Star Pick with Justin Paul Kelly

A couple of weeks ago, I started releasing star pick interviews with cast members of the long running television series The 100 (to honour its seventh and final season). First to feature was Bob Morley, and today Filmizon.com highlights fellow star Tasya Teles – who plays Echo. One of the most fascinating characters on the show, she first appeared in season 2 as a recurring character (a grounder and not one of ‘the 100’ teenagers sent to see if the planet was still habitable), growing into one of the major players by season 5. With intriguing storylines, she is a strong warrior assassin (that can lean towards ruthlessness), extremely loyal, yet willing to disobey orders if it doesn’t make sense. . . and, over the course of many seasons, has softened a bit – showing a caring side to those characters she originally only had disdain for. A most generous person, Teles was extremely cheerful as we chatted about her favourite film, 1987's The Princess Bride, directed by Rob Reiner. Explaining that the princess story has been told so many times before (usually in a very predictable way), she fell in love with this iteration for its fun, original, and quirky style. . . a film that turns every expected happening on its head – playing with previous stories and the tropes they have built, making for a most unique telling. Also noting the wonderfully etched characters, each actor is a standout when it comes to developing their pivotal role, be it revenge bent Inigo Montoya (Mandy Patinkin) or nearly unrecognizable Billy Crystal – as miracle worker Max, who has lost his confidence a bit of late.

If you are a fan of the television series The 100 - a post apocalyptic tale in which one hundred delinquent teens are sent to an uninhabitable Earth to allow those on a space station to survive (only for them to discover that the planet, that was ravaged by a nuclear war ninety-seven years earlier, is, in fact, alive and well), then this will be exciting for you. Over the next couple of months, in order to celebrate the show's seventh and final season (which started airing on May 22nd, 2020), I am happy to announce that there will be three Star Picks coming up in the near future with a triumvirate of stars from the extremely popular series. First up, the series' male lead - Bob Morley. An Australian actor who got his start on soap operas in his native country (his first big break coming when he was added to the main cast of Home and Away in 2006), just eight short years later and he's found his way to Vancouver, Canada to shoot The 100, taking on the role of Bellamy Blake (who would quickly become a fan favourite) - a riveting character that we have watched grow over the past seven seasons.

To bring you back to a Star Pick interview I posted a few months ago, actor James Phelps revealed his favourite film to me as his brother prodded him playfully – here is the entertaining retelling: a self professed history buff, as James spoke of his love of the film The Lives of Others (its engrossing story, fascinating characters and intriguing visuals immediately catching his cinematic eye), Oliver chimed in, with a rascally smile – “It’s also because he is a secret Communist”. . . James firing back, “I wouldn’t go that far” – his own face featuring an impish grin. Capturing the same dynamic found in their most famous roles, the pair are like a vaudeville act, finely tuned, James playing the straight man to Oliver’s more overt comedic personality. The famed Weasley twins from the Harry Potter franchise, the pair are known the world over as the scampish older brothers of Ron – roles that provided them with many of the best laughs found throughout the eight movies. Having left you hanging a bit longer than you might have liked, I am sure that many of you have probably been wondering just what Oliver chose as his favourite film.

The bass backbone (and backing vocalist) for AC/DC for almost their entire run at the top of the hard rock game, there is no doubt that Cliff Williams is an icon of the rock world. Joining the band in 1977 (just a few short years after their founding in 1973/74), taking over for original bassist Mark Evans, Cliff, along with drummer Phil Rudd (and Chris Slade – their drummer from 1989-1994 and presently – who has also been interviewed here at Filmizon.com), and Malcolm Young (nephew Stevie Young took over after Malcolm’s death), have been the ever solid rhythmic spine for Angus’ soaring guitar solos and Brian Johnson’s unique vocals (the man took over for Bon Scott after he died in 1980). . . or, as Cliff puts it, “I try to create a bottom layer that drives what our guys are doing on top”. Touring since their 1977 “Let There Be Rock” album, and the bass player on their albums starting with 1978's “Powerage”, there are not many musicians who have been seen or heard around the world more than Cliff. An inductee to both the Australian Recording Industry Association’s Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (as of 2003), he has done it all, and really, there is not much more needed to be said than that.

When I first started watching the excellent British series Misfits (somewhat scarily, about a decade ago), I was completely impressed with their lineup of talented young stars (all playing delinquents forced to do community service – who also happen to have superpowers). I expected many of them to go somewhere, and I have not been disappointed – Joseph Gilgun is arguably the most entertaining part of the American show Preacher (as Cassidy); Iwan Rheon scared millions of viewers as the vile Ramsay Bolton on Game of Thrones; Antonia Thomas is a main player on the hit series The Good Doctor (as Dr. Claire Browne); while my favourite character on the series was brought to vivid life by Robert Sheehan (who played the hilarious Nathan). A man of many dimensions, I then followed him to the Irish series Love/Hate, a role that showed his range as a very serious young man working in the Dublin underground crime scene. Also, over the years, he has had some promising roles in films such as The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, The Messenger, Geostorm, Mute, Mortal Engines, and, currently has found his groove in North America on the acclaimed Netflix series The Umbrella Academy.

Arguably the greatest Canadian pugilist of all-time, George Chuvalo, standing six feet tall, weighing in at 240 pounds, and with a reach of seventy-one inches, was also graced with an iron jaw. Part of ninety-three professional bouts, Chuvalo never once fell to the canvas – and when you look at the foes he fought, that is one impressive statistic. With a record of 72-19-2, he was a five time Canadian champ, and two time World Heavyweight contender (the first against Ernie Terrell in 1965). Perhaps his two greatest fights were against Muhammad Ali (in 1966 and 1972) – though some may point to the 1965 Fight of the Year versus Floyd Patterson. Given only seventeen days to prepare for their first match, people (along with Ali) didn’t give Chuvalo much of a chance. . . yet, 12 rounds in, the man was still standing (for the first time ever in Ali’s career), the pair going the full 15. Yet, after the fight, Ali claimed, “he is the toughest fighter I ever fought” – Chuvalo earning the man’s respect. And, there is no doubt in Chuvalo’s mind about the fight, for he has long said, “when it was all over, Ali was the guy who went to the hospital because he was pissing blood. . . Me? I went dancing with my wife”.