Syfy Press Tour: "Lost Girl" Comes to the US

By Jamie Ruby

Anna Silk and Zoie PalmerPowerful Mondays are returning to Syfy, first with Being Human, and then with the premiere of the sexy supernatural drama Lost Girl. The series, which originally aired in Canada, was recently acquired by Syfy and has been optioned for at least the two seasons that have been filmed at the time of the press tour.

The series follows the character of Bo, played by Anna Silk, who discovers that she is not human, but a fae - a succubus to be exact, who lives by feeding off sexual energy by draining humans. She is helped by human doctor Laura Lewis, played by Zoie Palmer, who tries helps Bo control her hunger. Bo is also helped by Detective Dyson, played by Kris Holden-Ried, who is a shape-shifter fae on the side of the light. The three form quite a love triangle.

Bo fights to not choose a side between light and dark which causes friction among the factions as she also tries to learn more about her past and her potential.

Silk and Palmer sat down in Orlando, Florida at the Syfy Digital Press Tour and discussed their supernatural series.

Anna Silk and Zoie PalmerSilk revealed a lot about her character and backstory. "Lost Girl follows the story of Bo, which is the character that I play, and Bo grew up thinking that she was human and like your every girl. And when she became a teenager, she had, you know, urges, sexual urges that went beyond normal teenage urges.

"She discovers at the beginning of the series, in Season 1, that she's not human, that she's actually a succubus and part of a whole Fae underworld that live and feed among humans. So, you know, the adventure unfolds from there.

"...And Bo gets to learn about...what she is, but at the same time, it opened the door to a lot of questions. And those questions get answered and challenged and answered and challenged throughout the season."

Palmer also talked about her character on the show. "I play Dr. Lauren Lewis, and what's interesting a little bit about her is that she's one of the few humans that work directly with the Fae. And I work -- in the beginning, Bo and Lauren meet up, and there's a few sparks perhaps maybe. And we have a bit of a triangle with another character on the show, Dyson played by Kris Holden-Ried. And I sort of help Bo control the urges scientifically. So she comes for periodic injections and the like. And, yeah, so Lauren sort of -- and she works for the Fae, and you never, sort of, learn -- well, the season sort of opens with you are not sure why she's working for the Fae and why there's a human doctor and not a Fae doctor, and so that's where the story sort of unravels, and the season does, too."

Silk also talked a bit about the politics between the light and dark fae. "The other thing that Bo learns is the Fae are divided amongst light and dark, and what that sets up in our show is this very interesting political system and divide. And that creates a lot of conflict on the show and is just another really interesting thing about Lost Girl."

Silk discussed what about Bo attracted her to the role. "What I loved is that it's Bo's greatest sense of shame grows into her greatest strength. And that's something that appealed to me, and I think it appeals to young women watching the show.

"... But that's what drew me to the show was a strong female lead...who is scared a lot of the time but can't be. She has to figure it out, and she does. Not always, but for the most part, she does."

Palmer loves the humor in the show. "I think that's one of my favorite things about the show is that they have -- along with some really intense moments, there's tons of fun and lots of -- sort of -- you know, it's witty. And I think all of the female characters on the show are really interesting written."

To read the full interview, you can read the transcript below. Also stay tuned for more exclusive photos and interviews with the Lost Girl cast.


Syfy Digital Press Tour
Lost Girl
Anna Silk and Zoie Palmer

October 10, 2011
12:10 PM ET

MARK STERN: Okay. Let's begin. Welcome back from lunch. We are in that home stretch. Like, don't lose me in the 3:00 lull here. Let's just keep pushing forward. I've got all of these new sound effects that I got at lunch. I realize I totally, like, screwed myself because there are some really great ones that I didn't know about because there are 140 in here. And I was like, I'm an idiot because if I, like -- and now, of course, I can't find it. Oh, like this one for Christmas -- the Christmas episodes.
(Telephone app plays sounds of jingling.)

Shall I go back? I know. I was like, "Dangit." All right. There's lots more in here. So let's begin. Next panel, Lost Girl, we are really excited about Lost Girl. This was -- by May, we were very excited to acquire this series. We've got two seasons of it, 26 episodes. I think Anna and Zoie will talk about the fact that they are actually shooting some additional ones as well, but this really -- I have to say, the production value of this show -- and some of you may be familiar with it. It's obviously been out there for a while -- really blew me away. I was unfamiliar with this. I just started watching it and got totally hooked in. It is really quite amazing what they pull off every week. And believe me. I know how hard that can be. And I have news. Hold on.

