300‘s Queen Gorgo toughens up and kicks ass as the mother of the future in the Terminator TV series
By Sean Elliott
Source: iF Magazine

Lena Headey has some mighty big shoes to fill on her new TV series Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. The actress is taking over a role made into a pop culture feminist icon by actress Linda Hamilton, but this doesn’t worry her.

Never mind the fact that she is far too young to actually have a son Thomas Dekker’s age, when Headey is onscreen she IS Sarah Connor and she has as much of a commanding presence as she did on the big screen as Queen Gorgo in last year’s surprise hit 300.

With tonight being the second part of the premiere of this awesome new series on Fox, iF MAGAZINE chatted with Heady about the ups and downs of playing the mother of the future, and exactly how many of her own stunts she does.

iF MAGAZINE: Sarah Connor makes two iconic roles in genre productions for you in the last couple of years [the other is Queen Gorgo]. How is it being inundated with genre fans for two projects so close together?

LENA HEADEY: I don’t think it’s been that much of a wild ride yet. But, I haven’t been to too many conventions. Are they crazy? I only just realized that I have an action figure from 300, people have been bringing them to me. But I enjoy all genres, but I love the action genre because it’s so physical and the physicality informs you emotionally.

iF: What kind of training did you have to do to prepare to play Sarah Connor?

HEADEY: We had to do some shooting training. But, part of acting is acting and when someone hands you a prop then you make believe it is real. A gun sadly is a very simple thing to use. In terms of training, I love being challenged. I’ve been working with a great woman trainer here. I was kind of being slack when I was in London so I had to start everything up again before we started filming.

iF: How do you feel about the stunt work and all of the being knocked around and running?

HEADEY: I actually enjoy it, especially when the adrenaline starts going and you get into it and you forget about what’s actually going on. Then in the morning you wake up with swollen knuckles and you can’t move your head. [Laughs] It’s in the moment, which I think is a nice place to get lost in.

iF: This series features a very different Sarah Connor from the last time fans saw her in T2. She’s evolved, but how much of the source material of Linda Hamilton’s performances did you watch?

HEADEY: I saw the first Terminator years ago, and before we started this, we all sat and watched the pieces of the movies that we needed to know in order to do this. But really the bottom line is, you’re looking at a woman who is a single mother, who isn’t ready to be a mother and never dreamed she would be. She has a son who she loves more than anything and she has to protect him otherwise mankind will die.

iF: What’s your favorite thing about playing Sarah Connor?

HEADEY: I just think that being part of this whole thing is very exciting. [Writer/Executive Producer] Josh Friedman is a very smart man and [Producer/Director] David Nutter is absolutely brilliant. It’s great to be part of something very smart and imaginative. I love Sarah. I think she’s an absolute hero and she’s absolutely boundless.

iF: Well you’re going to be a role model for a whole new generation of girls out there as they grow up.

HEADEY: I hope so! I hope she’s a good one.