#this is what i want more of

[mzannthropy]

It's not every day that an international star turns out to be approachable and easy-going. Instead, while I'm talking to Sam Claflin, I feel like I'm chatting with a friend with whom I can discuss any topic, even astrology. "But is my star sign, Cancer, really resentful? Just like my Edmond Dantès," says the English actor. Yes, because on January 13, a blockbuster version of "The Count of Monte Cristo" will be broadcast on Rai1, a story of the most famous revenge in literature, written by Alexandre Dumas in 1844. And Claflin is the protagonist. The miniseries directed by Danish director Bille August, two-time winner of the Palme d'Or at Cannes, is just the latest in a long series of adaptations. The first short film dates back to 1908, the first film was in 1922, and sound hadn't been invented yet! Since then, there have been 12 other films, five TV series, a stage musical and even a Japanese animated series. This new international TV version, produced by Palomar with Demd Productions, Rai Fiction, France Télévisions, Mediawan Rights and Entourage Ventures, promises to do justice to the over 1,200 pages of the novel. The beginning of the story? Dantès is a sailor who on his wedding day is unjustly accused of treason and thrown into prison. After 15 years, he escapes with one goal: to take revenge on those who framed him. Claflin knows a thing or two about adaptations: he made his debut in 2010 with the miniseries “The Pillars of the Earth,” based on the novel of the same name by Ken Follett, and in 2013 he became famous in the role of Finnick Odair in the “Hunger Games” films, based on the famous literary saga.

With such a “bookish” CV, who knows what a thrill it must be to play one of the most famous characters in literature. «Actually, I confess that I only knew the title of the novel, I didn’t know anything else. But I understood that it was a big deal when I told my friends: they were more excited than me».

But it's one of the most famous books ever! "I know, I know ( laughs ). But I have to make a confession: I'm not an avid reader and, as an actor, I prefer that my first approach to a role comes from the script, without having preconceptions or judgments about the work itself."

But did he read the novel? "Of course, and I understood why it's so long: readers of the time read it in installments in the newspaper. For them it was a bit like today's TV series. In those days, people didn't travel much, so a book like "The Count of Monte Cristo", which touches on so many different places, allowed ordinary people to explore the world with their imagination, from the comfort of their homes."

Have you seen any of the adaptations that have already been made? «During filming I watched “Monte Cristo”, the 2002 film with Jim Caviezel because I was curious to find out how they managed to concentrate so many events and characters in just two hours. It seemed impossible to me, we take almost eight!».

The production actually seems impressive: how long did the shooting last? «About six months, and we traveled a lot: we started in Paris, then we went to Turin, Rome and finally to Malta».

Had you been to Italy before? "I had already visited Rome, Florence and Amalfi in the past. Turin turned out to be a hidden gem, I fell in love with its architecture. Coming back to Rome is always magical: it is a unique city, an open-air museum. It is my favorite European capital. And then there is no other: Italian cuisine is too good!"

“The Count of Monte Cristo” is an international series, with English, French, Italian and other actors. Ask us a question: did Lino Guanciale and Michele Riondino teach you how to pronounce a few sentences in Italian? «Yes. I would have liked to show off my new linguistic knowledge, but I have a terrible memory: I’ve already forgotten everything!».

So we are still waiting for him in Italy to speak our language together. In the meantime, he confides in us what were the most tiring moments on the set? "Definitely the endless make-up and hair sessions when I was filming the scenes in prison, with a beard and very long hair. Imagine that to make the wig more realistic they had to apply almost every hair individually. We started at dawn!"

The hardest day? "When we shot the opening scene, with the ship in the middle of the storm. We had a machine to create the wind and another for the rain, and on top of that the ship was rocking: the noise was so loud that we couldn't hear the director's instructions! On top of that, we shot it in winter, so it was freezing."

Edmond Dantès is a master of disguises. Do you also have some “tricks” to avoid being noticed by people on the street? «The secret is my children ( Pip and Margot, 9 and 7 years old, had by his ex-wife, the actress Laura Haddock, ed. ). I don't know why, but when I walk around with them no one recognizes me. However, when I finish shooting a film or a series, I immediately change my hairstyle to distance myself from the character. If I haven't had a beard for many months, for example, the first thing I do is let it grow back. Maybe this also helps to muddy the waters a bit».

Would you prefer to be recognized more often? "Not a chance! In recent years I've worked with fellow actors who are so targeted by paparazzi that they need bodyguards 24 hours a day. A nightmare. I think the best thing to do to not attract attention is to behave normally: if you wear sunglasses indoors, people will notice you."

You play one of the most vengeful characters in history. Are you a resentful person or do you forgive? "I would like to belong to the second category, but the truth is that I bear resentment. I am willing to give a second chance to those who have wronged me, but if they continue to behave badly I don't want to know about it anymore."

Have you ever taken small revenge? "No, I try to avoid conflicts, I never fought even as a kid ( laughs ). And then I'm lazy: taking revenge requires too much time and patience. I prefer to hope that karma punishes those who make others suffer."

What did the character of Dantès teach you? "Every role I play allows me to discover something more about myself. Edmond Dantès certainly has admirable qualities because he is methodical, loyal and full of motivation. Of course, then he is blinded by revenge, so perhaps he taught me precisely this: to never lose sight of the things that are truly important."