QUESTION: Did you save a lot of money on your car insurance by switching to Geico?
(Laughter.)

MARK STERN: Ooh, that wasn't me. Let's just do this one.

(Telephone app makes a buing sound.)

Lost Girl is going to premier on Monday, January 16th, at 10 p.m., right after Being Human at 9. So Powerful Mondays are back, starting with Being Human and then segueing right into Lost Girl. We think it's going to give us a block of really interesting, edgy programming that we are very excited about. So I think, without further ado, what I'd like to do is actually bring up the stars of the show. And they can actually talk a little bit more about what the show is, and then we've got a really cool clip to show you. So please welcome Anna Silk and Zoie Palmer.
(Applause.)

ANNA SILK: Hi.

MARK STERN: Hi. How are you?

ANNA SILK: Good. How are you?

MARK STERN: Good.

ZOIE PALMER: Hello.

MARK STERN: Welcome.

Anna SilkANNA SILK: Thank you.

MARK STERN: They have you holding your -- they have you holding your --

ZOIE PALMER: Yeah, you've got it.

MARK STERN: Nothing but fanciness here. "Welcome to the Syfy Channel. Hold your Mike." So we have a clip that we wanted to show, but I thought it's better for you guys to tell us a little bit about what the series is about --

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

MARK STERN: -- and how it works and --

ANNA SILK: Okay. Well, Lost Girl follows the story of Bo, which is the character that I play, and Bo grew up thinking that she was human and like your every girl. And when she became a teenager, she had, you know, urges, sexual urges that went beyond normal teenage urges.

MARK STERN: Go on.

ANNA SILK: She discovers at the beginning of the series, in Season 1, that she's not human, that she's actually a succubus and part of a whole Fae underworld that live and feed among humans. So, you know, the adventure unfolds from there.

MARK STERN: I can sissue (ph)?

ANNA SILK: Yes, exactly. And Bo gets to learn about -- in one sense, it was a great relief for her to find out that -- you know, what she is, but at the same time, it opened the door to a lot of questions. And those questions get answered and challenged and answered and challenged throughout the season.

MARK STERN: Wow.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

MARK STERN: I couldn't have said it better myself. Let's watch a quick clip, actually.

ANNA SILK: Okay.
(Clip shown.)

MARK STERN: A very special Christmas episode.
(Laughter.)

ANNA SILK: It's certainly a Romicon feel.

ZOIE PALMER: Certainly a Romicon feel.

ANNA SILK: That clip stresses me out.

MARK STERN: First of all, I've got to say, like, amazing, -- right? -- the amount of just technical, like, expertise in that. How -- let's just talk about that scene for a second because I was watching that going "Wow."

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

MARK STERN: I mean, was it --

ANNA SILK: It makes may heart race actually watching it because she was really strong. But it was really -- I mean, it was an amazing sequence to shoot, and, you know, she was this incredibly talented stunt woman, but it was challenging.

MARK STERN: Yeah?

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

MARK STERN: And so give us a little bit of your character, and what do you do in this show?

ZOIE PALMER: I play Dr. Lauren Lewis, and what's interesting a little bit about her is that she's one of the few humans that work directly with the Fae. And I work -- in the beginning, Bo and Lauren meet up, and there's a few sparks perhaps maybe. And we have a bit of a triangle with another character on the show, Dyson played by Kris Holden-Ried. And I sort of help Bo control the urges scientifically. So she comes for periodic injections and the like. And, yeah, so Lauren sort of -- and she works for the Fae, and you never, sort of, learn -- well, the season sort of opens with you are not sure why she's working for the Fae and why there's a human doctor and not a Fae doctor, and so that's where the story sort of unravels, and the season does, too.

MARK STERN: It's a really interesting character because you definitely want someone like that in this kind of show because it's like, as a viewer, it's like, "What the hell is going on?"

ANNA SILK: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: There's a lot of questions around that character and why she's there and why she's so indebted to that group, the live Fae.

MARK STERN: Yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: Yeah.

