be on a mission that would take him to places he had never been before.
His main goal was to reach Chemult, Oregon and he had no intention of stopping until he accomplished this. As strange as it seems the extreme cold seemed to have little or no effect on him at all.

Why Chemult? What was so special about this town located at an elevation of 4,758 feet above sea level in a frozen winter wilderness in Oregon?

The town of Chemult was first opened to the local traffic in 1926 and here in 1982, with its population of only 241, offered little in the way of comfort for a nine year old boy who was all alone. This journey, although prompted by something deep inside of him, did not provide a feeling of comfort and yet he had hoped that he would at least experience a feeling of accomplishment once he reached the town.

The wind was getting stronger and he noticed a small piece of yellow paper tattered and torn from whipping about in the snow. He only stopped long enough to
pick up this paper..........it read:

.....With the winter season here there was a lot of fun to have. Travelling miles of open trails on snow mobiles skiing or simply hiking, but there are dangers of doing so. Please remember safety first. Do not travel alone and be sure someone knows where you are and where you are going before travelling our trails, and please read the safety rules and codes of ethics before hiking the trails...

Nightfall was near and he had already walked 38 of the 40 miles needed to reach Chemult. He was just off of Route 97 when he spotted an old barn just about 200 feet NE of his present location. Making his way to the barn he went in and found it to be totally deserted, it was a perfect place to rest for the night.

Morning had arrived and once awake the boy started to look around the barn in the daylight light to see if there was anything that was lying in the barn that he could use to assist him on his trek.

Over in the far corner of the barn he found an old metal locked box that had long been forgotten. It was all rusted out and the key was nowhere to be found. After several failed attempts to open the box the young boy closed his eyes, sat back on his tired limbs and placed the palm of his right hand on top of the box. All of a sudden a dull red glow appeared from his right palm and the box lid flew open. Strangely enough once the red glow disappeared all that remained was a faint thin black outline where the outside of the red mark had appeared on his palm. Inside of the box he found several items all of which were unfamiliar to him and it was obvious that they had been there
for a very long time.

The contents included a tattered passport with the picture missing, a pocket knife, a compass, an antique pocket watch with a broken crystal, a time-worn souvenir porcelain coffee mug with the words; "Atlanta, Georgia, The Peach State, A Perfect Place to Live", on it and a frayed map of the Metro Atlanta Area It was difficult to make out the name on the passport but with a couple of light brushes with his fingers he saw the name Jason Tredmore. This is now who this boy would become.

Sci-Fi Blast

Tuesday, June 9, 2009