If that is the case, then "Camelot" closes out his board since the marvelous medieval miniseries co-stars Joseph Finnes as Merlin and Eva Green as the deliciously duplicitious Morgan. I caught up with Jamie on Thursday when he stopped by SiriusXM for interviews with Covino & Rich and OutQ’s Larry Flick to talk about this epic new role, why it came quite easily to him and what "Camelot" boasts the no other show can!
PopWrap: I have to tell you, "Camelot" just might contain the most exciting first five minutes of a series to date.
Jamie Campbell Bower: Totally. And that’s one of the main things that drew everyone to it. The show doesn’t ever stay stagnant for a long period of time, there’s always something going down. PW: In addition to the pacing, what drew you to this series?
Jamie: I think being British and growing up around the Arthurian legend was an opportunity I couldn’t afford to miss. To play this iconic figure is just mesmerizing to me.PW: Is Monty Python right? Is it good to be the king?
Jamie: It is [laughs]! It’s very good to be the king.PW: But it doesn't look like Arthur enjoys his new role at first.
Jamie: Throughout the entire series you’ll see a progression of his character. The Arthur you see in episode one is not the Arthur you’ll see in episode ten. He really, really changes – he makes mistakes, does great thing and does terrible things -- it’s a boy to man story.PW: One of Arthur's biggest obstacles is his half-sister Morgan (played by Eva Green) -- I'd imagine their relationship will be a driving point all year.
Jamie: Oh yes, he’s got the crown, she wants the crown but can’t have it. It's interesting because she’s his only connection to the dynasty he comes from and he desperately wants that family connection but she just doesn’t give a toss. She couldn’t care less who he is.
PW: The costumes are rather extravagant, I'd imagine you can't help but get into character once you've put that on.
Jamie: Definitely. Once you put the robe on, the cloak on your shoulders and the sword on your side, it changes you. You have to be an emotionless, soulless bastard not to feel that power [laughs]. What's funny is that costume-wise, there were no depictions of attire at that time, so we had to go off of what preceded that era.PW: Same could be true of the story as well.
Jamie: Right, there’s no historical evidence or proof that Arthur even existed, he could have been anyone. No one knows what the Roundtable is. Was it actually a table? Was it a moving object? Was it an amphitheater somewhere? It’s all really skewed. To our show, we're historically accurate -- like, we’re not setting it in 2015.PW: When we last spoke, you joked about a fondness for franchises -- again, I love that here you refuse to tell a story in just two hours.
Jamie: [With a character like Arthur, or … the majority of roles I’ve played [laughs], we really get to explore the humanity to them and that can not be done in two and a half hours. You need more time than that to have people invest in these people. As an actor, you also need time to develop the role. There’s nothing worse than finishing your last take on a movie and thinking, “god! I finally nailed who this guy was!” I know you should always go in there with that, but it just doesn’t happen. That’s what television gives us – more time.PW: When do you feel like you "nailed" Arthur?
Jamie: Everything that was happening to me in real life was happening to Arthur. This is my first major role playing number one – I was confused, conflicted, nervous, scared, which are all the same things Arthur's experiencing. He’s torn from his home and thrown into this position of power, so we were feeling the same things. As we progressed, I became more focused, more solid, more aware of who I was – and as I did that, Arthur did that too. By episode 10 there is this focus and drive and masculinity that comes through in the character and that’s terribly exciting for me to watch.PW: What do you think "Camelot has that the other medieval dramas don't?
Jamie: It’s the best thing you’ll ever see on television! [laughs] Well, for one thing, you get to see my bottom in the first episode. Also Eva Green’s bottom! And James Purefoy’s bottom!PW: That's a lot of bottoms. They could have called the show, "Camelot: Bottoms Up!"
Jamie: Right? Or "Cum-a lot." [laughs] There are a lot of bottoms! So, there's that."Camelot" premieres April 1 at 10pm on Starz
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