So the saying goes; health, wealth, and wisdom should soon be forthcoming. Until then, some reflections on villainy.
I love playing the villain. In fact I've almost always played some sort of mean-spirited or misguided character throughout my acting life. There's something really invigorating about being mean, being really, really disliked by an audience, that I just love. Much as I love playing the good guy (see Kill Day), there's always a sort of pressure to keep the audience on your side. You have to make them like you, make them laugh, you have to fight for their affection. As a villain, you don't have to do anything. If they want to like you, that's great. I've had loads of children acting like presidents of the Captain Hook Fan Club during shows, made even better by the hundreds of children around them booing as if their life depended on it. Villainy allows for a great degree of freedom in acting, and a certain following who will support you with such outstanding valour. Call it supporting the underdog, call it being sadistic, everyone loves the bad guy. I suppose the only drawback is there's pretty much zero chance of on-screen romance.
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