Interview: Rutina Wesley

In the second of SciFiNow’s exclusive True Blood interviews, we chat to actress Rutina Wesley about her character, Tara, and that lingering prospect of a spin-off movie. Read the interview below.

What is it about Tara that appeals to you?

Well everything; I love that she is self-educated and that she has a big heart. I call her a hard flower because if you chip away at the outside there is this beautiful blossom on the inside. It’s nice to play this woman who has an inner struggle and needs to be loved.

Have you read the character in Charlaine Harris’s novel series?

I actually read the first book, and then knew they were going to be changing the character drastically, so I decided not to read on any more and decided to create the character with the writing team.

How has Tara changed throughout seasons one and two?

I definitely think she’s a lot softer in season two. She shows a lot more of her vulnerable side, and it’s nice to see Tara not as defensive; it’s sort of nice seeing her being more open and naïve. It feels good to her have her being taken care of, because she’s never had this in her life, and it feels good to be starting a new romance with this beautiful man who serenades her with his guitar. It’s almost like living in a fantasy world a bit.

What does season three of True Blood have in store for Tara?

Well there’s going to be a lot of chaos that happens at the end of season two, which I think is going to cause Tara to have some darkness, some grieving and maybe even a new romance with Sam.

True Blood is HBO’s most watched show since The Sopranos; what would you say is the show’s enduring appeal?

I think that there is just no other show like it out there right now. I think that people are just draw to the fact that it is True Blood, it’s also not just about vampires, it’s about this community of people living together and having to deal with the supernatural, vampires and other things that will be coming up in other seasons. It’s just appealing in the way that there is nothing else out there like it, and it is just a wonderful show; it’s mysterious; very adult and is very bloody.

Did you have any idea how big the show was going to get?

I had no idea, I mean it’s become a huge phenomenon and every day I’m a bit teary eyed that I’m on television, right out of school, and I’ve got on this great show that has turned into a hit. There’s no way I could have seen this coming. It’s amazing.

How many seasons do you think Alan Ball envisages this series to run for?

I think it will run for as long as… I mean there are nine books out there, and [Charlaine Harris] is going to do three more, but I don’t know if we will [run] that long. People seem to think that True Blood is going to be one of those shows that will run for five or six seasons if not more. It’s going to depend on audience ratings and stuff like that, but I can’t imagine it not running for a long time because the books are just so juicy and Alan Ball has also made everything so vibrant, colourful and imaginative, and so I think it’s going to be a show that people are going to be dying to watch for a long time.

Do you think a True Blood movie will ever happen?

It would depend on the timing. I would say that it would have to be way after the show was over, and then it would just depend on how they put it together as a film. I do feel like every True Blood episode is like a mini movie in itself.

True Blood: Season Two airs at 10pm, 26 February on the FX Channel.