The Originals - TV Guide Video Interview With Phoebe Tonkin

The Originals - Phoebe Tonkin Interview

The Originals Interview With Phoebe Tonkin

Your character obviously has a huge life change occurring. How do you think she’s going to process this?

I think at the moment, Hayley is just holding on for her life right now, because she knows that if Klaus doesn’t help these witches that she is in a lot of trouble. So I think maybe in the next episode, we’re really going to see Hayley actually deal with the information that she is pregnant and that she is a young woman with a child, or a child about to come.

Vampire Diaries just had the characters graduate from high school, but The Originals seems to be beginning with more adult characters and topics. Is it fun for you to make that transition?

Yeah, it’s nice. Every show I’ve done for eight years, I’ve played high school, so it’s kind of nice not having lines like, “Oh, I’ve gotta get to class.” It’s nice to play a young adult finally. I’ve been playing 16 for a long time. And you know, also having an issue like pregnancy with it, an unplanned pregnancy, is a very real topical issue, and it’s nice to explore an issue like that within a supernatural world.

Klaus, at the end of the pilot episode, talked about having an heir and wanting be the “king.” Would he embrace Hayley as his queen or is it simply, “Well, she’s giving me a child.”

I think it's just the child will be the heir. I think he’ll be focusing on that child more than his queen. [Laughs]

Do you think Hayley is going to be trying to make that change for him?

I think those two go together very much as a one-night kind of thing. But now that they’ve been face to face, I think they’re going to have to reassess their relationship with each other.

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Phoebe Tonkin Interview For TV.com

Where are you right now?
You know what, I am in a car park outside a dance studio. I'm taking a ballet class in an hour, but I'm wearing pants and I am literally sweating in the sun right now. [Laughs] Was that specific enough?

In Atlanta?
Yes, I'm in Atlanta.

[I do a silent fist-pump.] Last time I interviewed you it was for The Secret Circle and you joked that your co-stars Britt Robertson and Shelley Hennig's real-life Southern accents were starting to rub off on you. Now that you're playing an actual Southern character on The Vampire Diaries, are you planning to go full-Southern with your accent?
You know what, I guess Hayley does live in the South. But Hayley is like this world traveler who has been around the block, so I think she has a little bit of everything in her. And she's an orphan, so we don't really know where she came from, what accent she has. I'm just kind of going straight-up American so far.

This week we'll finally get to see the unveiling of what a Phoebe Tonkin character looks like on The Vampire Diaries. What's Hayley like so far? Is she nice, is she not nice? Is she sassy, is she shy?
She's a tomboy. She lost her parents when she was younger, so she sort of grew up running around with these packs of werewolves. She's a free spirit, she's kind of ballsy, she stands up to people a lot, I think just because she's had to take care of herself for so long. Yeah, so, she's strong. But in the sense that she's a good person. I think she has priorities of her own, but I don't think she's going to be manipulative like Faye—Faye would've done whatever it took to get what she wanted. But Hayley definitely has some secrets and some information that she's looking for, which is kind of more or less what brings her to Mystic Falls. She's trying to find something out.

Will we actually get to see you transform into a werewolf? Will you be rolling around screaming on the basement floor at any point?
Not on the show, no. [laughs] No, because she's already an experienced werewolf, so the transformation isn't a big deal. Unless she becomes a hybrid!

When you first signed on to play this part were you aware that guest-stars on The Vampire Diaries don't have a great survival rate? Were you concerned about being killed off right away?
Yeah, I have heard that. I'm hoping to defy those odds. I'm hoping! But the best thing about this show is that even when you die, you don't really die. You can always get brought back to life. So that's something I'm kind of holding onto just in case. But we'll see!

