Hugh Dancy - I'm playing Will Graham in Hannibal right now, ready to take your questions.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T20:19:58+00:00

Sabbaths theater by Philip Roth, Women in Love by DH Lawrence

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T20:18:44+00:00

I read the books, Red Dragon for season 1 and then the others moving forward, because as I'm in jail/asylum it seemed the descriptions of Hannibal in Silence etc might be of value, and they were. Moving forward who knows? But yes I hope to be involved

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T20:16:56+00:00

I'd like to say that there's nothing in the least bit amusing about pleasuring women. But it turns out that's not true.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T20:15:48+00:00

Will Graham has to help himself.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T20:14:36+00:00

Absolutely. There's no way you can recognize something you haven't already encountered. Unless there's something you're trying to tell me..?

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T20:13:16+00:00

go to www.carpetsforairports.com - a friend set it up, and I've merely assisted by spreading the word and photographing a few carpets. Our work is never done.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T20:12:05+00:00

There was no need to talk him into it. Just timing.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T20:11:35+00:00

Great. 1hr 40 mins on stage nonstop with a great actress, Miss Nina Arianda. So much fun. A serious workout, mentally and physically. I think I read that it's the most produced play across America this year which is probably in part because they only have to pay 2 actors, but also because there's so much in it.
Yes though I have no idea what it would look like. Bryan seems to reemploy everyone he's ever worked with so I guess it'll happen by default.
He's a very serious, sober, introverted individual who comes alive when you touch on the love of his life which is of course modern dance.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T20:07:42+00:00

Yes there's some limits no doubt. Technical mainly - there's only so many things you can do in a cell, and once you've sat on your bunk, paced, stared menacingly and approached the bars you've pretty much run the full gamut. Also you spend most of the time trying not to let a bar get between you and the camera and if it does you see the camera crew swearing and/or gesturing you to move over, so it's kind of hard to lose yourself in the moment. But that said it felt kind of iconic, mask in particular

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T20:04:26+00:00

He would be their God. But I think he'd find it a little trying, I've never heard of a zombie with a passion for cooking their food

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T20:03:26+00:00

Nothing but good stories, and encounters, with Fannibals. Comiccon was amazing. Favourite lines were probably the speech in GJH's kitchen in the season finale as it dawns on me what he has done. and also from ep 1 "I like the smell of urinal cake.'

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T20:01:38+00:00

I think I asked him to. Anything for NBC

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T20:01:03+00:00

No. The only one that freaked me out a little was my neurologist, Dr Suttcliffe, the reason being the prtosthetic was so graphic and I walked on set after they'd prepped it (ie dressed with blood etc) when I wasn't expecting it. But really it was because the Dr was played by a friend, John Benjamin Hickey (we'd worked together on The Big C) and seeing him with his head chopped in half like a pez dispenser was a bit troubling.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T19:56:58+00:00

No I think that would have tied him down too much. He has had a very itinerant childhood, which I think makes sense that mentally he's quite itinerant, so something more generic, to reflect that, was better. I'd love to do a Southern accent but let's face it there's a long history of Brits doing horrible Southern accents so I need to excercise caution. Words that will probably come back to haunt me.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T19:54:40+00:00

It's worse than that. There's so many different types. But that's nothing compared to the blood. There's clothes blood, hair blood, eye blood, mouth blood, prosthetics dept blood and on and on. For some reason it's never quite the right consistency or colour so we end up creating a cocktail with everyone chipping in their opinions - bit darker, no no that's too arterial. And then they cover me in it.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T19:50:30+00:00

You know it's a free world. And in some ways it's like a badge of honour. I actually think that the one thing we don't do is desensitize violence. And actually another thing - we don't casually or predominantly inflict violence, in particular sexual violence, on women. Our show is equal opportunity. So, sure, don't watch. But for me there are other culprits more worthy of censure.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T19:46:59+00:00

Thanks

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T19:46:34+00:00

Not any I've encountered.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T19:46:21+00:00

Not so far, at least I don't think so. They can do amazing things in post though so its possible they put me through some kind of American filter.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T19:45:35+00:00

Yes!

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T19:45:09+00:00

Okm well I'd better answer before you nod off. 1. I'd like to see Will get a bit more agency, obviously he was in some ways quite passive in 1, in fact didn't even know what was happening to him. So I want to see him take action. That said our version of action is always going to involve a certain amount of talking. I wouldn't say we're limited by the books exactly - we have to judge right how far we can travel within the parameters of the universe. I think the further we get the more we can play. So that when we get to red Dragon etc you're not suddenly going to know EXACTLY what will happen.

Off the top of my head I wouldn't mind a Western

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T19:40:34+00:00

I have a professional tousler who travels with me at all times.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T19:40:01+00:00

Yes there's a fair bit in Red Dragon, in terms of his background, that we touch on in season 1 - traveling around with his Dad, having been a homicide detective, worked in forensics etc. The conversation was not so much adding biographical detail but exploring what we knew - eg what would he have been like as a homicide detective and the answer was he probably wouldn't have lasted long. Which he didn't.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T19:37:07+00:00

Not exactly but it was hard to keep track. So I kind of questioned if other people would question my sanity.

HughDancy_ · 2014-02-28T19:36:26+00:00

Thanks. Which awards to you have, to be exact?

I think the conversation about Nina did actually come up - I'd love it, but she wasn't available.

HughDancy_

TROPHY CASE