STACK NZ Magazine December Issue 58

20 / 60

L uke Arnold’s first foray into the
filmworld came via a community
theatre production of Romeo and
Juliet; his sword fighting and fencing
instructor recognised the 17-year-old’s
enthusiasm and asked him to help out in a
much larger production. “[My instructor]
got a job on [2003’s] Peter Pan,” Arnold
explains. “He brought me down to check
out the set, and by the end of the day I had
a full time job for the next 10 months.”
That job was anAssistant Swordsmith,
andArnold coached the young actors on
set (including Jeremy Sumpter, who
played the titular role) whilst learning
“how a film set works, how it was all done.”
While those skills certainly helpArnold’s
portrayal of the resourceful and cocky seaman
John Silver in Black Sails, a certain kind of
‘functional fitness’ is also required for the
character’s realistic portrayal. John Silver is
ripped: not because he goes to the gym, but
because he lives an intensely physical life and
doesn’t eat a modern, fatty diet. “There’s a lot
of pull-ups, push-ups and things that are body
weight oriented, which definitely serves all the
rope climbing which we do in the show,”
Black Sails:
Season One
is out on
November 26
garnered much positive attention for its
use of traditional, historic instruments
such as the hurdy gurdy – a stringed device
that looks a little like a violin, and produces
sound when the player turns a hand-crank.
“Definitely with our show, it’s great to
have someone who also understands the
specificity of making music that not just
suits the show, but feels authentically part
of that time. I think we couldn’t have had a
better score for our show than what
Bear’s come up with.”
In looking at the source material for
Black Sails – Robert Louis Stevenson’s
1883 novel Treasure Island– it’s fascinating to
see howmany pirate tropes and clichés have
come from just that one work of fiction, and
howmany of those were John Silver’s (such
as the parrot on the shoulder, and the missing
leg – although Silver didn’t have a peg leg, but
a crutch which he “managed with wonderful
dexterity”). As the series is set 20 years before
Treasure Island, it’s possible we might see how
Silver morphed from a young able-bodied
seaman into the cunning creature we know
from Stevenson’s novel. “I’m sure there are
definitely plans for it with the writers,” Arnold
hedges, “but you want to earn those big
moments.We’re hoping to get to do the show
long enough where you can really start linking
Black Sails to Treasure Island. But you don’t
want to get too caught up in the beginning;
it’s about defining our own universe,
and we’ve got a long way to go.”
As John Silver is a character who is already
incredibly well known, and Michael Hutchence’s
life was so thoroughly documented, Arnold does
hope to next tackle a character whose tale isn’t
already part of popular culture. “Absolutely,”
he says warmly. “I seem to have come off
pretty well, really; it’s kind of scary when you
play a character that people already have an
expectation for. And from the moment you get
cast, people have the potential to
already knock you down from
that point. So it would be nice
not to push my luck, and play
a role next that is completely
new and original and doesn’t
have that pressure.”
Taking on the role of a young, brassy, artfully sneaky Long
John Silver, Aussie actor LukeArnold has found his stride. He spoke with
Zoë Radas about earthy new pirate series BLACK SAILS.
Arnold explains. “The gym that we train at in
SouthAfrica [utilises] the training methods used
for 300, and the latest Superman. It’s just horrible
stuff, which eventually you learn to love.”
He does admit that the physical side can
become addictive: “In season one we got very
obsessed with this whole side of things, and I
think we felt we’d taken it too far,” he says.
“It’s always easy to get obsessed with those
kinds of physical changes, but as the show’s
gone on we definitely allow ourselves a few
more desserts than we did in season one.”
Coupled with his portrayal of Australian
musician Michael Hutchence in the INXS
telemovie NeverTear Us Apart, and his
obvious love of Australian music (he
mentions Nick Cave as being among his
favourite artists), Arnold recently took
delight in joining Black Sails composer Bear
McCreary (whoseTV themes include The
Walking Dead and DaVinci’s Demons) during
the recording of the season two soundtrack.
“I love music of all kinds, and Bear is just a
legend,” Arnold beams. “When [Black Sails]
was first launched at Comic-Con last year... I
met Bear for the first time. He invited me to
come and see what they were doing in the
studio. I only play a little bit of music myself
but I have huge admiration for people who
do. It was great to go in there and see the
whole process. I mean, he’s a master.”
The music for Black Sails was nominated
for an Emmy earlier this year, and has
20
DVD&BD FEATURE
DECEMBER 2014 JB Hi-Fi
visit