Dantès moves to Paris. You too have moved to a metropolis: after high school you moved to London to study acting. "I grew up in a small town 150 kilometers from London, which has always had an incredible fascination for me. When I took the big step and moved there, I understood that it was my place. I have lived there ever since and I am happy."

Let's close with a movie question: a movie that changed your life? «“Notting Hill”, the amazing 1999 comedy directed by Roger Michell with Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts. It's a perfect movie and I watch it every time I feel down. I'm an incurable romantic, it helps me believe that there's the right person for me out there».

Translated by Google Chrome. I amended Margot's age from 6 to 7 as she's just had her birthday.

[tawnysoup]

Finally now that the comic is fully public on comicfury, I get to share it with all of you here, too <3

If you enjoyed, please consider supporting by buying a PDF of the comic on itch.io: https://tawnysoup.itch.io/home-in-the-woods

[perrieedwards]

i feel like people are skimming over the uk riots in a way that makes me want to tear my hair out. muslims in the uk are in active danger. immigrants in the uk are in active danger. refugees in the uk are in active danger. people of colour in the uk are in active danger. asian communities in the uk are in active danger. black communities in the uk are in active danger.

there are massive far right riots throughout the country right now and people like fucking elon musk and nigel farage are inciting it and still have a platform to speak. people have used three young girls deaths, people's genuine grief in southport, to try and gain traction for their own racist bullshit and it's working.

a lot of refugee charities have been forced to close leaving many people without support, homes, funding, food, etc. if you aren't able to donate please consider sending a message via the conversation over borders campaign! it will send a hopeful, welcoming letter to a refugee in the uk. there is also a guide to staying safe here.

please do your own research and donate to refugee charities, anti-islamophobia charities, mosques who are trying to rebuild after being destroyed, counter protesters, here are some i've heard positive things about but the list is extensive; southport strong together (support for the southport victims and their families), southport mosque rebuilding, riot repair fund, middlesbrough vulnerable residents, nasir mosque rebuilding, hull help for refugees, bristol welcomes migrants,

[wanologic]

sorry danny, sam will never think you’re cool

[eosofspades]

i didn't have "i'm broken" teenage asexual angst i had "i'm literally being the only reasonable one about this concept and the rest of you are behaving like fucking freaks" perception issues

[cardo-de-comer]

10/10 - "all is gone, none is won"

[hinamie]

post-graduation trip airport looks

[pinkgelpen444]

[zanmor]

We are well beyond canary in the coalmine warning levels with the way trans people and particularly trans women are treated on this site.

Maybe you've heard the metaphor of allowing wolves and sheep to share the same space, welcoming everyone. You end up with just wolves because allowing them in that space makes it unsafe for any sheep. Or the story about how a nazi goes into a dive bar and is refused service. The bartender then explains to someone else at the bar that if you serve them once they tell their friends and before you know it you're the nazi bar they all go to and normal customers don't feel safe.

Terfs and other bigots are seeing these targeted harassment campaigns succeed against trans women and rejoicing. They see Tumblr ban them and officially stand by those decisions as endorsement for their harassment. It's a sign to bigots across the internet that Tumblr is a good place for them.

And what's more is that a lot of us probably don't realize just how much trans women contribute to Tumblr. The women banned recently were sources of site-wide memes and posts I wasn't even aware originated from them.any years old memes and references can be traced back to trans women on this site.

How many of these folks have to be removed before this is no longer a site you want to be a part of it? Sure you cultivate your own experience, but you can't follow or interact with people who aren't here. And if I wanted to interact with the nazis and terfs I'd go to reddit.

I encourage everyone to reblog this. Trans women shouldn't have to be the only ones speaking out against the bigotry they're experiencing. They shouldn't be the only ones risking their blogs being nuked by staff. We have to stand with them.

[seren-dipitous-art]

I’ve been obsessed with the Olympics for the past week, and obsessed with Dick Grayson for longer, so here’s the crossover we all deserve.

Plus, gorgeous sweaty acrobat in gymnastics poses? Only positives.

[krysmcscience]

I have some questions about karaoke night, Alex Hirsch. Very Important Questions. Which I will happily scream at a poor hapless baby triangle who can have no answers for me, and possibly also does not have object permanence yet.

Follow-up that is I guess suggestive, but let's be real here, Bill's a fucking triangle:

Dude slipped right into his birthday suit, lmao

this is so stupid :D

Anyway, I don't care what anyone says, this brilliant individual knows what's up - Bill is absolutely way more of a monsterfucker than Ford could or ever will be, full stop.

[snarkspawn]

did I doodle this mostly so I had an excuse to draw this spite reaction image?

(YES HAHAHA YES!!!)

[cryptocism]

that half-blank, half-apocalyptic look

"i can b ur angle or yuor devil" etc etc "get a man who can do both" etc etc

obsessed with this vamp i think he should get to do whatever he wants forever

[mynnthia]

was talking with a friend about how some of dunmeshi fаndom misunderstands kabru's initial feelings towards laios.

to sum up kabru's situation via a self-contained modernized metaphor:

kabru is like a guy who lost his entire family in a highly traumatic car accident. years later he joins a discord server and takes note of laios, another server member who seems interesting, so they start chatting. then laios reveals his special interest and favorite movie of all time is David Cronenberg's Crash (1996), and invites kabru to go watch a demolition derby with him

[redpapercraness]

to lose you

[chloesimaginationthings]

FNAF Scrap baby is just Michael’s little sister