Post by bobdoc on Jan 21, 2009 13:50:30 GMT -4
Or rather, the actor who plays him, Sterling Beaumon. From www.nola.com/celebrity-news/index.ssf/2009/01/young_ben_reveals_whats_ahead.html
Ever wonder how Ben Linus on Lost became such a lying manipulator -- a cold-hearted killer and such an all outmysterious figure? I found a way to get some clues about what the original leader of the Others waslike as a kid. Thanks to clever time-tripping and deft casting, the producers have revealed that young Ben was a good kid with a terrible father.
As a child, he had to sneak around as a kind of defense. Sterling Beaumon -- remember him from Mostly Ghostly? -- is the 13-year-old actor who plays "Young Ben." He's a veteranperformer who has guest starred on ER, Heroes, and Scrubs.
Away from the island, he gets good grades, is an expert figure skater, hip-hop dancer and racquetball player. And as they always say about the really bad guys, he seemed like such a nice kid.
Q: How would you describe the older Ben?
A: Mean and scheming a lot. He's also very intelligent, can be a jerk, but he has to do what he has to do sometimes. And I get the feeling that we're viewing some of the bad things he's done in the wrong way.
Q: Are you defending this creep?
A: We think it's so bad that he's hurt people or that he's taken people away. We don't realize that it's for the good of all of the people on the Island. This is just my theory, but I don't really know.
Q: They purposely never let you be certain if he's a bad guy or a hero.
A: Yes because way back then he really was a good kid. His mother died when he was born and you see that his father was a drunk and really mean to him. In Season 3, one of the scenes was supposed to be my birthday. And my father played by John Grice says, "I'm not getting you anything. You don't get a gift because this is the day you killed your mom." I had no trouble crying in that scene because I felt so bad.
Q: He actually hurt you, too?
A: In one of the episodes he takes a hand and whacks me down. That wasn't scary, it turned out to be sort of funny on the set.
Q: Ben, who is played by Michael Emerson, is known for his eyes.
A: Funny enough they didn't want me to act too much like the older Ben, which was good for me because how do you top Michael, who is great? They did say keep popping the eyes, but don't try to imitate him. Michael talks fast a lot for the character, which I think is a great touch, but they didn't want me to do that.
Q: When someone grows up to be a liar, aren't they usually a bit of a fibber as a kid?
A: I thought it didn't go for Ben but actually now I'm supposed to be 15, and he already is a good liar. I can't tell you why, but by now he's really good at lying.
Q: Is it upsetting that your mother has come to you in visions on the show?
A: I'll tell you it might have been sad, but it was hilarious because the woman who plays my mom is actually Michael Emerson's wife in real life.
Q: Ben is very smart. Was he also bright when he was young?
A: He reads a lot of books, and he thinks a lot. He thinks before he does anything, unlike me. He plots all the time and he thinks hard before he does it. I remember him saying in Season 4,"How many times do I have to tell you? I always have a plan."
Q: You are so outgoing. Is it hard for you to understand a kid who has to protect himself by plotting everything?
A: Not really, because when I'm acting, I purposely try to be a whole different person. And everyone on the show helps me.
Q: In the show time travels and shifts. Do you think there is ever going to be that possibility?
A: Time travel in real life? I hope so. I do things that I totally regret and I say, "Oh, I wish I could go back in time and redo that." Every once in a while I just do something that I don't feel proud of, then I want to redo and not do it.
Q: Do you go to a regular school?
A: I was going to regular school. Then Lost came along. And my school was like, "Oooh no, you're going to be missing too much."So I had to go to home school and now my school is completely online. It's really fun, but it's a lot more challenging.
Q: What got you the part of Young Ben?
A: Well, the scene I had to play wasn't even a real scene. It was so secretive. I even had to sign a confidentiality thing just for the audition. But I think what really got it for me was the fact that I could just go in there and bawl. My character has to cry so much.
Q: So you can cry when you need to. If your mother wanted you to do your homework or something and you started to cry, would she know when you were acting?
A: Oh yeah, she knows me and she gets what I'm doing.
As a child, he had to sneak around as a kind of defense. Sterling Beaumon -- remember him from Mostly Ghostly? -- is the 13-year-old actor who plays "Young Ben." He's a veteranperformer who has guest starred on ER, Heroes, and Scrubs.
Away from the island, he gets good grades, is an expert figure skater, hip-hop dancer and racquetball player. And as they always say about the really bad guys, he seemed like such a nice kid.
Q: How would you describe the older Ben?
A: Mean and scheming a lot. He's also very intelligent, can be a jerk, but he has to do what he has to do sometimes. And I get the feeling that we're viewing some of the bad things he's done in the wrong way.
Q: Are you defending this creep?
A: We think it's so bad that he's hurt people or that he's taken people away. We don't realize that it's for the good of all of the people on the Island. This is just my theory, but I don't really know.
Q: They purposely never let you be certain if he's a bad guy or a hero.
A: Yes because way back then he really was a good kid. His mother died when he was born and you see that his father was a drunk and really mean to him. In Season 3, one of the scenes was supposed to be my birthday. And my father played by John Grice says, "I'm not getting you anything. You don't get a gift because this is the day you killed your mom." I had no trouble crying in that scene because I felt so bad.
Q: He actually hurt you, too?
A: In one of the episodes he takes a hand and whacks me down. That wasn't scary, it turned out to be sort of funny on the set.
Q: Ben, who is played by Michael Emerson, is known for his eyes.
A: Funny enough they didn't want me to act too much like the older Ben, which was good for me because how do you top Michael, who is great? They did say keep popping the eyes, but don't try to imitate him. Michael talks fast a lot for the character, which I think is a great touch, but they didn't want me to do that.
Q: When someone grows up to be a liar, aren't they usually a bit of a fibber as a kid?
A: I thought it didn't go for Ben but actually now I'm supposed to be 15, and he already is a good liar. I can't tell you why, but by now he's really good at lying.
Q: Is it upsetting that your mother has come to you in visions on the show?
A: I'll tell you it might have been sad, but it was hilarious because the woman who plays my mom is actually Michael Emerson's wife in real life.
Q: Ben is very smart. Was he also bright when he was young?
A: He reads a lot of books, and he thinks a lot. He thinks before he does anything, unlike me. He plots all the time and he thinks hard before he does it. I remember him saying in Season 4,"How many times do I have to tell you? I always have a plan."
Q: You are so outgoing. Is it hard for you to understand a kid who has to protect himself by plotting everything?
A: Not really, because when I'm acting, I purposely try to be a whole different person. And everyone on the show helps me.
Q: In the show time travels and shifts. Do you think there is ever going to be that possibility?
A: Time travel in real life? I hope so. I do things that I totally regret and I say, "Oh, I wish I could go back in time and redo that." Every once in a while I just do something that I don't feel proud of, then I want to redo and not do it.
Q: Do you go to a regular school?
A: I was going to regular school. Then Lost came along. And my school was like, "Oooh no, you're going to be missing too much."So I had to go to home school and now my school is completely online. It's really fun, but it's a lot more challenging.
Q: What got you the part of Young Ben?
A: Well, the scene I had to play wasn't even a real scene. It was so secretive. I even had to sign a confidentiality thing just for the audition. But I think what really got it for me was the fact that I could just go in there and bawl. My character has to cry so much.
Q: So you can cry when you need to. If your mother wanted you to do your homework or something and you started to cry, would she know when you were acting?
A: Oh yeah, she knows me and she gets what I'm doing.
