Definitely not a show about forgiveness, ABC’s saucy new hit Revenge is successfully quenching the insatiable appetites of fans that cannot wait from week to week to see what could possibly be happening next in the Hamptons. Speaking with Gabriel Mann, who portrays the naughty-but-also-nice Nolan Ross, many questions were asked and answered. Well, answered to as much of a degree as he was allowed.

Mann says of his role as Nolan, “I’ve been given a goldmine with this character.” Laughing he adds, “If I crack up and can’t get through my lines during the table reads then I know we have a winner.” In regards to reading the scripts, he says that he constantly marvels at the brilliant dialogue. “I get to say that on network television?” 

With a restrained glance to the side and a unique shake-shrug of the shoulder that only Mann can pull off, he conveys to his audience the many facets of his complex character in a way that is both charming and telling of just enough so that you are privy to the fact that there is so much more to Nolan Ross than first meets the eye. Not always aware that he is even doing this, he explains, “I’ve ingested him at this point.” Of creating a character, he adds, “You take the character and you flesh it out.  My job is to find as much humanity within this eccentric guy. Who’s the guy behind this façade and what’s his driving force?”

Thanks to her impressive body of television and film work, as well as her undeniable charm and beauty, actress Emily VanCamp is quickly becoming a household name. She first gained attention for a small role in the film The Ring Two, but it is on TV where the actress has truly left her mark, first portraying the role of Amy Abbott on The WB’s long running series Everwood, and later as Tom Skerritt and Patricia Wettig’s long lost daughter Rebecca Harper on ABC’s Brothers & Sisters. This fall VanCamp returned to television, this time in the starring role on ABC’s new hit drama Revenge, which was just picked up for a full season. On the new series she plays Amanda Clarke, a mysterious young woman who moves to The Hamptons under another name in order to strike vengeance on the people that caused her father’s death and destroyed her family. In addition to her hit series, the actress can also be seen in the new comedy/drama Norman, which opens in select theaters on October 21^st.

In the film, VanCamp plays Emily Parrish, an attractive new girl in school who begins to fall for unlikely loser Norman Long (Dan Byrd). Norman is a troubled young man that considers suicide because of the frustrations of high school, the recent loss of his mother, and his father’s (Richard Jenkins) terminal cancer. Through a series of misunderstandings, a rumor begins at school that Norman has cancer (not his father) and that is why he has such a dark personality. Emily instantly takes a liking to Norman and they begin a relationship but that is threatened when she learns of the rumor. Now Norman must decide what is more important to him: the misguided attention he is getting at school, or the honest affection of the girl he loves. Meanwhile, Norman is dealing with his father’s illness and his unwavering desire to not get treatment but instead “go out” on his own terms.

I recently had the pleasure of speaking with the absolutely lovely Emily VanCamp about Norman, as well as her series Revenge. The actress spoke candidly with me about the new film, her intriguing character, the movie’s difficult subject matter, comparisons to 50/50, not having enough screen time with Academy Award nominee Richard Jenkins, the pressure of starring on her own TV series, and what fans can expect from Revenge the remainder of this season.