There are still long months ahead of us as we wait for the release of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey on December 14. One way I choose to satisfy my hunger for all things Hobbit is to see members of the cast in other projects.
Luckily for me (and his adoring fans), Luke Evans has appeared in numerous projects since he was announced as Bard the Bowman in Peter Jackson’s two-part adaptation. Many of his recent movies are now available to see at home, like Immortals and The Three Musketeers.
Though it was released well over a month ago in the United Kingdom, The Raven, in which Evans stars alongside John Cusack, Alice Eve, Brendan Gleeson, and Kevin McNally, opens today in the United States.
Evans plays Detective Fields who must consult with Edgar Allan Poe (Cusack) when a serial killer uses his famously grotesque stories as inspiration.
Evans said of his character, “Fields is a young detective who gained the bank of detective at a very early age in Baltimore. And there were a lot of people around him who did want to see him fail. And he had never failed a case before, so when he meets Poe it’s a challenge. At first, it’s a challenge to tolerate Poe at all. They come from opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of personalities and I don’t think he has any respect for Poe at the beginning of the film. But they have to work out a way of communicating and respecting each other. So there’s a nice arc when it comes to their journey.
“Fields is very stoic and methodical. He doesn’t drink, his work means everything to him. He just wants to get the job done. And now he’s working with this very volatile character that he doesn’t know how to communicate with. That was an enjoyable dynamic to play against.”
After working on Immortals and The Three Musketeers, Evans counted himself as “fully fledged in the stunt department” and “ready for anything.” That undoubtedly includes horse riding and archery in The Hobbit. With Fields, he also played a leader with a sympathetic side; seems like great practice for Bard.
While promoting The Raven, he took a moment to talk with E! News about filming in New Zealand. “It’s a real treat to be a part of. And to be a fan of Peter’s work and [Tolkien’s] books, and then to be part of it and to know that this is a part of history, it’s a really special thing. I’m really lucky to have been there.”
He admitted that he had worked with a large portion of the Hobbit cast, saying “Bard gets about.” But that was the biggest information leak we could get from the star.
He revealed, “There’s a couple of moments I would love to tell you about, but Peter Jackson’s sniper is watching me at this minute. I’ll be shot dead in seconds if I open my mouth about it.”
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