Svetlana Khodchenkova's only other role in an English language movie was as 'Irina' in 2011's Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. However, the beautiful Russian actress now gets to take on a much more significant part in James Mangold's The Wolverine. In the movie, she plays the villainous Viper; a character extremely well-known to comic book fans as both "Madame Hydra" and Logan's ex-wife (she blackmailed Wolverine into marrying her in order to secure her criminal empire in Madripoor). We don't know an awful lot about how the big screen version of Viper will be portrayed, but here's what Khodchenkova had to say about that in a recent interview with Collider.
On Staying Faithful To The Comic Book Version Of 'Viper':
"Of course being from Russia, I respect all of the comic books American people love. We do follow it a lot. It’s going to still have a little bit of my own flavor to it, but I will do the best I possibly can to match it as closely to the character from the comic books."
On What It Was Like To Work Alongside Hugh Jackman:
"It’s fantastic to work all the cast and crew here, and Hugh Jackman’s amazing. He’s a really kind person, and he always cares about everyone. He’ll come up and ask if you’ve had a good sleep, are you wearing sunblock. He’s very nice. It’s very great to work with him and everyone else."
On The Costumes Donned By 'Viper' During The Course Of The Movie:
"All I can say about the costume now is that every costume is really different, and also being a woman I absolutely love it, all the different changes. It helps my character, because it progresses with the character throughout the film, her costumes and looks. It’s always changing. The most important costume for the Viper-look, the superhero look, is still in progress. We’ve made different versions of it and we’re still working on it. It’s surprising too, because we’re still working on it."
On What Appeals To Her About The Character:
"With my character, certainly she’s a villain, but for me to play the character I have to love the character. I have to realize why she’s doing what she’s doing, and obviously she has reasons for everything she does. I’m working a lot on that. I love the character."
On Whether She Is Hoping This Leads To More Roles In Hollywood:
"I hope. I hope I can do it by myself. At the moment I’m concentrating on my dialect and working with a dialect coach for the film. As soon as I go back to Moscow, I’ve got a teacher waiting for me for English lessons."
Based on the celebrated comic book arc, this epic action-adventure takes Wolverine, the most iconic character of the X-Men universe, to modern day Japan. Out of his depth in an unknown world he faces his ultimate nemesis in a life-or-death battle that will leave him forever changed. Vulnerable for the first time and pushed to his physical and emotional limits, he confronts not only lethal samurai steel but also his inner struggle against his own immortality, emerging more powerful than we have ever seen him before.
STARRING:
Hugh Jackman as Logan/Wolverine
Hiroyuki Sanada as Shingen Yashida
Hal Yamanouchi as Yashida
Tao Okamoto as Mariko Yashida
Rila Fukushima as Yukio
Will Yun Lee as Kenuichio Harada
Brian Tee as Noburo Mori
Svetlana Khodchenkova as Viper
RELEASE DATE: July 26th, 2013.