A NEW CHOSEN ONE; Talented Stunner KELLY OVERTON Slays On VAN HELSING!

In 1997 Buffy The Vampire Slayer premiered on what was then The WB and gave birth to not only a brand new wave of fans that were quickly crazed over vampire folklore, but also a rapidly growing feminist movement inside of fandoms. Now, nearly twenty years later, a new chosen one has been born, and the SyFy hit series Van Helsing takes on the torch that Buffy has passed along, offering up not only its own unique mythology, but also its own strong-willed central leading lady to root for in Vanessa Helsing, played by the terrifically talented Kelly Overton.

While plenty of shows and movies post Buffy have strongly capitalized on the sweeping vampire trend, most notably The Vampire Diaries, True Blood, and of course, Twilight, what makes Van Helsing truly stand out from the rest is because it is the only entry to not exploit sexuality in a way that really gives credence to predator culture. Even in James Franco's Lifetime sleeper hit Mother, May I Sleep With Danger? the creative filmmaker took advantage of the frequent metaphor in vampire subculture to show how vampires are used as symbolism for hunters seeking out their prey in the most vulgar sense- and often times in these media depictions, the prey is a very willing victim and often gets entangled in a romance, or love triangle with the vampires. Even on Buffy The Vampire Slayer, while Buffy might have certainly been an antagonistic force to the monsters, she also at the same time had her fair share of romantic entanglements as well.

That is what differentiates Van Helsing from the rest, and most importantly, Kelly Overton as a leading lady- not only is she not succumbing to being victimized, but her very essence is the cure against her predators which makes her their greatest threat- a twist in the story that the intelligent actress states she is thrilled to take on. Vanessa Helsing is a true feminist icon and a great addition to the monster-media fandom world, and there couldn't have been a better choice to play her than Overton- an athletic former high hurdle champion who gets a rush from stunts and deeply enjoys genre work such as folklore and sci-fi. Sharp as a tack, with a biting sense of humor, Overton captivates her audience and is outstandingly compelling to watch on screen, possessing multifaceted knowledge of the material both on the surface and it's deeply layered subtext.

That's probably because the gifted actress has already had so much experience working within the field. Any fan-boys dream actress, Overton got her start cutting her teeth on genre projects such as Beauty And The Beast, Tekken and another vampire phenomenon, True Blood, where she took on her first supernatural character- a werewolf. Overjoyed to be swimming in the sea of fan universes, Overton is ecstatic to get to play her feisty on-screen vampire slayer as she announces that the show is renewed for a second season- music to all fans ears!

Here, Overton sat down to talk a little bit about Van Helsing and what it was like working within genre television, how different the show is from True Blood, what else she would love to do in the future, and who makes the perfect Dracula! Read on for more!

The plot of "Van Helsing" is absolutely awesome and anyone who is a fan of fantasy television will get right into the mythology. Can you tell fans a bit about what this show is about?

So, a catastrophic volcano has erupted in Seattle, and it creates this dark astral sky that allows the remaining vampires that are living underground to resurface and rise up, and take over America. So, when the show starts, it's post-apocalyptic and its war time between the vampires and the humans, and my character, Vanessa is a descendant of a legendary line of Vampire hunters- she's a Van Helsing. She awakens from a coma to discover that she's not only immune to the vampires, but also equipped with the ability to turn the vampires human again. And with this power, or cure so to speak, it is a threat to vampires and puts a target on her back. And this really creates the question of "Can Vanessa save humanity, and will she reject or accept the gifts and powers she has?"

Your character is great because she comes along during a time that is really trying to celebrate female empowerment, and having such a strong central leading female that really fills the void where Buffy left off truly helps that narrative. Most vampire depictions in media really exploit the sexual predator factor, and this show really isn't about that. Can you touch on that?

That is such a good point. I really love how this show strays from the sexualized and romantic idea of vampires, because for so long there has always been this love triangle, or love aspect to the vampire stories- and that's something I really love about our series is that this really is not about that. My character is the threat, she's the enemy and she’s the monster- and I thought that was really awesome.