MARK STERN: But I think it seems like -- and I think this show very nicely is able to get through a lot of that expositional how it works, all of the different types of Fae --

ZOIE PALMER: Uh-huh.

MARK STERN: -- in a very organic way.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

MARK STERN: Do you find that --

ANNA SILK: I think Bo has all of those questions. You know, she just learned that she's not human, that she's a succubus and about the Fae and that they exist, you know. So that sort of -- those questions are asked by her and by the audience as well.

ZOIE PALMER: Yeah. You guys sort of have the same questions --

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: -- the audience and Bo.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: Yeah.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

MARK STERN: That's always nice. Trust me.

Zoie PalmerZOIE PALMER: Yeah.

ANNA SILK: And something else I'll say about the show, too, because Zoie just brought up the light Fae is that the other thing that Bo learns is the Fae are divided amongst light and dark, and what that sets up in our show is this very interesting political system and divide. And that creates a lot of conflict on the show and is just a really -- another really interesting thing about "Lost Girl."

MARK STERN: Yeah.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

MARK STERN: That's absolutely right. Especially the second season, it really does seem to kind of take off in that way.

ANNA SILK: Yes.

MARK STERN: How did you get involved in the show?

ANNA SILK: Well, I live -- I'm Canadian, and I lived in Toronto for quite a few years. That's where our show shoots. And I live in Los Angeles now, and I -- the script came my way, and I saw, you know, females, sex sci-fi babe. I thought --

ZOIE PALMER: She came running.

ANNA SILK: Right. I came running. I said, "That's for me." I think I actually came into the process a little late in the game. And, you know, I loved what I read because, you know, Bo, she's a sexual creature. She's a sexual being. So right away I thought, "Okay. What's going on here? What is this about?" But it was -- what I loved is that it's Bo's greatest sense of shame grows into her greatest strength. And that's something that appealed to me, and I think as a -- you know, I think it appeals to young women watching the show. Our audience is so broad. I mean, we are in our second season in Canada. We are airing in the U.K. and Australia, and the people I meet that watch the show are such a broad audience, you know. We have different generations, and all different kinds of people are really drawn to our show.

ZOIE PALMER: Shy girls, young girls.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: It really seems to have hit, you know, a good, big group.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: It's been lovely for us.

MARK STERN: Yeah.

ANNA SILK: But that's what drew me to the show was a strong female lead who -- and female character who is scared a lot of the time but can't be.

MARK STERN: Right.

ANNA SILK: She has to figure it out, and she does.

MARK STERN: That's great.

ANNA SILK: Not always, but for the most part, she does.

MARK STERN: And, also, you get a little sense of -- I mean, there's nothing like the "fried bitch" line, but you also do get a sense that there's a certain tongue-and-cheek quality with Lauren, too.

ZOIE PALMER: Oh, yeah.

MARK STERN: It doesn't take itself too seriously.

ZOIE PALMER: Yeah. There's great, great humor in this show. I think that's one of my favorite things about the show is that they have -- along with some really intense moments, there's tons of fun and lots of -- sort of -- you know, it's witty. And I think all of the female characters on the show are really interesting written. Kenzi played by the very talented Ksenia Solo, who can be --

ANNA SILK: Who was the "fried bitch" line.

ZOIE PALMER: Yeah.

MARK STERN: Yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: She's fantastic on the show. Like, what a great character, you know.

MARK STERN: Yeah, yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: She has a good time playing that character.

MARK STERN: You can tell. I mean, it is. She gets all of the great lines.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: Well -- but she does them -- no one else can do them better. She does a great job.

MARK STERN: Yeah. We had some experience with that with Claudia on our show. Allison Scagliotti on "Warehouse" is the same way.

Anna Silk and Zoie PalmerANNA SILK: Yeah.

MARK STERN: Like, she just has that zinger that you wish you had said. So are you -- and you are now doing nine more episodes, right? You have additional episodes you are shooting?

ANNA SILK: We did. We left the back nine. So we are actually currently filming Episode 15 of Season 2, and we started airing Season 2 in Canada as well.

ZOIE PALMER: Right. So we are airing a shooting.

ANNA SILK: Yeah. We are airing a shooting.

ZOIE PALMER: That's right.

ANNA SILK: That never happens, not often to us.

