The screening will take place at Twentieth Century Fox’s
London headquarters from 10am until 11.30am. We apologise for the short notice,
but if you would like to attend, please email steve@sorted-magazine.com with your
name and contact details before 3.30pm today. First come, first served!
If you’re not able to attend the screening event, fear
not! Because we were able to secure an exclusive interview with Nonso and have
included a snippet here. He described how he got into acting, his influences
and some of the prestigious roles he has undertaken (our words not his – he’s
far too humble to have said that!).
Becoming Samson
Like many little boys, Nonso Anozie grew up watching and
re-enacting superhero films. Casting himself in the main role he would envisage
himself saving the world, probably wearing pants over some brightly coloured tights
as he did so.
Though now a little older and wiser, Nonso’s love for
acting and superheroes has never abated. So when he was offered the role of
Samson in hit television series The Bible,
he didn’t need to think twice before taking on the challenge.
In the biblical account of the hairy hero’s life, Samson is given superhuman strength: he rips a lion apart with his bare hands, slays 1,000 Philistines with the jawbone of an ass and – in the move that brought about his own death – ripped a pagan temple from its foundations. If the word “badass” had been in use back then, Samson might have been afforded a new nickname.
In the biblical account of the hairy hero’s life, Samson is given superhuman strength: he rips a lion apart with his bare hands, slays 1,000 Philistines with the jawbone of an ass and – in the move that brought about his own death – ripped a pagan temple from its foundations. If the word “badass” had been in use back then, Samson might have been afforded a new nickname.
Nonso tells Sorted: “The story is very dynamic, very action-packed; something any guy would want to play. My youth was spent watching superhero movies and my dream was fulfilled playing this role; he’s kind of like a biblical superhero. It was a great opportunity.”
Fortunately for viewers, Nonso agreed to become the
biblical strongman, and fortunately for him, the series was a huge hit in the
US. Launched in March, the first episode was viewed by a whopping 13.1 million
people; the largest cable television audience of the year up to that point.
Including subsequent airings, the series was viewed by more than 100 million US
viewers.
“That’s more than the Super Bowl!” says Nonso. “Samson
was a great role to have and it also pushed my career on. It’s done amazingly
great things for my career. To be able to spread the Word of God and actually
act at the same time is something I’ve always believed in.”
Other major roles Nonso now has under his belt include Zamoran
pirate Artus in Conan the Barbarian, Xaro Xhoan Daxos in HBO hit series Game of Thrones and
Jackson Burke in The Grey,
which starred Liam Neeson. “I’ve
just finished Ender’s Game [with Harrison
Ford and Viola Davis], which is released in November, The Bible is coming out in December, and I’m currently working on Cinderella with Disney,” Nonso divulges.
Directed by Kenneth Branagh, the live-action version of
the popular fairy tale stars Cate Blanchett, Helena Bonham
Carter, Richard Madden and Derek Jacobi, among others, with Nonso taking
the part of Prince Charming’s loyal friend, the Captain. All we can say is, Madden
had better pull off a pretty good performance as the lead man, because his best
buddy is pretty charming himself, pants over tights or not.
Read the full
interview with Nonso Anozie in Sorted
January-February, out on December 18. You can click here to order our current
issue, Sorted November-December today.
The Bible will air in the UK on Channel
5 this December. To find out more about the show, visit www.thebibleuk.org.
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