Step one in preparing to play the antichrist? Learn how to relate.
“I don’t know how to play a character unless I love him,” Cody Fern tells ET of his role as Michael Langdon, the antichrist, on American Horror Story: apocalypse. “I don’t see the evil. It’s not useful to me… Ní féidir leat a imirt olc. Conas is féidir liom a imirt olc?”
Tagann Raithneach go leor gar darn ar an tsraith FX, a bhfuil, go suntasach, ach a seó teilifíse tríú. Mar an nótaí aisteoir hAstráile, tá sé ach curtha i ndáiríre sa ghnó ar feadh cúig bliana. I ndiaidh líofa a chuid chops i amharclann na hAstráile, tháinig sé i Los Angeles a shaothrú a aisling Hollywood, ach ní raibh ag obair ar feadh trí bliana go leith “brutal” blianta. Gach rud a athrú le Ryan Murphy.
An Super-táirgeoir teilgthe Fern mar David Madson ina sraith FX eile, American Scéal Coireacht: An Assassination na Gianni Versace. “Ba é mo chéad phost gairmiúil fíor,” Fern deir an gig. Cé iarrann sé é ina “ról tacaíochta beagán níos lú,” bhí sé go leor chun luí Murphy, a thug air páirt breakout sa tráthchuid nua de AHS. Raithneach, a réaltaí freisin ar an tsraith nua de House of Cards, tá sé ag obair go seasta ó shin i leith.
Mar as a ról mar Michael, admhaíonn an t-aisteoir 30 bliain d'aois go léamh an Bíobla Satanic ar cheann de na bealaí níos suimiúla ullmhaigh sé a dlús a chur isteach ar an carachtar — ach ní an ceann is tábhachtaí.
“An uillinn daonna, go díreach an rud a chuaigh mé chun, mar gheall ar conas is féidir leat a imirt ar an antichrist? Maidir liom féin, Ní féidir liom a imirt meafar nó siombail. is gá dom a imirt bheith ag an duine, agus is gá dom a imirt bheith ag an duine atá díreach mar aon eile, a bhfuil longing, a bhfuil riachtanais, atá gortaithe, a loves agus riachtanais grá, agus sin an chaoi a chuaigh mé faoi ag dul agus ag dul go dtí an croí a bhí sé,” Míníonn Raithneach, nochtadh go ndearna sé inspioráid ó conas a bhí léiriú an saol na Banríona Eilís II ar Netflix The Crown.
“Samhlaigh a rugadh i rud éigin a dhéanann freastal supposedly chun críche níos mó,” Deireann sé. “Sin é an chaoi chuige mé fearg Mhichíl, an gcéad dul síos, gur rugadh é i rud éigin nach bhfuil sé a thuiscint, nach bhfuil sé ag roghnú. Go mór dó dul faoi mhúnlú féin isteach, go bhfuil daoine eile ag cur brú go leanúnach isteach dó, go bhfuil gach ceann de na hionchais agus na meáchain agus tá sé ar na impulses nach ndéanann sé a thuiscint, go bhfuil sé ag achtú díreach.”
Last week’s episode saw Michael’s confusion come to a head, in a vicious scene in which he murders a goat that was “mocking” him, Fern describes. “I grew up in an area where people would go around and kill things, and I very much was not about that,” the actor admits of his childhood, though says his personal views didn’t come into play while filming the scene.
“That whole scene is the reverse temptation of Christ, tá a fhios agat. So that didn’t bother me at all,” he says with a laugh. “It’s certainly not playing myself. There are elements of myself in the role, but then I have to kind of let all of that go. And you’re imagining things. That’s the wonder of it. You get to play in this different realm where you are not you, so there’s always the barrier. And you know, I’m not killing a real goat, so I was just fine.”
With just two episodes left of the season, Fern teases that fans can expect more of the Apocalypse journey. “We’ve come to learn it’s not a general thing that Michael is carrying out, but rather a very personal attack against a particular group of people. And even more specifically, against Cordelia,” he notes, hinting there’s a prophecy that cannot be avoided. “So that will certainly feed into what we are about to see, and Michael’s sense of righteousness moving forward about how he’s going to come back to Cordelia. I can’t give too much away.”
Fern wrapped production on AHS last week, confessing that leaving the character behind felt like “a cleaving of the soul.” “I’m kind of coming back down to earth, and it’s going to be a process, tá a fhios agat? Especially because I so loved playing Michael and I so loved being in his skin. So it’s tough,” Deireann sé. “But you know, Beidh mé a rá, I’ve had the most extraordinary year of my life. And I’m so grateful for it, and I’m so overwhelmed by it.”
“Féach, if Ryan asked me back, I would be thrilled. Ciallaíonn mé, Ryan is such an exceptional artist and human being. Ba mhaith liom a bheith ag obair leis arís agus arís agus arís agus arís eile, mar sin más rud é go raibh mé an deis sin, I 100 Beidh faoin gcéad léim, ach tá mé ag díriú ar an láthair,” muses Raithneach. “De bharr an méid de ghnáth mhaith liom a bheith buartha faoi cad é an todhchaí ag dul a thabhairt, Tá mé ag snámha sa nóiméad ceart anois, agus é a bhí i láthair na huaire is glorious de mo shaol. Mar sin, tá mé thar a bheith t-ádh agus díreach buíoch mar sin de.”