Stephanie Leonidas From Defiance Interview About Season Two And Transforming Into Irisa

Stephanie Leonidas stars as Irisa in the hit sci-fi series Defiance. This British actress has honed her acting skills through many stage productions and British TV works such as The Sugar Syndrome and MirrorMask. Now she’s back on the air as Defiance, Season 2 premieres Thursday, June 19 at 10pm ET/PT on Showcase. Real Style asked Stephanie about her role on the show and just how long does it take to look like Irisa. See what she had to say.

Real Style: How would you describe your character on Defiance, Irisa, in one sentence? 

Stephanie Leonidas: A feisty, feral Irathient who is fiercely loyal to her father Nolan.

How was it been working with your co-star, Shaun Benson, who plays Lenny on the show?
Stephanie: Sadly I didn’t really get to work with Shaun, Irisa is pretty isolated this season. But I heard he was lovely! Haha.

Real Style: What have been some of the biggest challenges, as an actress, of playing Irisa?

Stephanie: As if season one wasn’t hard enough for her, season 2 sees Irisa in even murkier waters. Her journey goes into a very dark and twisted place. So playing Irisa this season was no walk in the park! The stunts got more difficult, her emotions more intense, and she’s even more the feral creature we got glimpses of in season 1. It was full on every day but she’s a great character to play.

Real Style: Can we expect a third season of the show?

Stephanie: Fingers crossed! I think season 2 really takes Defiance into an edgier grittier world where nothing is quite as we left it in season 1. I’d love to see how season 3 can take everything even further.

Real Style: For anyone who is a fan of the show, what can audiences expect to happen to Irisa in the coming episodes?

Stephanie: Expect the unexpected. As much as we’d love to be back singing Johnny Cash, sadly this season we see Nolan and Irisa grow further and further apart. It’s painful for each of them, but Irisa is on a mission of her own, and she’ll do almost anything not to let anyone get in her way. It’s a lonely journey but her faith in Irzu is stronger and her knives and tongue sharper than ever!

Real Style: There was a Defiance video game which was released last year, which must have been exciting! What can you tell us about that?

Stephanie: It’s really exciting. The first time we meet Irisa and Nolan is in the game, and the crossovers from game to series really open up the world of Defiance.

Real Style: How does portraying a role in a sci-fi series differ from a different genre, like playing a part in a romantic comedy, drama, or action series?
Stephanie: What I love about sci-fi is the way that it reflects back real human drama in an alien world. And it can include elements of all genres. It allows us to push boundaries and be as creative as we want.

Real Style: Irisa has quite an intense beauty look on the show! How long does it take for you to get through wardrobe and get into character, especially with the extreme makeup and wig?

Stephanie: It takes roughly 2 and a half hours to transform into Irisa . It’s quite amazing to sit watching the process happen in front of my eyes. It never ceases to amaze me!

Photos: Shaw Media, Faye Thomas

Author: Staff writer June 18, 2014

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Video: Defiance Season 2 Promo

Stephanie LeonidasVerified account‏@StephLeonidas

Coming soon... @DefianceWorld #DefianceSeason2

Wouldn't hurt a fly @DefianceWorld #DefianceSeason2

Defiance Season 2 Promo 

Published on 18 May 2014

Defiance Season 2 Promo. Set on a future Earth, Defiance introduces players and viewers to a world where humans and aliens live together on a planet ravaged by decades of war and transformed by alien terra-forming machines. It centers on Jeb Nolan, the law-keeper in a bustling frontier boomtown that is one of the new world's few oasis of civility and inclusion. Nolan is a former Marine who fought in the alien conflict and suffered the loss of his wife and child in the war. The trauma transformed him into a lone wanderer in the wilds of this new and dangerous world. Defiance season 2 premieres June 19, 2014 at 9:00 pm on SYFY.

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On BixTvPromos you can watch all the latest television promos, sneak peeks and teasers from the most popular Tv shows. Some of the channels of the Defiance we publish are NBC, FOX, FX, CW, ABC, ABC Family, A&E, HBO, AMC, SYFY, USA Network, TNT, SHOWCASE, Lifetime, BBC & much more. Subscribe to BixTvPromos and stay updated.