ZOIE PALMER: No.

ANNA SILK: But it's great.

MARK STERN: Are you on that zone? It's funny because I was with Colin [Ferguson] yesterday, and he said there's a point at which you suddenly start to get recognized, and people" -- you realize -- like, something happens. You reach a threshold where people start to just stop you in the street. Are you at that point now?

ANNA SILK: Yeah. And it's great because people want to come up and tell you why they love the show. They don't just say, "Are you that girl?" They say, like, "Oh, my mom watches the show, and this is why she loves it," or "My brother watches it." It's cool.

MARK STERN: That's great.

ZOIE PALMER: It's funny, those moments, though, because it never occurs to me anyway that that's why someone might be looking at me, and so I always have to go, "What? Oh, right, sorry."

MARK STERN: "What do you want?"

ZOIE PALMER: Yes.

MARK STERN: That's great. Well, wait until it airs on Syfy. Then that a whole other level.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: We are totally thrilled.

MARK STERN: Then you in, like -- then you are in that little tram in the airport in Orlando and people are stopping you in the tram. I was like, "Oh, my God." He's like, "I know." Right? I was like, "I'm glad that's not me."

ANNA SILK: As long as they don't expect a succubus kiss, I'm okay.

ZOIE PALMER: I will inject people, though.

ANNA SILK: Yeah, she will. She will.

MARK STERN: Okay. And with that, let's open to questions.

QUESTION: Okay. My question is actually from your fans on Twitter. Do you expect Bo-Lauren relationship to be as popular as it was -- as it is, rather?

MARK STERN: Did you guys hear that? Did you -- do you expect the --

QUESTION: Lauren and Bo -- thank you. Did you expect the Lauren-Bo relationship to be as popular as it is with the fans?

ZOIE PALMER: I certainly didn't, no. That came as a bit of a surprise, yeah. It's been a great surprise, too, like, what a -- but no. That blew up a little bit, didn't it?

ANNA SILK: Yeah. I mean, for Zoie and I, it was really important -- and we talked about it in the beginning -- that this relationship be very real. This was a very, you know -- Bo is involved in a love triangle in the show, and we wanted this relationship to be a truthful relationship between these two women. I mean --

ZOIE PALMER: And to stand up against --

ANNA SILK: -- if one is not -- yeah, exactly. It has a rival, the other love relationship, and it certainly does. And the fan response has been --

ZOIE PALMER: Yeah.

ANNA SILK: -- amazing.

ZOIE PALMER: Yeah.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

QUESTION: Two quick ones. One is with the action, the supernatural humor, do you think the show, in a sense, fills a void that's been there since "Buffy" went off the air, "Buffy, The Vampire Slayer," went off the air?

ZOIE PALMER: It certainly comes up, like, as a comparison for sure.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: So I think perhaps for some people it might.

Anna SilkANNA SILK: And I think the humor -- it's funny because, on the weekend, I was watching reruns of "Buffy" all afternoon. But I think that the humor that existed on Buffy and the -- how much the characters, the central characters cared about each other, that exists on Lost Girl, too. I mean, these people and nonpeople really care for each other, and I think that that seems to be the biggest comparison, I think, that we get. So it's flattering.

ZOIE PALMER: Oh, it's a huge compliment, I think, yeah, if people feel that way, for sure.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

QUESTION: You said in the airport people stop you and tell you what they think of the show. What do they think of the show? What are they telling you?

ANNA SILK: Oh, gosh. People love the sort of political system, like I talked about a little bit, that exists. They love to kind of get angry at one side or the other. You know, a lot of younger women love to see a character whose sexuality is a big part of who she is but is really strong and empowered by that. So, I mean, people talk about that a lot. People love Kenzi's one-liners, you know.

ZOIE PALMER: Uh-huh.

ANNA SILK: It's really mixed. I have to be honest. It's really, really mixed. There's not something really specific.

ZOIE PALMER: It's a pretty passionate audience, too.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: They have very specific opinions on how they feel, where the story line should go and the characters should be developed in.

ANNA SILK: Yeah. They have taken ownership.

ZOIE PALMER: Yeah, which is great. Yeah.

QUESTION: I've got one from Twitter as well here. We haven't heard much about the Faye human aspect of Bo and Lauren's relationship since Season 1. How do you think these dynamic factors affect the relationship itself and your portrayal of it?

