LARA PULVER “DA VINCI’S DEMONS” INTERVIEW
By Abbie Bernstein
Leonardo Da Vinci was literally the ultimate Renaissance man; skilled in art, medicine, inventions, mathematics and more at the time of the Italian Renaissance. Given how much the man did, it’s surprising that no one until now has made a television series about him. Then again, given the opulence of Starz’s DA VINCI’S DEMONS, created by David Goyer, perhaps no one had previously conceived how it could be done. Goyer’s story, already renewed for a second season, combines action, adventure, mysticism, political intrigue and romance for a lively look at one of history’s heroes, played here by Tom Riley.
Lara Pulver plays Clarice Orsini, wife of the powerful Lorenzo Medici and a quietly influential political force in her own right. Pulver, a native of Kent, England, memorably played the highly intelligent and manipulative Irene Adler in the BBC’s SHERLOCK, a role she may reprise should that series third and/or fourth seasons call for it. Pulver was also the tricky fairy Claudine on TRUE BLOOD (the character was killed by an amnesiac Eric Northman), essayed Isabella of Gisburne in the BBC’s ROBIN HOOD and spent a season on the BBC espionage drama MI-5, among other credits.
In person, Pulver projects warmth and good humor as she talks about portraying Clarice. For starters, does she see any similarities between this character and Irene?
“Oh, gosh,” Pulver says, thinking it over. “Well, they’re both incredibly powerful women. However, I think Clarice is a devoted wife, she’s a very shrewd businesswoman, and a great politician. So she enables the Medicis to be a very good team. I don’t think anything is manipulated for selfish reasons or game-player’s sake.”
In other words, Clarice is very determined to do her duty as she sees it. “Absolutely,” Pulver affirms, “and [she is] devoted to Florence and to her family and to her husband. She was an Orsini, and it was an arranged marriage to Lorenzo [played by Elliot Cowan] when she was quite young, she was about eighteen or nineteen.”
Asked to describe Cowan, Pulver says, “He looks like a bit of a rugby player.”
Then she returns to the topic of Claudine and Lorenzo’s marriage. “It was slightly frowned upon, because she was from a very Catholic family from Rome, and she was marrying into the Medici family from Florence, and she wasn’t really welcomed.”
Hang on a moment. We’re talking about fifteenth-century Italy, even if DA VINCI’S DEMONS is actually made in twenty-first century Wales. Weren’t all of the powerful families Catholic in that nation and era?
“Not as strict,” Pulver replies, pointing out that the Medicis were of Florence. “Florence is a lot more diverse in its opinions. Also, it’s new territory. They’re much more forward-thinking, much more open-minded.”
Irene Adler’s naked greeting of Holmes and Watson in SHERLOCK was much talked-about when the scene aired. Does Pulver have similar lack of costuming in DA VINCI’S DEMONS? “We definitely don’t shy away from it [nudity],” Pulver says. “We explore every part of their relationship. However, it’s not used as a trump card in the way that Irene Adler used it in SHERLOCK.”
At the time she made SHERLOCK, Pulver watched her food intake so closely before the scene that a crew member was moved to give her a Snicker’s bar immediately afterward. Pulver laughs and says, happily, she didn’t have to similarly monitor herself on DA VINCI’S DEMONS. “No, not in the same way at all. I think also, once I’d done [a nude scene] once in SHERLOCK, I don’t look for it, but I’m not as scared, because I kind of know what it is now and know how I deal with it and how I choose to story-tell through those types of scenes.”
When Clarice is dressed, her costumes are stunning creations. Do they inform the way Pulver plays the character? “Absolutely. I’m in a corset throughout the entire show. I’m heavily jeweled, I’ve got very big headdresses, very intricate headdresses and hairpieces. Everything is detailed. She’s a woman of opulence, she’s a woman of money, and it’s on show.”
Pulver adds that she does not at all view Clarice’s wardrobe as a sort of battle armor. “Not remotely. If anything, she’s the opposite. She dresses accordingly, but she’s so dutiful that there’s not that purpose or intent at all. She’s like the Hillary Clinton of the Renaissance period. She stands by her man and will not use her voice. She’s seen and not heard for the first three episodes, which kind of says a lot about the character.”
Did Pulver miss having dialogue in those episodes? “I didn’t, because then when they gave me the nuggets in Episode Three and Four later in the series, it’s very purposeful, and when she does speak, there’s a lot to say in very few words.”
It’s no strain remaining silent on screen, Pulver notes. “Just staying engaged and present is enough. It’s just being present in whatever scene that she’s in. It doesn’t feel like I’m having to over-exert myself to focus or anything, it’s just being a supportive ensemble cast member.”
Something Pulver loves to do onscreen and off is ride a horse.”I learned on ROBIN HOOD, when I did ROBIN HOOD for the BBC and I loved it. It felt like I was flying. I felt like that must be the feeling to fly, to canter on a horse.”
There are parts of DA VINCI’S DEMONS where Leonardo seems to border on being a superhero – perhaps not too surprising, given that series creator Goyer was one of the writers on the DARK KNIGHT films. Is Clarice involved in those segments of the story? “No,” Pulver relates. “In a way, actually, what I’m asking Leonardo Da Vinci to do is get his feet on the ground and do his work for Florence.”
As for upcoming projects, Pulver says there is “one I can’t speak of yet, but I hope I will be able to very soon, and I’ve also shot SKINS, which is a massive TV show in the U.K. We’ve done three final movies to finish off the entire series and I’ve joined Kaya Scodelario in her story.”
At present, what else would Pulver like us to know about DA VINCI’S DEMONS? She replies, “It’s complex, compelling and quite magical. It’s David Goyer.”
Written by: Abbie Bernstein
Abbie Bernstein is an entertainment journalist, fiction author and filmmaker.
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