TORONTO – Getting intimate onscreen can be uncomfortable for even the most veteran professional actors.
So imagine what it’s like for Canadian “Lost Girl” star Anna Silk, who frequently has to get cosy for the cameras – with regular cast members and guest stars she’s just met – in her role as Bo, a bisexual, seductive succubus who feeds off the energy from intimate moments.
“I’ve learned that the best thing to do is to just go for it, otherwise the scene doesn’t work and you’re not doing the character any justice,” Silk, 37, said with a laugh in a recent telephone interview.
“She’s a sexual creature – it’s who and what she is, there’s no way around it – so as the actor you just have to really embrace that and go for it.
“And most of the guest stars seem pretty happy. If they’re going to come on the show and get killed, it’s by a kiss, so it’s not so bad.”
Those kisses can be hazardous not just for the characters, but for the actors as well.
During Silk’s screen test for the Toronto-shot TV series, for instance, she and co-star Kris Holden-Ried – who plays Bo’s love interest, Dyson – dented the wall during an intense smooching scene, she said.
“I almost broke my nose, actually,” Silk confessed from Florida, where she was visiting the parents of her husband, actor Seth Cooperman.
“That was the first time I’d ever met him, it was in that room, and we just had really good chemistry…. Our kiss was pretty intense. I mean, there was a big crack in the wall.”
Season 2 of “Lost Girl” premieres Sunday on Showcase after a hit first season that ranked No. 1 on the channel for adults 25-54.
In season 1, which is available for viewing on the Showcase website, Bo discovers she is a succubus and part of the Fae, an ancient race of creatures who live amongst humans and feed off them in different ways.
When Bo is asked to join either the Dark or Light clans, she takes the middle path between the Fae and humans, whom she wants to protect. Helping her with her mission is Dyson as well as feisty Kenzi, played by Ksenia Solo, who recently got a Gemini Award nomination for the role.
Silk said season 2 starts shortly after season 1 ended, with Bo finding her birth mother and running into trouble with Dyson.
“The audience knows more at the beginning of season 2 than Bo does,” said Silk. “There are some pretty dramatic twists and turns right in the beginning of the season.”
Season 2 also has a whopping 22 episodes compared to the 13 in season 1.
With its supernatural elements, relatable characters and sarcastic, humorous dialogue, “Lost Girl” is often compared to the revered series “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.”
Silk, who was a big “Buffy” fan, agrees with the comparison and notes “Lost Girl” appeals to a wide audience.
“(Buffy) was kind of like your every girl, she just happened to be a vampire slayer, and that’s what I liked about Bo when I first read the script,” said the Fredericton native, who now lives in Los Angeles.
“Bo was this every girl, she just happened to be a succubus…. So as much as Bo is tough and strong, she was so vulnerable and so real and I liked that.”
Like “Buffy,” “Lost Girl” also offers a female empowerment message, she added.
“I like how strong (Bo) can be but I love how scared she is,” said Silk.
“I love that she’s so vulnerable and that the thing that she was the most ashamed of, which was the fact that she was this sex monster in her mind, she had such shame around it and now it’s turning out to be her greatest power and I think that’s really cool.”
“Lost Girl” is now being found by audiences around the world, with recent season 1 pickups by networks in Australia, the U.K., and the U.S., where the show is making waves even before its scheduled premiere on Syfy channel in January.
“We went to Comic-Con in San Diego and I was pretty blown away by the fan response,” said Silk. “We walked into our room for our panel and just heard screaming.”
Silk said she didn’t see anyone dressed like her character at Comic-Con, where participants tend to don the costumes of their favourite genre personalities.
But “maybe there will be some Bo people next year. I hope,” she continued.
“You just need a really good pushup bra and some long hair and tight pants and a tight jacket. And good boots – definitely need good boots.”
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