ANNA SILK: The Fae human-specific relationship?

QUESTION: Yes.

ANNA SILK: Well, it was really addressed in the first season, and it's a complicated relationship for that reason, for many reasons, but that being the primary one.

ZOIE PALMER: Yeah, because of Lauren being injured --

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: -- originally by --

ANNA SILK: I mean, Bo drains people to death, is what she can do, which is not something she necessarily wants to do.

ZOIE PALMER: Not necessarily.

ANNA SILK: Not necessarily. Sometimes. But I don't know. I don't know really how to answer that.

ZOIE PALMER: Well, he kind of got -- I mean, because Lauren is the scientist and the whole -- part of their whole dynamic, the beginning of it, is that she comes to Lauren for help, and because Bo's character hasn't picked a side, that's a little awkward because Lauren works for specifically the light Faye. So I do begin to kind of help her out a little bit, and because I do, she becomes less of a worry that way.

ANNA SILK: Yeah. I mean, Bo is so grateful. Someone that can actually help her control these urges, like, this is a new thing for her. So the way that it sort of plays out in Season 1, I mean, I don't know -- they kind of dealt with that, I think, the Fae human aspect of it.

ZOIE PALMER: They do in the first season.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: And it's not really addressed again, I don't think.

ANNA SILK: Yeah. It's not really addressed on a continuous basis.

QUESTION: I had a question from Facebook, from one of the Facebook followers, who wants to know how do you prepare yourself to be a succubus? What kind of research do you go through, or do you?

ANNA SILK: Well --

ZOIE PALMER: Do you really want to talk about what you did?

QUESTION: Yes, we do.

ANNA SILK: I can't talk about it. No. You know, in terms of research, it's the human side of Bo that is really sort of the heart of who she is. A succubus is who and what she is as well. In terms of getting ready to play it, I actually knew what a succubus was. And some people asked me that question, too, like, "Did you even know that that was?" And I did because I used to have these recurring nightmares and had read about the incubus/succubus phenomenon. And so, in terms of playing that, I think you play the human side, if that makes any sense. In terms of the succubus, you know, the first episode that we had where I had to do a succubus kiss, that guy got a lot of kissing and air time because we really had to figure out what that kiss was going to look like, what draining someone's chee (ph) meant and how that would play out. And we sort of came up with something that would then be the standard for the succubus kiss on the show. Now I've got it down.

ZOIE PALMER: Oh, yeah.

ANNA SILK: This is what it is. This is what you do. But in terms of playing a succubus, I think that you played it human side.

QUESTION: Okay. Thanks.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

MARK STERN: That's quite a day that guy had.

ANNA SILK: Yeah. He had -- yeah. He had a lot of lip time.

ZOIE PALMER: A lot of people have quite the day.

MARK STERN: We have time for one more question.

QUESTION: So we've seen ghosts on TV. We've seen vampires, werewolves. And this is fairly new, a succubus. So what is it about these supernatural, paranormal creatures that connect with audiences and make something like Lost Girl popular? Why do you think that there is a need for it?

Zoie PalmerZOIE PALMER: Well, I think it lends itself to the world of play that we all still sort of, -- you know, the part of ourselves that likes to fantasize about, sort of, craziness and chaos and all of that. You know, it's a whole different world that you can really lose yourself in. And so I don't know if it would be specifically for everyone, but I feel like that's probably part of the draw of being able to kind of imagine yourself in that world that's nothing like the one we live in.

ANNA SILK: Yeah.

ZOIE PALMER: Do you agree?

ANNA SILK: And I think that, you know, that supernatural world that Zoie is talking about, what appeals to the audience, too, is the central relationships between the characters. Like I said, they really care about each other. They're real relationships. It's real friendships. It's real heartbreak. It's real hurt. And then I just happen to fight a headless guy with a sword. And that's kind of part of our day, and we have to deal with that world as well. And I think that it's such an imaginative and broad world, which is really cool.

ZOIE PALMER: Uh-huh.

MARK STERN: Excellent. Okay. Well, thank you. They are going to be down here at the side of the stage for 10 minutes to sort of chat with you further, but thank you so much for being here.

ZOIE PALMER: Yeah.

ANNA SILK: Thank you.

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