We chatted to Lara Pulver and Blake Ritson about new Starz historical adventure series, Da Vinci’s Demons… LP:Challenging everything, historically.
BR:Absolutely, and some of these things run along for the whole series.
It keeps you guessing.
How do your characters relate to Leonardo then, this composite superhero?
LP:The premise of the show is Rome and Florence.
Hes the primary antagonist of the piece, and hes Leonardos nemesis.
LP:Its like that tug of war.
BR:Thats right!
Its incredibly useful in terms of knowing the context.
It was an extraordinary era, the whole religious aspect was extraordinary.
A font of research on theology?
LP:No, not at all!
BR:Im unburdening myself!
BR:Theyre quite polarised, the worlds of Rome and Florence.
I kind of sally forth on various state visits to Florence but ostensibly, theyre two very different worlds.
LP:And the CGI was just put on top for the skyline.
Its all there, to scale.
Lara, you promoted the show at last years Comic-Con didnt you?
Er, they werent wearing a great deal, then?
LP:They were in costume!
Thats your poster slogan right there.
LP:[Laughs]
BR:And Indiana Jones!
You must have been chased around that placed and asked Whats Benedict Cumberbatch like?
the entire time you were there?
LP:The worst thing I got asked was yo can you sign my paddle?
This is wrong, theres something very wrong about this.
Lara Pulver and Blake Ritson, thank you very much!
Read ourspoiler-free review of episode one, here, and ourinterview with Tom Riley and Laura Haddock, here.
