'What really appealed to me was that I would get to be a bad girl...'
James Franco, Mila Kunis, Rachel Weisz and Michelle Williams all star in Sam Raimi's new film Oz the Great and Powerful. Based on L. Frank Baum's Oz novels, Oz the Great and Powerful is a prequel to Baum's 1900 introductory novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and the 1939 MGM film, The Wizard of Oz.
Rachel Weisz plays Evanora, one of the witches. She tells us about the experience...
So what was it about this project that made you want to take on this role?
I think what really appealed to me about playing Evanora was that I would get to be a bad girl. She has a lot of fun being bad. I think that’s what appealed to me about the character. And I loved the script. I thought it was a great prequel to the book “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,” a great imagining of the origin story of the Wizard. And the chance to work with Sam Raimi was very exciting. I’m a fan of his films and now I’m a great fan of him. Being directed by Sam has been really fun, and he’s a really great guy. And working with James and Mila and Michelle—it’s an amazing cast, so it was a great project to be asked to join.
Your costume changes colour - right?
"Evanora basically has one costume that goes from green to black. When she’s pretending to be kind, the protector of the throne, she’s in green. And when she comes out of the closet as a wicked person, her dress goes black. I think Evanora really is about 372 years old in reality. So she’s cast an enchantment to make herself not look that old. Her dress has feathers and a slight militaristic look, because she is sort of a military leader."
Oz is played by James Franco, what was it like working with him?
He and I only had a couple of scenes together in the film. One where he’s first brought into the throne room and I put on a big show for him. I think James gets that perfect combination of someone who’s very charming and very seductive. But also there’s kind of a bit of a buffoon in the character, who is basically a con artist. James is really very funny. In the stuff I’ve done with him he was very comedic. He has a lot of charm.
And what was Michelle Williams like to work with?
It’s been great working with her because she exemplifies pure good and I’m pure evil and it’s been really fun being her enemy. We get along very well, so I’m allowed to be incredibly mean to her when the camera is rolling.
What's Sam Raimi like as a director?
I think Sam Raimi brings to this project incredible passion and an amazing childlike imagination, wit and humanity. He has this beautiful ability to tell stories. He’s a really wonderful storyteller. Sam’s an absolute sweetheart and he’s got incredible energy. He’s always telling jokes on the set and keeps everyone laughing. I’ve really enjoyed being directed by him.
You did some stunt work on this movie. Did you have to do training for that part of the movie?
I’ve done some flying. I just kind of fly free style. I get a harness put on under my dress and I get taken up. It’s really fun. There are moments when I’m up there and I suddenly think, oh my goodness, if I fell... It can be a little bit scary. However, the crew is really wonderful about making us feel safe. It’s not something that you get to do every day—fly.
There are elements from the multiple books of L. Frank Baum’s series about the Land of Oz that make up this story. Why do you think these stories still appeal today?
Stories about good versus evil and fantasy and believing in the wizard or not believing in the wizard is the stuff of fairy tales. It’s the stuff of children’s fables and folklore. It’s the archetypal stuff of traditional stories. L. Frank Baum tapped into that.
Oz The Great and Powerful arrives in cinemas nationwide on Friday March 8.
Rachel Weisz plays Evanora, one of the witches. She tells us about the experience...
So what was it about this project that made you want to take on this role?
I think what really appealed to me about playing Evanora was that I would get to be a bad girl. She has a lot of fun being bad. I think that’s what appealed to me about the character. And I loved the script. I thought it was a great prequel to the book “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,” a great imagining of the origin story of the Wizard. And the chance to work with Sam Raimi was very exciting. I’m a fan of his films and now I’m a great fan of him. Being directed by Sam has been really fun, and he’s a really great guy. And working with James and Mila and Michelle—it’s an amazing cast, so it was a great project to be asked to join.
Your costume changes colour - right?
"Evanora basically has one costume that goes from green to black. When she’s pretending to be kind, the protector of the throne, she’s in green. And when she comes out of the closet as a wicked person, her dress goes black. I think Evanora really is about 372 years old in reality. So she’s cast an enchantment to make herself not look that old. Her dress has feathers and a slight militaristic look, because she is sort of a military leader."
Oz is played by James Franco, what was it like working with him?
He and I only had a couple of scenes together in the film. One where he’s first brought into the throne room and I put on a big show for him. I think James gets that perfect combination of someone who’s very charming and very seductive. But also there’s kind of a bit of a buffoon in the character, who is basically a con artist. James is really very funny. In the stuff I’ve done with him he was very comedic. He has a lot of charm.
And what was Michelle Williams like to work with?
It’s been great working with her because she exemplifies pure good and I’m pure evil and it’s been really fun being her enemy. We get along very well, so I’m allowed to be incredibly mean to her when the camera is rolling.
What's Sam Raimi like as a director?
I think Sam Raimi brings to this project incredible passion and an amazing childlike imagination, wit and humanity. He has this beautiful ability to tell stories. He’s a really wonderful storyteller. Sam’s an absolute sweetheart and he’s got incredible energy. He’s always telling jokes on the set and keeps everyone laughing. I’ve really enjoyed being directed by him.
You did some stunt work on this movie. Did you have to do training for that part of the movie?
I’ve done some flying. I just kind of fly free style. I get a harness put on under my dress and I get taken up. It’s really fun. There are moments when I’m up there and I suddenly think, oh my goodness, if I fell... It can be a little bit scary. However, the crew is really wonderful about making us feel safe. It’s not something that you get to do every day—fly.
There are elements from the multiple books of L. Frank Baum’s series about the Land of Oz that make up this story. Why do you think these stories still appeal today?
Stories about good versus evil and fantasy and believing in the wizard or not believing in the wizard is the stuff of fairy tales. It’s the stuff of children’s fables and folklore. It’s the archetypal stuff of traditional stories. L. Frank Baum tapped into that.
Oz The Great and Powerful arrives in cinemas nationwide on Friday March 8.