Were you a comic fan growing up? Yes!
Who are the filmmakers and what are the films that inspire you? Steven Spielberg's "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" and "Raiders of the Lost Ark", Brian De Palma's "Scarface" and "The Untouchables", Robert Zemeckis' "Back to the Future", Sergio Leone's "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly", John Frankenheimer's "The Manchurian Candidate", and George Lucas' "Star Wars" and also his business model.
What prompted you to continue the X-Men franchise? Unfinished business and a great new concept.
Is this film the first of a new trilogy or just a standalone film? Hopefully it will be the first of many.
How was it decided what characters to use for the film? Bryan Singer decided this initially.
To prepare for directing the film did you focus more on reading the comics or watching the previous films? Both.
How important is it to you to have consistency between the original source (the comics) and the film? The film has to stand on its own two feet but the heels were made from the comics.
How do you plan to keep the continuity from the other films based on the timelines we comic fans know? Whatever is best for the film wins!
What is special about this movie that you can't see in other X-Men movies and other superhero genre types of movies? Its backdrop of a real historical event in the 60's and imagining what would have happened if mutants did exist.
What about this period in history - the height of the Cold War - intrigued you? Our version makes sense of how the Cuban missile crisis nearly started WWIII and the end of the world...
What drew you to the role of Emma Frost? Well, not only was she a very cool character with awesome powers and attitude, she was unlike anyone I had played before which is always what I look for in the roles I take on.
Is it fun playing a rather notorious, iconic female character in the series? The fact that she is a very notorious and iconic character in the series was a bit intimidating. I was flattered to be offered the role and excited to be a part of making her come to life, but also felt a major responsibility to the fans to get her right and try not to disappoint people's imaginations.
Did you read any of the comics to prepare for the role of Emma Frost? The minute I accepted the role I dove into as many of the comics as I could find and was also given a huge stack of comics for research purposes. It was the most enjoyable character "research" I've done, there was no lack of back story. Having not read the comics before I had a blast getting into them and learning so much about who I was playing.
How would you describe the Emma Frost character in your own words? I think Emma is a very strong, confident woman who is in touch with her sexuality and not ashamed of her powers. I think she is highly intelligent but obviously enjoys a bit of mischief.
Emma Frost is known for being powerful physically, with her diamond form, and mentally, with her telepathic powers. Which side of her do you relate to more? As a woman I have to say I relate to the telepathic powers more so in that I occasionally have strong intuitions about people or things and sometimes feel a "telepathic" sense with some people. That being said, I wouldn't want the full powers that Emma possesses - the responsibility and the disappointment that comes with seeing what others are thinking. I would, however, love to turn into a diamond.
What parts of Emma's personality do you think you share with her? What was the most difficult part of playing her character? I think I share certain similarities in that I am a modern woman who is independent, confident, strong-minded and willed. I am steadfastly loyal to those I love and believe in, much like her, and I also love a well put together ensemble :) The parts I struggled with were some of the special effects/stunt elements of this kind of filmmaking and only because I had never done much of it before. I found the challenge of it fun and embraced the sometimes ridiculous.
Do you see any parallels between Emma Frost and the character you play on Mad Men - Betty Draper? No, I see no parallels between Betty and Emma. Only that they slightly resemble one another.
How did you deal with Emma's risqué wardrobe? The wardrobe, make-up and hair etc. were a huge part of making Emma come to life. We made sure, in our collaborations, to stay as true to the comic books as possible, find a way to spin in the 60's time period, and also have something I was comfortable and could move around in. I was very happy with how things turned out.
In the comic books Emma Frost starts as a villain, but later on she becomes more ambiguous or even a true heroine. On a scale of one to ten, exactly how much a villain are you in this movie? I don't relate to the word "villain" for this character. I don't believe Emma thinks she is doing "villainous" things, I think she believes in Shaw and his quest to make a better world for the mutant population. I think the mischievous side to her comes out occasionally so if I had to rate her I would give an ambiguous 5.
Since your character and Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon) are the main figures of the Hellfire Club, what motives will your character bring to this film? My character's motives are to assist Sebastian Shaw in creating a safe and controlled environment for mutants while at the same time enjoying a higher standard of living and maybe a promise of a powerful position if our goals are reached.
I know a big part of this film is about Xavier and Magneto's relationship. But can I count on getting Emma's origin story in this film too? No, you don't get an origins story for Emma in this film. She is already very secure in her place and her powers. If that is something that interests you, I suggest going back to the comics, there's a wealth of interesting information about Emma's "origins".
Starring James McAvoy as Charles Xavier, Michael Fassbender as Erik Lensherr, Nicholas Hoult as Hank McCoy, Jennifer Lawrence as Raven Darkholme, Lucas Till as Alex Summers/Havok, Caleb Landry Jones as Sean Cassidy/Banshee, Kevin Bacon as Sebastian Shaw, Oliver Platt as the Man in Black, Jason Flemyng as Azazel and Rose Byrne as Moira MacTaggart,
X-Men: First Class is set to be released in the UK on June 1st and in the US on June 2nd.
Check out my 5* review of X-Men: First Class by clicking HERE!
ComicBookMovie.com, and/or the user who contributed this post, may earn commissions or revenue through clicks or purchases made through any third-party links contained within the content above.