WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS
Mark Hamill goes from Force ghost to vampire in season two.
MARK HAMILL EMBRACES THE DARK SIDE with his not-so-secret cameo in the new series of the acclaimed horror comedy What We Do In The Shadows. The Star Wars star has a noteworthy guest role as an ancient vampire in the sixth episode of the second season, although the actor was surprised to discover that the blood-sucking nature of his character would be revealed before the episode aired.
“To tell you the truth, I thought they were going to keep the fact that I’m playing a vampire completely secret until the reveal of the show,” Hamill confesses to Red Alert. “When they sent me the script, I was fully expecting to play a member of the city council or a next-door neighbour – or somebody working at the Department Of Motor Vehicles [the US equivalent of the DVLA]. When I read that I was playing the vampire, I hit the roof. I immediately said, ‘I’ve got to do this.’”
Vampires have long been an obsession for the actor. “I got a tape recorder for my birthday when I was little and I would tape Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi impressions into it,” Hamill admits. “I’d think, ‘Why does Boris Karloff speak like that?’ He had a slight lisp and I didn’t really know where he came from, but we didn’t have the internet in those days, so I had to look him up at the local library. I remember thinking, ‘Oh, his real name is William Henry Pratt and he was born in England. That explains his dialect. It’s just like Stan Laurel.’ I also learned about Bela Lugosi and would walk around the house at nine years old saying [adopts Eastern European accent] ‘You are getting sleepy. Sleepy!’ I’d make my mum listen to the recordings and she would say things like, ‘Yes, honey… That’s a very nice Dracula impression, but being able to imitate a vampire is not going to help you in life when you have to go out and get a job.’ 30 years later it all paid off!”
The role of a vampire is nothing new to Hamill. “I was going to say I’ve never played a vampire before, but that’s not true,” chuckles the sci-fi star. “There’s a series of animated shorts called Mina And The Count, which you can see on YouTube. I played the Count with a classic vampire accent. They’re charming little cartoons. I remember driving away from that audition in LA thinking, ‘I’ve got no idea why I think I’m right for this role in a town where every actor does a great vampire voice. What makes you think you’re going to get this?’ To my delight, I did get it. Like I say, I have always been fascinated with the way vampires talk.”
When it comes to embracing the dark side, Hamill explains, “I’ve been a horror fan all my life. As a kid, I loved all the black and white Universal horror films and later the Hammer films, so it’s always been in my wheelhouse. However, I was totally unprepared for how original and absurd you could go with the genre. My son alerted me to What We Do In The Shadows. He said, ‘It’s a reality show about vampires.’ I was hooked right away because I couldn’t believe such a thing could exist.
“I love the fact that they take the vampire mythology and break it down into such relatable elements,” he adds. “You see them preparing to go out for the night and since they can’t see each other in a mirror, they do sketches of one another to show what they look like. It’s incredibly inventive.”
The Luke Skywalker actor has been a vocal fan of the show and movie, which is executive-produced by New Zealanders Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi. Last year, Hamill alerted the show’s team to his adoration. “Mark tweeted about how he would have viewing parties at home for people who hadn’t seen it,” explains Clement. “He’s the biggest fan of What We Do In The Shadows I’ve ever met!”
Hamill’s iconic sci-fi past was not lost on the cast and crew when he visited Toronto to shoot his scenes. “On my last day, I did lots of selfies with everyone on set,” he reveals. “I’m happy to sign Star Wars memorabilia and Joker memorabilia, but the prop team surprised me with a treat. When my character makes his entrance on the show, a dagger is flung from off-screen and it hits the ground. When we wrapped, the prop guys came to my trailer and gave me that dagger. I didn’t ask for it, but I was really touched by the gift. Even more significant is the fact that it is a prop that was used in the original Shadows movie. It’s now proudly displayed in my den at home.” AT
What We Do In The Shadows is currently airing on BBC Two. Every episode is also available as a box set on iPlayer.
I was totally unprepared for how original and absurd you could go with the genre