Richelle Mead talked to Hypable about visiting the set of The Vampire Academy as well as meeting the leads Danila Kozlovsky and Zoey Deutch.
Vampire Academy is set to hit theaters this Valentine’s Day. Mead traveled to England to visit the set and meet the actors that would be bringing her characters to life.
On Set
Richelle Mead only had a few days on set but was made to feel right at home. She saw two separate scenes being filmed. One on a St. Vladimir’s set and one during a night set. Mead said, “The set was incredible to see. The amount of people and time that go into a movie is amazing. I don’t think the average movie viewers really appreciate that we sit and level judgement comfortably from our seats. It takes so much effort and energy to film one scene. Everyone really seemed into this project. They were passionate about the story and it was really gratifying for me.”
When asked about meeting the actors who now embody her characters, Mead exclaims that she was more star struck than anything else because they are all so beautiful. “You are surrounded by all these gorgeous people who are playing these iconic figures but at the same time they are all so personable. I have never really meet any actors so you have no idea what you are going to find but they were ordinary people. I was excited to meet them and they were excited to meet me.”
Danila Kozlovsky and Zoey Deutch
Two of the gorgeous people on set were the leads Zoey Deutch and Danila Kozlovsky. Mead had nothing but praise for the relative unknown Kozlovsky.
“Danila is super friendly and easy going in person. He was definitely one we were baffled by because he is just such a gorgeous man but he just talks to you. He is so relaxed and nice you almost forget he is Dimitri. Dimitri is always stoic and fighting battles and Danila is all ease and charm. When the camera is on he snaps into Dimitri, the bad ass warrior god. I saw him doing stunts scenes and that was incredible. He was out there doing all these aggressive things and throwing himself around. He took kind of a beating that night. They do have stunt people around but he and Zoey did a lot of their own stunts.”
As for Deutch, Mead feels she is the perfect fit for Rose both physically and in personality.
“Zoey is great. She is such a great match for Rose. She is probably the closest to how I pictured the character both in appearance and personality. That’s what is really cool. So many people discount the personality factor they want to match head shots with the image in their mind. And there is this whole component of being able to channel that character’s personality and essence. Zoey has that. She is a spitfire and everyone knows where she is in the room. On camera I definitely see her as Rose.”
Trailers and Favorite Scenes
Mead is aware that fans had a mixed reaction to the teaser trailer and is hoping when the full length trailer is released people will get to see more of the story they love. “I am hoping that once people see some scenes, that will soothe people over. There is a tricky thing about these adaptations. It has to be for the fans of the book but at the same time you want to attract a new audience. I know some fans found the teaser trailer jarring but the teaser held a lot of appeal for people who don’t know the series.”
As far as Mead’s favorite scene, “I am very excited for the end sequence which I guess is a cheating answer because there are a couple of scenes. I guess after the dance and the big mystery is revealed because then all the dominoes begin to fall into place. I’m just excited to play that out.”
Those are our favorite scenes too! Fans everywhere are waiting for the lust charm scene which also takes place during that time.
Vampire Academy hits theaters on Valentine’s Day 2014. Will you be in the theater to see it on opening night? You can also read Mead’s latest novel The Fiery Heart when it hits book store shelves on November 19 and continues the story of Adrian and Sydney who were first introduced in the Vampire Academy series.
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