You have a pretty close real-life bestie who's already on the show (Claire Holt a.k.a. Rebekah). Is it like transferring high schools and your best friend already goes there?
I mean that is literally, exactly how it felt. Like on my first day Claire introduced me to everyone and showed me where I'd eat lunch, showed me where the bathrooms were, told me where to get snacks. I felt like I knew the coolest girl at high school and so it was a little bit easier of a transition. It's really scary when you start on a set and you don't know anyone, especially on this show because it's been going for four years, so I was really lucky to have an "in." I was really excited.

What are some of the main differences between The Secret Circle and The Vampire Diaries, with regard to working on it, but also what you get to do on camera?
On The Secret Circle, Faye had very particular objectives—to get her own magic back and to take over and be the best witch. Whereas on this show Hayley is a little bit more confused as to what she's looking for and where she came from and she's got a lot more questions that she wants to ask and have answered. In terms of just working on it, it's just a bigger cast. There are so many cast members and so many storylines to intertwine whereas on The Secret Circle, it was the six of us all together all the time and all our storylines more or less overlapped.

You're jumping from one very passionate fanbase to another that's passionate times a hundred. Are you nervous about your reception with TVD's fanbase, particularly if they didn't think much of The Secret Circle? It's a whole new group of superfans.
Of course. I really, really hope that the fans—I mean, they're such loyal fans on The Vampire Diaries—I really do hope that they like Hayley and they want to root for her to find out what she's looking for and aren't too threatened by her coming in and causing a few problems between Caroline and Tyler. There's obviously huge fans of that relationship—what's their name? Clyler? What's their shipping name? I'm not sure. But there are big fans of that relationship and obviously Hayley coming in could threaten that relationship. But yeah, I hope the fans like Hayley.

The impression I get from you, from reading interviews and speaking to you, is that you seem very girly and shy and nice, but you keep getting cast in these parts that are either badass, or bitchy, or you're firing an uzi at a big rig, or you're yelling at sharks. How do you explain Phoebe Tonkin ending up in all these tough-girl roles?
I don't know, I'm literally the most awkward, socially strange person. And I always end up like, as you say, a badass? I think it's because I have dark hair and dark eyes. And kind of pointy, evil-looking eyebrows. Because I always get sent stuff like that. It's always the witch or the bitch. When really I just wear weird glasses and pajamas all the time.

Phoebe Tonkin talks Hayley/Caroline/Tyler

The Secret Circle‘s Phoebe Tonkin shows up in Mystic Falls this Thursday (The CW, 8/7c) as Hayley, a werewolf who helped Tyler free himself from Klaus’ mental chains. As a result, she and the hybrid have shared quite the traumatic experience, which might spell trouble for Tyler’s current romance.

“Hayley is a little bit of a threat to that relationship because she has a history with Tyler,” says Tonkin. “She knew Tyler during a very emotional time when he was breaking his sire bond.” 

In tough situations like that, people tend to lean on each for support and… something more. So can viewers trust that the two kept things strictly platonic in the past? “All we know is that they were friends and that they went through something big together, so they have a special bond because of that,” 
replies the actress. “So they were just good friends. But I don’t know if, at the beginning, Caroline thinks that.” 

That doubt will cause “a bit of friction” between the girls as the blonde vamp is “a little threatened” — there’s that word again! — “by Hayley because she doesn’t know how close her relationship was with Tyler in the past,” Tonkin says. As for the hybrid himself, he’s “a little surprised” by the unexpected appearance from his pal “because she’s, obviously, someone from his past, a past that we don’t know that much about. But she’s a good friend of his, so he’s just excited to see her.”

Tonkin advises fans of the couple not to fret too much. “Caroline and Tyler have their own situations going on,” she says. “I don’t think Hayley is a huge priority for Caroline at the moment. They have a lot of bigger things” to worry about. And the werewolf, too, is on a mission, so starting a relationship (or breaking one up) isn’t on her agenda. 

“She’s hiding a secret, and she’s trying to find out something very important to her that we’re going to discover eventually,” teases the actress. 

