We recently had the chance to interview actor Bruce Blain about his role as Cupid’s target, Dwight Charles in Supernatural’s ‘Sacrifice.’ Bruce is a great guy and we’re honored that we were able to ask him a few questions about filming Supernatural’s season finale.
WinchesterBros: How did you get in to acting?
Bruce Blain: As a kid, and all through school, there were always school plays. There was always a King or a Mayor or some lead character of some sort. I don’t recall there ever being any discussion about who would play those roles, it was just given to me. Probably because I was the biggest, loudest, most outspoken. Jump to 30 years later, and I got a call from a friend of mine working as a background actor on a film about the Thai soccer team going to the World Cup. They needed more bodies in the crowd. From that moment forward I knew what I wanted to do. But working along side both Ewan McGregor (“The impossible”) and Eric Roberts (“The Mark”) in December of 2010 was the clincher.
WB: How did you get the role in Supernatural’s season 8 finale?
BB: Cracking the market in Vancouver can be difficult. There are only a handful of Casting Directors that deal with “big” shows and Heike Brandstatter is one of them. I attended a Casting Intensive back in February and I guess she saw something she liked so she invited me in to audition for the part. Funny thing is, at the audition with Director Phil Sgriccia, I flubbed my very first lines. The reader gave me my cue and I went completely blank. I quickly gathered my composure and Phil gave me another crack at it… and I did just fine. At least I assume I did because just a few hours later I got the call telling me I booked the part! I should point out, that going into the audition, I did not know it was for the Season Finale and did not know the nature of the flirtation at the end. They kind of sprung that on me. But it all worked out pretty well.
WB: Did you watch Supernatural before you got the role?
BB: I had been in Thailand for 10 years and only moved back to Canada about 7 months ago. I was aware of the show, but had not seen a single episode. However, prior to going in for the audition, I made sure to watch several of the most recent episodes. That really helped me get a feel for what might be expected of me.
WB: Though it was just a couple scenes, you got to play both badass and flirty–and did a great job–what did you think when you got the script and how fun (or frustrating) was it to deal with both those extremes?
BB: Thanks! I went into this role thinking: keep it simple, I’m a nice guy with a shot gun. Playing a badass has never been a problem for me, toning it down to be more likable is another story. (People are still discussing how my “American Tourist” character in “The Impossible” reflects poorly on Americans.) So getting a chance to play a more likable character was great. And the feedback thus far has been very positive. Phil was very much on top of my character’s arc so there was never a chance I would stray too far to one extreme or the other. I think we pulled it off.
WB: Any fun moments from filming, as it was a Cupid scene?
BB: It was all fun. For me though, it’s what goes on between takes that can be great fun. I had a lovely chat with Amanda Tapping – she’s so down to earth and approachable, got to know “Booger” (Curits Armstrong) a little – did you know he has family on Ontario? And Misha Collins has one of those senses of humour that I really like – dry, off-colour, and probably inappropriate for mixed company – I wished I’d had another day of filming with him. We all knew the Cupid scene was coming, so there were no real surprises there, but getting a chance to interact with these guys was definitely a highlight.
WB: Anything cut from your scenes that you wish had stayed in?
BB: Not really. I would have liked to see a little more of my reaction to Cas’s questions, but what you saw is pretty much what we filmed.
WB: What was your most memorable moment while filming?
BB: While filming one of the takes with me looking longingly into the “Burly Guy’s” eyes, I heard Phil chuckle in the background. I knew I had nailed it.
WB: As it was the season finale, what was the atmosphere on set?
BB: Professional. Yes, there was a palpable anticipation that the end was near from the crew, but even after 23 Episodes and yet another 14.5 hour day, they never lost their focus. They might have been a little giddier than they usually are, but I would have to be around for an Episode 1 to know the difference.
WB: What was it like working with Jensen Ackles and Misha Collins?
BB: Unfortunately, Jensen and I were only on set together for a very short time. Other than him coming to me to introduce himself, we didn’t have much interaction. Misha was around all day as was I. All I can say is, he’s one cool cat.
WB: Do you have any upcoming projects that you’d like to tell us about?
BB: I have several lead roles in small Independent films currently in post-production. “Bill” in North Country Brothers, “Doctor” in “TICK”, “Mayor Philips” in “The Mayors Cabinet”, and “Trey” in “Seize the Day” filming later this month. In “Vikingdom”, I have a principle role as “Bernard – Killer of Women and Children” which is expected to have a theatrical release in September this year. I do all my own fight sequences in this one so I am very excited to see it myself for the first time.
You can follow Bruce on twitter at https://twitter.com/BBinBKK and you can read more about him at his imdb page.