AT: The fight scenes are pretty intense. How did you learn to fight with two daggers in your hands?
BR: Oh man, those daggers … Well, when we came out to New Zealand, Craig and I had six weeks where we had six weeks of training for horse riding and fighting. I don’t know what I would have done without that time because we were really taught the basics, the rules of fighting. That really set the groundwork for me.
But then, all of these other elements came into play. By the way, you’ll be fighting in a corset and in this long, white flowing dress and you have all this hair. I had a lot of things I just had to work around. In that dress, I learned that I just kind of have to move with it and make it move with me and it turned out to be quite beautiful, where initially, we all thought, “Oh, we’ve got to get her out of this dress because it’s going to be so hard to fight in.” Then it turned out it was really cool to watch.
AT: So obviously the relationship between Richard and Kahlan is a central part of the show. Do you think that they’ll ever have a normal life?
BR: I don’t know. It doesn’t look very good does it? I think the thing about that relationship is that it’s what grounds the show amongst all the magic and other worldly, fantastical things. And there’s this relationship that nearly everyone can relate to because I feel like everyone has wanted to be with someone but for whatever reason, they can’t. You can really feel it in your gut. It’s this burning passion that can drive a person mad. I think that’s what makes the show and the books series as well, so compelling. It’s not just romance. It’s also loyalty and deep, deep love.
Today, I was doing a scene with Craig, and it was one of those situations where you look up and you think, “You’re more important than I am.” But the other person is thinking the same thing. It’s that relationship that makes it so special.
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But I have hopes, I do. At the end of the first book, Wizard’s First Rule, Richard is under a spell so he looks like Darken Rahl and she confesses who she thinks is Darken Rahl, but it’s actually Richard. She’s devastated and about to kill herself and Richard comes in and she finds out that she did confess him, but it was pointless because he already loved her that much. I wonder if they’re (the writers) are going to go there or not. The books are epic. I think each one is at least 500 pages long. And we only shoot 22 episodes a season and we’re still developing the relationship between the two of them. They have had moments where they’ve gotten together, not that poor Kahlan gets to remember any of them, but I think the hope of the series is that they will eventually find a way. And our writers are pretty creative. Sometimes we pull things right from the book and sometimes they think of things that I’m thankful it’s not the book verbatim because it’s even cooler.
Kahlan (Bridget Regan) and Cara (Tabrett Bethell)
AT: The other interesting relationship is the one that is evolving between Kahlan and Cara. How is it to have another lady on set?
BR: I love it. The coolest thing about Cara and Kahlan is that they’ve both had training, just very different training. They’ve both been put into roles – Mord Sith and Confessor – that demand them not to be normal women. In that way, they relate to each other. And in that way, they almost sympathize, though it took a really long time for them both to admit it. In the end, they’re both on the same side, protecting the same man, but they have a lot of reasons to distrust one another.
It’s been the most exciting addition to the show for me as well because it is changing and evolving. Their presence tests each other all the time. Cara’s character has been softening over this season. It’s like there’s been a crack in her shell. Kahlan can see into the core of her, which is really just this soft, damaged little girl.
That, and I absolutely adore Tabrett. She’s so giving and loving and so funny. All the things you want when you’re working all the time with someone.