Despite all the turmoil Hayley may stir up, Tonkin hopes the audience likes her character, who she believes is a departure from her Secret Circle witch Faye – “It was definitely going to go darker, a little bit more twisted,” she says of what the future held for the canceled CW drama – even though the two are both “confident and strong and independent,” she says. “Hayley has a little bit more empathy. Faye is quite manipulative.” 

But who has more fun: Werewolves, witches or the mermaids of her and Vampire Diaries co-star Claire Holt’s Australian series H20: Just Add Water? 

“They all have their different kind of fun,” she replies with a laugh. “But it’s definitely nice to play Hayley. She’s a free spirit. She’s kind of ballsy. She’s different from what I’ve played before.”

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Spoiler From TV Guide - 24th October 2012

Is Phoebe Tonkin going to get between my favorite Vampire Diaries couple, Tyler and Caroline?

Fortunately for Team Forwood fans, Tonkin's character Haley has much more on her mind than hooking up with her old friend Tyler. "Haley isn't there to do anything bad or mess up anyone's relationship," Tonkin tells us. "Haley's a tomboy; she just likes hanging out with the guys!" So what is she coming to town for then? Adds Tonkin, "She's trying to find out some things about her past and there are people in Mystic Falls holding onto that information that she wants." Considering she's a fellow werewolf, those people better watch out!

Spoiler From E! Online - 20th October 2012

Any scoop on Phoebe Tonkin's character onTVD? Can't wait to see her back on TV!

We chatted with the CW hit's gorgeous new lady wolf about her character Hayley and Tonkin tells us that viewers can expect to see her go up against Klaus. "She kind of speaks before she thinks, especially to people that are probably a little bit dangerous," she teases. "I think her mouth could get her into trouble…possibly!" Unfortunately, Tonkin won't be sharing scenes with her real-life BFF Claire Holt, who plays Rebekah on the show, as we're hearing the Original vamp will be absent for several episodes. (You can blame her bro Klaus for that.)

Phoebe Tonkin Speaks About TVD and Hayley

Was there any hesitation for you in joining The Vampire Diaries after Secret Circle's cancellation?
As a person, I'm so attracted to the supernatural world, the unknown world. I find that so fascinating I got into acting to tell stories and be a kid again and use the part of your imagination you can't use as an adult. And I'm such a huge fan of Kevin Williamson, I would do anything for him. To be part of something he created, is so popular, is so well-written and has such a big fan base, there was no question to joining.

How excited was Claire when you told her?
I called Claire when she was on set and I had to do a disclaimer before I told her so she wouldn't squeal [laughs]. But we haven't done any scenes together yet. I think they're worried about us getting too excited and giggly on set. We're hoping to work together soon.

What can you tell me about your character, Hayley?
I like that she's a world traveler, a bit of a tomboy, pretty ballsy and provocative, but not in the way Faye was on Secret Circle. I mean, she went out to manipulate and see what should could gain from people. Hayley just doesn't have a filter. She didn't really have parental figures in her life, and I like that kind of a person. I like that she's tough and tries to keep up with the boys. That's what I responded to when Julie Plec,  first pitched the character to me.

And how has it been working with Candice Accola and Michael Trevino?
They're so sweet. The majority of my scenes so far have been with them. They're so professional and prepared and talented. I mean, it's been so lovely on set the past couple of weeks with the two of them. The dynamic between the two of them is amazing, so working off that is really great.

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Phoebe Tonkin Speaks About Her TVD Role And Hollywood

Congratulations on scoring your role on The Vampire Diaries! What can you tell us about it? 
I play Hayley, an old friend of Tylers, who is a werewolf. She has been travelling and has come to see her old friend. Which stirs up Tylers relationship with his girlfriend, Caroline.

full interview here

Phoebe Tonkin Cast As Hayley

Phoebe Tonkin has been cast in TVD. The Australian actress will play Hayley, a wild, sexy and very free-spirited friend with whom Tyler (Michael Trevino) shares a past.  She'll first appear in Episode 3.