Yes, Orlando does Bloom!

Does Orlando Bloom?

Conversations with Ricky Lo raised that question around this time last year in a one-on-one (for Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man’s Chest) with the British actor in connection with his portrayal as Will Turner in the megahit Jerry Bruckheimer trilogy Pirates of the Caribbean, now on its third installment entitled Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, also directed by Gore Verbinski and starring Johnny Depp in the title role with among other co-stars, Keira Knightley as Elizabeth Swann, Will Turner’s ladylove.

That was a rhetorical question. The answer is, of course, a resounding yes, Orlando does Bloom!

Here’s a recap:

After captivating audiences around the world as well as filmmakers with his portrayal of Legolas in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy (The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King), the theater-trained Orlando starred in several films: Ridley Scott’s Black Hawk Down and Kingdom of Heaven, Cameron Crowe’s Elizabethtown (with Kirsten Dunst, subject of a Conversation a few issues ago), Wolfgang Peterson’s Troy (with Brad Pitt and Eric Bana) and now, the Pirates trilogy.

Last week, Funfare sat down with Orlando at a suite (converted into a studio and press room) in the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California, during the press junket for Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End which opened last Wednesday in the Philippines (the USA and other parts of the world).

First question I asked him was: How was it working with Johnny Depp?

“It has been a fantastic experience. Johnny has such a magnetic presence that he simply tears up the screen. It was great working with him because I look up to him as a role model, a hero I grew up with. He has guts. He makes brave choices and he does only movies that he wants to do. I admire his being a non-conformist.”

I refrained from asking Orlando one question — How does he feel being called The Sexiest Man Alive by People magazine? — which I was told, makes him uncomfortable but which I did ask him during our first interview. His answer then? “Flattering. Yeah, very flattering.” And my follow-up question — What part of his body does he think is the sexiest? — drew nothing more than a shrug. “I have no idea,” he quipped.

So after the Lord of The Rings trilogy, how did he find doing another trilogy (with the possibility of a Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, etc.)?

“I didn’t know that Pirates would be a trilogy. But being part of these two trilogies is great. I felt lucky to be part of both.”

The Pirates trilogy has come to an end, or so it seems. Does he feel relieved or sad, or both?

“Both, I guess. Relieved and sad. It has been a fantastic movie to work on and I really, really love to be a part of it. It’s the kind of movie that the audience has embraced so that was fun. But yeah, I’m really sad to say goodbye.”

In this third installment, set in what is described as “a dark time as the Age of Piracy nears to a close,” Lord Cutler Beckett (played by Tom Hollander, a diminutive actor who has a commanding presence on screen) of the East India Company has gained control of the terrifying ghost ship, the Flying Dutchman, and its malevolent and vengeful captain, Davy Jones (Bill Nighy who was, as usual, brilliantly subtle in Notes on a Scandal, co-starring Judie Dench and Cate Blanchett).

The Dutchman now roams the seven seas and is unstoppable, destroying pirate ships without mercy under th                                 e command of Admiral Norrington (Jack Davenport). Will Turner, Elizabeth Swann and Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush, whom we remember from such memorable movies as Shine and The Life and Times of Peter Sellers, etc.) embark on a desperate quest to gather the Nine Lords of the Brethren Court, their only hope to defeat Beckett, the Flying Dutchman and his Armada. But one of the Lords is missing, Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp), who’s trapped in Davy Jones Locker, after his encounter with the monstrous Kraken.

From hereon, you have to watch the movie and find out for yourself if Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann finally end up in each other’s arms.

Like Johnny and the rest of the cast (and the people behind the franchise), Orlando has definitely grown up in the four years he has worked on Pirates. The Will Turner character has become second skin to him.

“What I love about Will Turner is that he is so fearless,” said Orlando. “He is not afraid to do what he has to do even if it costs him his life. If I can take out with me something from Will Turner, it would be that fearlessness.”

And how has the Pirates trilogy changed his life, if it ever did?

“Yes, it has changed my life in many ways. My experience is very different. Imagine yourself seeing what’s behind the Wizard’s curtain. I did,  I’ve kind of seen behind the Wizard’s curtain and I like it. It’s just less scary and I see how the machine works and it was pretty scary to begin with. I’m growing up and I’m learning a lot about my life and who I am as a person, and I just realize that what doesn’t kill me will only make me stronger.

“Doing the movie made me feel like I was living many dreams all at the same time, whether it was swinging from ropes, rolling in the bone cage (in Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man’s Chest), sliding down sails and kissing a beautiful girl. The actual work that went into it, it was really difficult and it was made to look easy on camera. But it was so much fun doing it. I felt very lucky because it was a great group of people I was working with and there was a lot of thought and care that went into the whole process of making this movie.”

On his feet since he has broken onto the scene after Lord of the Rings, you wonder how Orlando unwinds and enjoys himself.

“I stay home and enjoy time with my family. Or I go to the beach and play with my dogs.”

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