Press 2017

The Originals Director Daniel Gillies Praises 'Outstanding' Phoebe Tonkin Performance via TV Line

Exclusive by TV Line.

TV Line

After playing Elijah Mikaelson for almost seven years — don’t forget he started on The Vampire Diaries! — Daniel Gillies is finally stepping behind the camera on Friday’s Originals (The CW, 8/7c), an opportunity he calls “a bit of a gift horse.”

“To be a participant in a show and to have played a character for as many years as I have, I know the universe and the mythology, as well as the tone of the show,” Gillies tells TVLine. “Just by osmosis, you inherit a complete understanding of what needs to be delivered in an episode. It’s a beautiful thing for an actor who has aspirations of directing, because you have training wheels. You’ve also developed a degree of intimacy with the crew, which is another hurdle you don’t need to leap as a guest director. There are so many things stacked in your favor.”

View TV Line's full interview here >>

The Originals star Daniel Gillies on directing: 'I got the best episode of the season' via EW

Entertainment Weekly

Elijah Mikaelson is a monster. Yes, he’s noble. Yes, he wears a suit. But at the end of the day, he’s a vampire, and Daniel Gillies would like all of you to remember that.

“The whole premise of the show is that we are these monsters,” Gillies tells EW. “Your good guys are bad guys, essentially.”

It’s something fans of The Originals need to keep in mind, particularly when it comes to this week’s episode, which takes viewers inside Elijah’s fractured mind as Hayley and Freya try to recover him. (Refresher: In the last episode, Freya managed to put Elijah inside her pendant before the Hollow killed him.) And let’s just say that Elijah’s mind isn’t nearly as pretty as his suits, which is something that Gillies, who directed the hour, and his team had to keep in mind when finding a visual representation that would work best.

View the full interview with EW here >>

‘The Originals’: Daniel Gillies on Directing His Co-Stars & Michael Narducci’s Departure via Collinder

Wonderful interview by Collider. 

Collider

Directed by actor Daniel Gillies, Episode 410 of The CW series The Originals, entitled “Phantomesque,” the danger is ramping up to a seemingly insurmountable level, as Rebekah (Claire Holt) and Kol (Nathaniel Buzolic) return at the request of Klaus (Joseph Morgan), so that their family can stand even stronger against the devastating force that is The Hollow. With Elijah (Gillies) currently unable to help, Freya (Riley Voelkel) is working with Hayley (Phoebe Tonkin), and Marcel (Charles Michael Davis) is trying to figure out a plan of his own.

During this 1-on-1 phone interview with Collider, Daniel Gillies talked about the difference between directing a movie (he wrote, directed and starred in the feature film Broken Kingdom) versus an episode of television, the challenge of telling your co-stars what to do, being directed by his co-stars in return (Joseph Morgan and Charles Michael Davis have also helmed episodes), and how he hopes to direct again next year, along with the bittersweet departure of showrunner Michael Narducci (for whom Julie Plec will be taking over in Season 5), having a conclusive element to the story for each season, wanting to always be challenged, as an actor, and his character’s true motivations.

Hit the image below and view Collider's full interview >>

The Originals' Daniel Gillies on Elijah's Latest Death, 'Doomed' Love Life by TV Line

Check out Andy Swift's interview with Daniel below!

TV Line - Andy Swift

It’s been exactly one week since Elijah’s fatal encounter with The Hollow on The Originals, but we hope you haven’t spent that time shedding any tears over the Big Easy’s best-dressed bloodsucker.

 

“How many deaths has Elijah had?” actor Daniel Gillies asks TVLine. “I haven’t got the count, but I think a few fans do. At this point, we’ve kind of cried wolf.”

But even though Elijah isn’t permanently dead — his spirit is currently chilling in Freya’s pendant — that doesn’t mean Gillies put any less effort into his character’s latest demise.

“It’s different every time,” he admits. “It depends on what weapon you’re being murdered with, if you want it slow or fast, and how exhausted you are on set that day. … I’m joking about that last one, of course. It’s contingent on so many little factors. I never want to die exactly the same way twice, even though a couple of the deaths I’ve had might have been similar.”

View the full interview by TV Line here >>

True or False, Vampire Edition, with Daniel Gillies via Young Hollywood

Young Hollywood

Young Hollywood: "We're hanging out at the YH Studio with "The Originals" star Daniel Gillies, and we decide to test his knowledge of all things vampire with a little True or False challenge! See how many he gets right and maybe we'll all learn something new today!"