In the press notes Rodrigo Santoro speaks of his character in 300, Xerxes, a self-proclaimed God-King of Persia saying, “He’s rich, he’s arrogant, he’s a very unstable megalomaniac. He just wants to conquer the world. His ambition is unlimited. He wants glory; he wants victory; he wants eternal fame. Underneath all that wanting, though, he’s ultimately weak and very insecure.” He actually used some of those exact same words in my interview with him, particularly”megalomaniac.” However, this is a great description of his character, he is menacing but at the same time you get that sense of instability inside him and Santoro was able to bring that out.
Since his work in 300 Rodrigo has been cast in ABC’s “Lost” and while he can say very little about that we talked about both 300 and “Lost” with the Brazilian actor. Take a read and learn how he transformed from a small time actor into a God-King.
Before you got involved with 300 were you even aware of Frank Miller?
Rodrigo Santoro (RS): Yeah, I was aware. I didn’t know 300 was going to be a film. Actually there is a friend of mine that is very into the comic book world and he showed me “300” and I looked at it and I said, ‘Wow, that could be a great film.’ Then after months, year, two years I think, I heard ‘300’ was going to be a film through one of the producers, Gianni Nunari, he was actually the one that brought up my name and asked me to audition for this role.
Looking at some of the featurettes, you were hesitant to get your eyebrows shaved?
RS: Well, I had my whole body shaved man. We started waxing and I have a lot of respect for women after that, but I will leave that to the girls, it just hurt so much. The next day I was asking for a razor and we were shaving my whole body. We actually tried some prosthetics on first to try to change my forehead, then Zack [Snyder] said, ‘No, no, no, I just want Rodrigo the way he is.’ The eyebrows was actually the makeup artist’s idea to just cover with prosthetics. After all my body I am going to be scared of this? [points to his eyebrows and laughs]
Did you model any of your performance off of panels from the graphic novel?
RS: The inspiration was obviously the graphic novel, I wanted to be very faithful to what was there. I do believe that Frank Miller’s vision is pretty clear, and I see a soul in the character, when I saw it I go like, ‘Wow, this exists.’ I tried to be faithful to that and bring to life [the character] and adding what I had to add, but also respecting his vision.
Is it weird working on blue screen and hoping it looks cool?
RS: That was part of the experience here, that we were working on blue screen and you don’t have anything around you. We did have the graphic novel so we would know what final result we were going to see, but once you are there working it is all about imagination and your ability to live in the world of imagination. Especially a character like Xerxes, which is this self-proclaimed god who believes he is above everything on the planet. So it is a little bit of a ego trip in my opinion. It’s all about imagination, what he creates, his perception of reality. It’s just his, it’s his world.
Actually, the four-hour-and-a-half makeup process was a great time for me to get into character, because he is so much about himself. I took that time to get into my character and just really [get into] the megalomaniac giant and believe that he was beyond everything.
How tall was he supposed to be?
And you are how tall?
RS: I am 6’2″.
Were you hesitant at all when you were first approached about the project?
RS: Not really, I was actually salivating when I saw the drawing. I thought this is amazing. This is a great opportunity to play something completely different from what I have done before. The process is completely different, everything was new to me. So hesitation no, but some concerns. It’s a risky character, a very tricky one. To find the right measure and to fit all the performances, it’s part of this artistic stylized comic book so it was tricky. I just made a choice and had to go for it.
What can you tell us about Zack that we probably haven’t already heard?
RS: I am going to tell you my point of view and how he helped me.
We were shooting overnight, it was a long shoot, and he would be from the beginning to the very last minute with the same great energy, which was very impressive. Like 5:30 in the morning, he was there like, ‘Let’s go guys,’ he was always up there. He was a true warrior. He wanted to win that battle and he would give anything and he was very open to hear what everybody had to say. He would come to me and say, ‘How do you feel that? How do you think Xerxes should do that?’ He was open, but on the other hand he knew exactly what he wanted for the film. There was no trying, he knew it, he already had everything in mind. He was very secure and confident, but on the other hand very open, it was a perfect combination. I had a great, great relationship with him and I give a lot of credit to Zack Snyder.
How much physical training did you do before filming?