Photos: Gorgeous Stephanie Leonidas at the Empire Awards

Stephanie Leonidas ‏@StephLeonidas  

Great night @empiremagazine awards. @missguidedcouk @NicoleScherzy Even got to meet the daddy @Schwarzenegger :-)

Stephanie Leonidas - The Jameson Empire Awards 2014 held at Grosvenor House - Arrivals - London, United Kingdom - Sunday 30th March 2014

VIDEO: An Exclusive Interview with ‘Defiance’ Star Stephanie Leonidas

October 18, 2013 | TDQ Multimedia Team

VIDEO: An Exclusive Interview with ‘Defiance’ Star Stephanie Leonidas - thedailyquirk.com

Stephanie Leonidas (Image Credit: Sean Torenli / The Daily Quirk)

The lovely Stephanie Leonidas (who you may or may not recognize without her Irathient makeover) stars as the feisty, vision having and butt-kicking Irisa in Syfy’s Defiance. Irisa’s life gets turned upside down when she and her adoptive father, Joshua Nolan (Grant Bowler), roll into a town called Defiance and he’s quickly appointed the Chief Lawkeeper. Irisa forgoes her instinct to wander and sticks around to help Nolan, and without spoiling too much for those of you still catching up on this amazing sci-fi drama, it’s a really, really good thing she did!

We caught up with Stephanie at New York Comic Con to talk Irisa’s Season One journey, that cliffhanger finale and what to expect in Season Two! Watch the exclusive interview below…

Exclusive Interview with Stephanie Leonidas

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• 5 Reasons You Should be Watching Syfy’s ‘Defiance’!

The Secretly Beautiful Stephanie Leonidas of Defiance on Comic-Con Fans

We like her even more in real life

By Matthew Kitchen

(Left) Getty Images

Stephanie Leonidas out of character... and in character.

We definitely don't suggest spontaneous proposals to actresses you don't actually know, especially after a moderator's casual warning in the very public setting of New York City's Comic-Con, but you can almost understand one fan's instinct last week after seeing Stephanie Leonidas up close and out of her alien makeup for the first time. Luckily the star of Syfy's Defiance (out now on DVD), in which Leonidas plays the badass Irathient warrior Irisia, only had to duck one such proposition during the panel for her exciting epic set in the ruins of St. Louis. We, however, kept ourselves in check as we chatted with the beautiful Brit about her show's growing following, meeting her fans in costume, and what movies make her "geek out."

ESQUIRE.COM: You look quite lovely out of your Irisia makeup, miss. And in general.

STEPHANIE LEONIDAS: [Laughs.] Thank you.

ESQ: Have you met anyone yet today who's dressed up as Irisa?

SL: I have. I've been very lucky to come across a few Irisas and I feel like I'm going to be out of a job soon if they keep doing it so well.

ESQ: What is that experience like?

SL: It's surreal. And they always tell me, "It's so surreal meeting you," but it's the same the other way. Seeing them dressed as Irisa, especially with the detail they put into their costumes, is incredible. That's what I love about these conventions. People really put a lot of work and time into their passions. I don't even know where they find the stuff. It's exactly like what I wear on the show: the chaps, the knives. I've been really impressed.

ESQ: Do they say what they love so much about your character?

SL: There's been a few different things people have said that have really stuck with me. One is that they relate with her as a young girl growing up with her father, and they related to the troubles that she's gone through with her father, and also related to the feeling of being an outsider and trying to find your place. Which we all go through, I guess. And on the other hand, they just love that she's pretty badass. Unlike me. I can barely say badass.

ESQ: If badass isn't your style, how do you get into that mode?

SL: It's funny, but as soon as I'm in costume I feel like a different person. If you were to ask me to speak as Irisa right now and do a few stunts I think I'd freak out. But as soon as I'm in costume, I feel invincible.

ESQ: What was your reaction when you got the role, but producers told you, "We think you're very talented, but we'd like to make you much less attractive. Basically if a Klingon and Thundercat mated"?

SL: [Laughs.] You know what, it's really freeing. To be able to be someone completely different, and to look in the mirror and not recognize myself underneath all that has really helped me build the character. I don't think I could think of Irisa as any other way now. I feel like we're two separate people. I can relate to what she goes through in parts, but she's completely different from me and I love the challenge of playing someone like that.

ESQ: Does hiding under the make-up keep you relatively anonymous to fans?

SL: Definitely. I arrive at the conventions and I could be anyone. People see me on the panel and think "Who is she? Who's that?" It's a nice feeling being able to do that; to completely transform. That's something that attracts me to any part, really. It's kind of my ideal role in that way.

