Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer, the husband-and-wife duo best known for their roles on HBO’s True Blood, recently discussed their experience working together on the series and their upcoming film, A Bit of Light, for ET’s “Spilling the E-Tea.”
The couple, who have been together for over two decades, reminisced about a particularly memorable sex scene from True Blood as well as their collaborative work on their new project.
Paquin teased her husband, saying, “I heckled you from the crowd at our premiere that if you hadn’t hired me you would have been in trouble. What part of me playing Ella impressed you the most?”
Moyer, who directed A Bit of Light, praised Paquin’s portrayal of Ella, an alcoholic mother navigating her grief and guilt in the film. “When I read A Bit of Light for the first time, it was a play, and I thought it would make a wonderful screenplay. It was written by my friend, Rebecca Cellard, or Becks as we call her, and when I read this thing, you were the first person I immediately thought of,” Moyer said. “There are very few people in my orbit who could go down the rabbit hole of complexity that the character of Ella needed to inhabit.”
Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer – Eamonn M. McCormack/Getty Images
Paquin laughed, “And I’m not scared to ugly cry on camera,” and pressed Moyer on what specifically impressed him about her performance. Moyer responded, “The fact that you went to all of the places that I needed you to go to create this character. I knew you would, which is why I cast you.”
Paquin also complimented Moyer’s directorial style, noting, “You are exceptionally talented. You think in images and storytelling and camera angles and you know the inside and out of every single aspect of making a film or TV show and that’s really hot.”
The conversation shifted to their work together on True Blood, particularly a scene involving Paquin’s character, Sookie, and Joe Manganiello’s character, Alcide, in the opening of season 7. Moyer recalled the intricate technical setup of the scene, which required the camera to pan over Manganiello’s muscular back. Paquin added, “It’s what a friend of mine once referred to as like you’re a pirate; it’s like having a five-parrot shoulder.”
Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer – Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Turner
The couple joked about the scene’s complexity, with Moyer noting, “I had to allow Joe, in front of our entire crew, to grab your bits.”
“Yes, but I had also consented repeatedly,” Paquin clarified.
Moyer recalled shouting instructions to Manganiello, “‘I need you to go for it, Joe,’ and I was giving him permission in front of our entire crew.”
“And then he was like, ‘Babe, is that OK?’ and I said, ‘Please, just do it,'” Paquin humorously added.
A Bit of Light is out now.
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