Above Ground with Kate Beckinsale

BEVERLY HILLS — Like when I interviewed the Twilight vampires also in the same city in November last year, I sat with trepidation in front of Kate Beckinsale who is back as Vampire hunter Selene in Underworld Awakening, directed by Marlind & Stein (based on characters created by Kevin Grevioux and Len Wiseman & Danny McBride), the fourth in the successful Underworld series.

For a while, I thought she would sink her perfectly white teeth into my neck as soon as I entered a suite at the five-star Montage Hotel, converted into a shooting room for the junket. I was relieved when she did not.

Instead, when she heard me introduce myself as a journalist from the Philippines, Kate broke into a wide, friendly smile (look, Ma, no fangs!) and, to my pleasantly great surprise, greeted me, “Kumusta ka?”

Oh, I said incredulous as I settled into the high chair for the TV interview. “You speak Tagalog,” I found my voice. “How come?”

Still smiling, Kate continued, “I was in the Philippines a few years ago to shoot the movie Brokedown Palace,” the same one also starring Claire Danes who was declared persona non-grata by the City of Manila for saying (the sad truth) that the city kinda stunk and her hotel room was full of cockroaches (uhm, true!).

Encouraged, I asked her, “So what do you remember about the Philippines?”

Her eyes lighting up with fond memories, she said, “Oh, I remember the people, they were so warm. I remember the smell was quite strong. Ang amoy ng itlog.”

Curious, I asked her again, “What kind of egg are you referring to?”

Gesturing with her hand forming a circle in the air, Kate replied, “The egg with a chicken inside.”

Oh yes, balut! I wondered if she tasted it.

“I did. Delicious!”

What other Tagalog words did she pick up?

“Huwag yugyugin ang sasakyan. That was when the people were crowding around the car where we were in.”

And how did she feel about going back to the Philippines, not to do another movie but maybe for a look-see?

“Oh, I would love to! I had such a wonderful experience in the Philippines and I’d love to go back anytime. The people I worked with there were great.”

Is she close to any Filipino?

“Yes, my best friend’s wife is a Filipina.”

The “Pinoy connection” set the tone for our TV one-on-one and then later the round-table interview with nine other international journalists.

At 38, the only child of actors Richard Beckinsale and Judy Loe is multi-talented. Besides acting, the “very English” Kate also writes poems and short stories, and has won the W.H. Smith Young Writers’ Competition twice. At Oxford, she read French and Russian literature, which certainly helped hone her skills as an actress.

The night before, we attended the screening of Underworld Awakening, a “must” in every junket (you know, otherwise “no watch, no interview”) at a nearby theater. In the movie that left us catching for breath with non-stop action, Kate reprises her role as Selene in the continuation of the story that ended in Underworld Evolution, escaping from a 15-year imprisonment to discover that humans have almost successfully eradicated both the Vampire clan (to which Selene belongs) and the Lycan clan.

Executive producer David Coatsworth was quoted in the production notes as saying, “Putting Selene into the context of a modern world and having her interact with humans is one of the two big new elements. The second is the discovery that she’s the mother of a teenage daughter (Played by 17-year-old India Eisley, daughter of Olivia Hussey of Romeo & Juliet fame; more on India in Funfare soon. The movie also stars another newcomer, Theo James as another vampire. — RFL). It brings a whole new twist to the evolution of Selene and sets up the possibility of continuing into the future.”

Again, it’s up to you to find out what happens next when you watch in 3D the Sony Pictures movie (released by Columbia Pictures) opening nationwide on Friday, Jan. 20.

It’s been years since you last did an Underworld movie. Did you have to, you know, re-acquaint yourself with your Selene character?

“Yes, obviously. It’s been awhile since I was on the same set and I had to familiarize myself with it again.”

Are you wearing the same size that you did in the previous movie?

“Oh yes, it’s the same size. I was a bit worried since, as I’ve said, it’s been awhile. But I was surprised that the suit still fits. I must admit that I did have second thoughts about slipping back into the familiar skin-tight black latex suit. It’s somewhat distracting because the armpit makes a lot of noise. But come to think of it, it’s such a life-changing role for me, so I feel very affectionate towards it. It’s exciting to be able to follow a character over such a long period of time. It’s rare to get that chance. So, why not?”

How do you keep fit and fabulous? What kind of diet do you have and what workout do you do?

“Just basically eating healthy and yes, less ice-cream! For exercise, I do yoga.”

After three Underworld outings, do you look forward to doing it the fourth time?

“Oh gosh! I can’t imagine! I wasn’t even sure I would do the third one. You know, I had this idea that if a movie has had two or three sequels, the next one would go straight to video. What convinced me to do it again was the new twists of the story with Selene waking up from a long sleep to find herself in a, well, a different world.”

How do you feel about the fact that the Underworld franchise has set the trend for vampire movies?

“Everybody seems to be crazy about vampires and werewolves and I never expected it. I didn’t fully understand it at first but maybe when I start doing a grandma vampire, I sure will.”

Compared to your other movies (as Nurse Lieutenant Evelyn Johnson in Pearl Harbor with Ben Affleck and Josh Hartnett, Serendipity with John Cusack, and as Ava Gardner in The Aviator with Leonardo DiCaprio, among others), how was it doing a very physical role in Underworld Awakening?

“It’s absolutely tiring, I tell you! And then I followed it up with another tiring role in Contraband, with Mark Wahlberg. You can just imagine…”

You were impressive as Ava Gardner in The Aviator. Any other real person that you would like to portray?

“Gosh, I couldn‘t think of any!”

You are an actress with a chameleon talent. I mean, you easily immerse yourself into any role that you play. What kind of characters do you find challenging?

“You know, characters who are instantly likeable don’t really attract me and neither am I interested in turning them into lovable characters. When I play a character, foremost in my mind is to make her real and to discover what it is that makes her human, to find what it is that makes her who she is.”

How are you as a mom? (She has a 13-year-old daughter by her ex-boyfriend, actor Michael Sheen who, according to Kate, “gets along quite well” with her husband, director Len Wiseman who’s directing her in the remake of Total Recall in which she plays the role played by Sharon Stone in the original).

“It’s terrifying being a mom to a growing girl. I remember giving my mother an awful lot of job…I mean, I didn’t really get drunk…and now I realized how challenging it is to be a mother myself. I don’t think I am very experienced as a mom.”

Away from work, how do you spend your time?

“Boring! I love being home. My husband and I love going to the movies. We watch all kinds of movies.”

Aren’t you afraid of growing old?

“Afraid? Why should I be? There’s no reason for me to worry about that…yet. So far, I’m not getting any offers for grandmother roles. Come to think of it, actresses get the best roles when they are older, much older. Oh well, if and when, I suppose I can always turn to writing. Or is it too late for me to be a senior doctor, something I wanted to be when I was a child?”

(E-mail reactions at [email protected]. You may also send your questions to [email protected]. For more updates, photos and videos visit www.philstar.com/funfare or follow me on www.twitter/therealrickylo.)