ESQ: What would you do if someone came up to you dressed as you are now, as Stephanie, same outfit and everything, and politely said, "Hey, I'm a big fan"?

SL: That would be be cool. Wait no, strange. Not cool. Strange. I'm trying to picture that now.

ESQ: How do you like being embraced by sci-fi culture?

SL: I really love it. I feel right at home. It's very freeing to see the costumes and see people who are able to walk down the street and express themselves like that. I love it, and I love the party atmosphere that comes along with each Comic Con, just dressing up and really being able to geek out and talk to other people that love each of the shows. And it's great to meet loads of Defiance fans who want to talk about the show.

ESQ: If you were going to geek out yourself, what would be your show or movie?

SL: There'd be so many. Maybe something from The Dark Crystal. Or I always loved Back to the Future when I was younger.

ESQ: I actually went as Marty McFly for Halloween in high school.

SL: Oh, you'd be a good Marty! That must've been cool.

ESQ: Would you have gone as Jennifer, or would you aim off the map and go as someone like Doc or Biff?

SL: No, no. I'd want to be Einstein the dog. I'd go all out.

ESQ: I'd actually like to see that. So what attracted you to Irisa?

SL: Well even though I'm playing an alien, she goes through very human emotions. There's someone underneath all that who people can relate to, and that I could relate to in reading the script. It wasn't just this alien drama with people running around shooting guns and never exploring anything inside themselves. That's what really made it for me.

ESQ: And it sounds like you were a fan of sci-fi and fantasy.

SL: Definitely, and almost without even realizing it, you know. It was something I'd grown up with and loved, but it wasn't anything I ever envisioned doing. It's just something that happened and I feel really lucky to be doing it. A lot of the stuff I've done previously has been very drama based. Heavy, dark drama where I wore corsets. And this has some of those elements, but it's completely different. And action has been great.

ESQ: We're you surprised by how quickly Defiance caught on?

SL: Not at all. Even before the show aired we went out to last year's Comic Con in San Diego. Nobody had seen anything, but there were already people there ready to support it. And it's great to see those people come back this year and still be just as excited about next season. The support from fans has been incredible and I hope more people hop on this season, because it gets darker and it goes down a completely different route. I feel like it's evolved to what Defiance should really be and we're really excited about it.

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Read more: The Secretly Beautiful Stephanie Leonidas of Defiance - Esquire 
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‘Defiance’ Star Stephanie Leonidas Joins ITV’s ‘Agatha Christie’s Poirot: Dead Man’s Folly’

By Patrick Munn - June 3rd, 2013 @ 07:28 pm UTC

Category: News / UK News

Stephanie Leonidas, who is currently a series regular on Syfy’s recently renewed drama series Defiance, has joined the cast of Agatha Christie’s Poirot: Dead Man’s Folly, the final episode to be produced in ITV’s Poirot series.

Leonidas is one of a number of guest stars set to appear in the drama. Also cast in Agatha Christie’s Poirot: Dead Man’s Folly is Sean Pertwee (Luther), Sinead Cusack (V for Vendetta), Tom Ellis (Miranda), Martin Jarvis (Titanic) and Sam Kelly (Allo Allo). Zoë Wanamaker will also reprise her role as Poirot’s unwitting sidekick Ariadne Oliver. Though the final movie to go into production, the final episode to be broadcast will be Curtain: Poirot’s Final Case which, as TVWise previously reported, counts BAFTA nominee Helen Baxendale amongst its cast.

An adaptation of the Christie story which was first publish in 1956, Dead Man’s Folly follows Poirot who has been summoned by friend Ariadne Oliver to Nasse House in Devon to help solve a murder before its taken place. Commissioned to stage a fictional murder hunt at the Nasse House fete, Ariadne confesses to her friend that mysterious forces are influencing the hunt. She feel’s there is going to be a murder but has no shred of evidence that this is the case or who the victim will be. A reluctant Poirot sets to work, but with no clues and just Ariadne’s intuition that evil forces are at play, he simply observes all those around him including Sir George Stubbs, owner of Nasse House, his childlike wife Hattie, and the former owner of Nasse, Mrs Folliat. On the day of the fête, fiction and reality collide when Ariadne’s ‘murder victim’ Marlene becomes an actual murder victim and Hattie Stubbs mysteriously vanishes after receiving a note announcing a visit from her cousin, Etienne De Souza, who she described as a killer. A perplexed Poirot attempts to unravel the lies and deceits at play in the seemingly beautiful surroundings of Nasse. The drama is co-produced by ITV Studios and Agatha Christie Ltd with Michele Buck, Damien Timmer, Karen Thrussell and Hilary Strong serving as executive producers. Tom Vaughan is directing.