RS: My story is a little different than the Spartans, they had to go to training for fighting, but since I am up there from my thrown I didn’t have to do that. But my interesting little story is that when I was auditioning for this role I was shooting something in Brazil that I had to lose like 35-40 pounds it was like bones and skin. When I put myself on tape, Zack and the producers saw it and they said they liked it but they said I was too skinny. I go, ‘No, this is a character I am playing and how many months have I got?’ They said like four or five months until we start shooting so that was my physical training, I had to just put all the weight back on and not build muscle but just be a giant. They wanted me to be this towering figure. So it was a strict diet and a lot of weights and sweat, a lot of work.
Did you do all your training in Brazil?
RS: Yeah, I did a lot in Brazil and then I came to Montreal two weeks before we started shooting and I have a personal trainer in Brazil that helped me a lot. It’s basically just discipline, it’s like Army, there’s no chocolate, forget about that. It’s eating the right stuff and working out and working out.
How much did you know about the story of Xerxes?
RS: I heard before when I was in school. I always loved history, so it was something that I was aware of but I went and did some research mainly with Herodotus, which was the best source I could find and there was a lot there about the battle of Thermopylae and there was a lot about Xerxes. It’s very controversial according to Herodotus. There was a piece of information in there that I found very interesting and it actually helped me. He says that Darius, Xerxes’ father, has two more sons and the power could have been passed to any of them and for some reason it went to Xerxes. He doesn’t explain and it is very controversial and there is a sculpture at the palace of Persepolis in front of his father’s sculpture with an inscription saying that he was his father’s choice. So he wanted to make sure that everyone knew that he was meant to be king. That made me think that underneath he was very insecure and he was very scared of everything. It helped me because in Frank Miller’s vision he is this god king but I think he put out this figure to protect a lot of insecurity and a lot of stuff underneath.
You recently joined the cast of “Lost,” what is that experience like?
RS: It’s great man, get to live in Hawaii… [laughing] “Lost” is another unique experience just like this one. You literally don’t know what is going on so there is no control, it is hard to build a character like that. It basically puts the actor in a position where you just have to live the moment once you get the script, which is not long before you start shooting. You just have to go from there and be in the moment. It’s this kind of lost feeling, you feel like what’s going on? You don’t know and that’s the beauty of this experience.
Are you going to get a flashback?
RS: Yes.
Have you shot it yet?
RS: Can’t say a word man. If I say a word I will have to kill you. [laughing]
Were you looking to do TV or did “Lost” come to you?
RS: Actually I met a producer, Jeff Pinker, for “Alias” two years ago and I was shooting something in Brazil and I could not do – I think he offered me a guest star or something on “Alias” and he brought up my name when he joined the “Lost” show. Then I had two meetings with everybody, like J.J. Abrams, Damon Lindelof, all them and it was from there.
Can you tell us anything about your “Lost” character?
RS: I can tell you his name, Paulo. I don’t know a lot about my character, at all.
How long have you been filming for?
RS: Since last August.
Is it weird to film the show so far ahead of where it actually is in broadcast terms?
RS: Yeah, well, I am used to it. I’ve worked before like that, it’s the way it is.
So is your “Lost” character continuing into the next season?
RS: Who knows, I am not saying anything. [laughing] If we knew more – we could not say it because that is part of the whole, you know, mystery of the show. We do not know any information at all, we know very little. Any character, any actor in the show will tell you the same. That’s part of the experience.
Were you watching the show before you got cast?
RS: I was working in Brazil and I wasn’t following anything but I heard, even in Brazil “Lost” is huge, everybody’s aware all over the world. So I watched a couple episodes but I wasn’t following it. But when I got the role they sent me season one and season two and I watched everything in a row, like a long feature film, it was really cool and then I had to wait for next Wednesday. [laughing]
Are you prepared for Hollywood with this movie and “Lost”?
RS: I don’t know, I always think about what I am doing right now. If I start to think about everything, it’s just too overwhelming. I never make a choice thinking about the results. I am never going to pick a role or a project thinking what this could bring me or something like that because you have no control. So I just do my work and try to make my choices based on my instinct and what I feel. The rest is really a consequence that you have to deal with.
So I don’t know, I am not thinking about that. What I am thinking about right now is this movie and hoping that people go watch it. Most of I all I really hope that it’s not just people who are into graphic novels. I think it is a very original, interesting, unique piece and it could be a great ride for any viewer.
300 opens in theaters on Friday, March 9. For more information on the film including clips, pics, news and much more click here.