SyFy has really began picking up a lot of shows that are adding a lot of credibility to the network, like "Van Helsing," "The Expanse," and "Aftermath." How has it been working on the network?

Syfy is great. This is my first time doing anything with them, so this is really my first time having the pleasure to work with the network, but I love the material they are putting out there. The genre work they are putting out there is great, and as an actor it's so wonderful, and really goes back to when you're a kid and stretching the limits of your imagination. There are so many more components to work with than there would be in a more grounded procedural, or other dramas out there. So, I love the genre, and it's been really great. We've been working with really dynamic production companies like Nomadic Pictures. Chad Oakes and Michael Frislev, who are the chairmen of Nomadic Pictures, really know how to get great television made- they've worked on Hell On Wheels, and Fargo, which are fantastic, and they use a lot of the same crew- it's just this very tight knit family. And SyFy has been very supportive in giving them, Neil LaBute and myself a lot of creative freedom to make the show we want to make- they haven't put a lot of restrictions on us. So, there has been a lot of artistic liberty, and that's fantastic.

Also an interesting tidbit about you is that you were undefeated at high hurdles in high school. Do you do your own stunts?

[Cracks up] Yes, I jump over things all the time! [Finally stops laughing] Well, I was undefeated in high hurdles- that is true. I also played a lot of soccer and basketball, so I've been athletic my whole life, and it's something I love to do. It's really fun for me. Usually, when I realize that I can actually incorporate it into acting- something else that I love- it just becomes this double whammy. And it also perpetuates this healthy lifestyle, which is all about staying in shape and living right, and I love that. But, I do a lot of my own stunts- it's one of the reasons I take the job. I like doing it. That being said, I really have nothing to prove. I don't need to be thrown against a wall in order to feel like I'm committed to a character or anything! [Laughs] There are professionals out there that do that and make me look really good, and the stunt team on this show is amazing. I need to give a shout out to my stunt double Holly Raczynski, who is just phenomenal.

And you got a big start in vampire fantasy television as a werewolf on "True Blood," co-starring alongside Joe Manganiello. Talk about that experience and how Van Helsing differs from "True Blood."

Well, True Blood was just such a wonderful experience. That was just such a seasoned cast, and I came in during season five, so it was a pretty well oiled machine at that point. The talent and the cast was just so massive! There are so many shows inside of a show on True Blood- so many storylines. It was amazing. We had our own little storyline of werewolves, that was one little show inside the show, and that gave me a good taste of playing a supernatural character. I've played a lot of strong females, but this was my first opportunity to play a supernatural being. One thing that was really different between the two shows was that my character Rikki on True Blood was kind of a fully-realized supernatural being- she was born that way, whereas Vanessa is just discovering that she has these special powers. So, that was one of the biggest differences for me.

And seeming as though you are now becoming a bit of a staple in fantasy television, what other roles would you love to play, and who else would you love to work with?

Oh, you know I think I would love to do something that has to do with outer-space or the future! I love science-fiction. I have always had a real fascination with the galaxies, and space, and time- so I think that would be a really fun thing to do- hang out on a space ship! [Chuckles] And I love to work with people who love what they do, and who are nice people. People that are talented and care about what they do, because it is a big sacrifice of our time- most people are away from our families, so it's nice to be around people who are very supportive of another. And I really want to say that about the cast of Van Helsing, everyone is just so lovely- I can't speak highly enough about all involved. They are just the most wonderful people, so it really makes knowing that there will be a season two just so exciting because I'm the only U.S. cast member, everyone else is from Canada, so I've missed them and I can't wait to see them again.

And you have yet to cast a Dracula yet on "Van Helsing." Who would you pick as the legendary bloodsucker?

I would just hunt down Gary Oldman and say "Please Gary! You know you want to!" [Busts out laughing] I love Gary Oldman and think he was so amazing as Dracula. It's hard to imagine anyone else!

*****

And if anyone on earth would be able to hunt down a legendary former vampire, it would be the strikingly talented Overton, who is already becoming prolific and irreplaceable in her own right as a vampire hunter on Van Helsing.

Van Helsing continue Friday nights at 10/9c on SyFy.