Defiance - Gag Reel - Season 1

Photos of Defiance Star Stephanie Leonidas as Arissa, Helena in MirrorMask and as herself

Daily Mail EXCLUSIVE: Jaime Murray strips off for sexy bath scene in new sci-fi show Defiance

EXCLUSIVE: Jaime Murray is unrecognisable as she strips off for sexy bath scene in new sci-fi show Defiance

By SARAH BULL

PUBLISHED: 15:50, 11 April 2013 | UPDATED: 17:14, 11 April 2013

She's starred in shows from Hustle and Ringer to Warehouse 13.

But now Jaime Murray has taken her career in a different direction with new project Defiance, in which she is unrecognisable as alien Stahma Tarr.

However, despite her drastic makeover the part, Jaime still brings her own sexiness to the show - as she proves by stripping for a bathtime scene.

Scroll down for video

Sexy new role: Jaime Murray is seen stripping off for bathtime ritual in a scene from her new Syfy TV show Defiance

The 35-year-old British actress is seen going virtually naked, with just a few strips of tiny fabric protecting her modesty, as she joined her husband Datak Tarr (Tony Curran) for a bathtime ritual. 

Jaime shows off her toned figure and enviable washboard stomach as she derobes, before getting in to the bath alongside her spouse. 

Defiance is the eagerly awaited new Syfy series, which is set in the future and tells the story of alien collectively called the Voltans who come to Earth to make a new home.

De-robing: Jame starts the scene with a robe over herself, before stripping to reveal just some tiny strips of fabric protecting her modesty

On-screen lovers: Tony Curran stars as Jaime's character Stahma Tarr's husband Datak

Jaime's character Stahma is from the Castithan race, meaning she has white hair, very pale, almost grey skin, and lilac eyes.

The actors also had to learn an entirely new, made-up language for the show - which Jaime admits was challenging.

She said: 'We had to learn a whole other language for the show. We learned it phonetically and it is as alien as another language could possibly be.'

Unrecognisable: Jaime has white hair, incredibly pale skin and lilac eyes to play Stahma in the show

Unique: Defiance also marks the first-ever convergence of television and online gaming - with a game also called Defiance having been developed by Trion Worlds

Jaime also revealed she was terrified when it came to her audition for the show, with her apprehension picked up, and also shared, by Tony.

She said: 'I could tell that Tony was very nervous about the audition, and I ger very nervou in those sorts of situations, but I just wanted it to be okay for him. And then he said to me afterwards that I was so in character, and that I was so calm and graceful. 

'But he said that there was one moment during the audition where I had to hold his head on my chest and he could hear how much my heart was racing, and I was hot like an oven, and from then on we were bonded forever. '

Sleek: Jaime showed off her slim figure in a grey and black pannelled dress at the SyFy 2013 Upfront event in New York on Wednesday night

All-star cast: (Left to right) Defance castmembers Stephanie Leonidas, Mia Kirshner, Grant Bowler, Julie Benz, Tony Curran and Jaime at the event

Defiance is also unique in that it marks the first-ever convergence of television and online gaming - with a game also called Defiance having been developed by Trion Worlds. 

Adam Collings, Channel Director Syfy UK, said: 'Defiance is a high-quality sci-fi adventure about aliens and humans attempting to co-exist that promises to be a key highlight in 2013 for Syfy and our viewers. 

'We’re confident that viewers – both gamers and non-gamers alike – will be gripped by its action-packed story-telling and first-class production values.' 

Defiance starts on Tuesday 16 April at 9pm on Syfy, just 24 hours after it premieres in America. 

Girl's best friend: Jaime also enlisted the help of her dog Lulu for another photoshoot in New York

VIDEO MailOnline exclusive. Jamie Murray strips off for sexy sci-fi bath scene 

EXC: Jaime Murray unrecognisable as she strips off for sexy bath...

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2307503/Jaime-Murray-unrecognisable-strips-sexy-bath-scene-new-sci-fi-Defiance.html#ixzz2QCS7hlro
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