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An interview with “Lost Girl” star Zoie Palmer

Canadian actress Zoie Palmer won over Lost Girl viewers as the insatiably curious human doctor, Dr. Lauren Lewis, the minute she picked up a clipboard. Since that moment her hand lingered a little too long on Bo’s back, Palmer’s Lauren has become a fan favorite for her calm, loyal, gentle demeanor and soft, expressive brown eyes. How could our resident succubus Bo (played by Anna Silk) not fall for her? But in the second season, complications have arisen in the form of Lauren’s girlfriend, Nadia, who is no longer in a coma.

The series, about the supernatural world of the Fae who hide and feed off humans and its bisexual succubus heroine who refuses to pick a side, is poised to break into the United States big-time when it premiers of the American cable network SyFy Jan. 16. On its Canadian home network Showcase, the series just completed the winter finale of its second season, and will return for the second half on Jan. 22. Palmer spoke with AfterEllen.com while on break from filming Lost Girl about Bo and Lauren’s future, the show’s popularity and exactly how many marriage proposals she’s received from her female fans.

AfterEllen.com: Let’s start with a super, super softball and ask, are you Team Lauren or Team Dyson and how do you feel fans have responded to the show’s central love triangle?

Zoie Palmer: Well, I have to say I’m Team Lauren. But I think it’s kind of fantastic how the fans have responded. It was a surprise a little bit that there was such a reaction – a great surprise. One of the things we’ve all noticed is how committed and dedicated and passionate and vocal the fans are about the show as a whole and about that specific dynamic, that triangle. It has been great. There’s so much energy around it that finds its way on set, that vibe. They contribute to the show, I think.

AE: There’s also a new triangle in town, the Bo-Lauren-Nadia thing. Was that development a surprise to you and how do you think that has affected the dynamic?

ZP: I didn’t know that was happening. I learned in order of the scripts when that came about so I was surprised. I didn’t know how the storyline of Lauren would unfold with respect to her debt to the Light Fae and the Ash. I think it’s kind of interesting. It adds a whole other dimension to Lauren and her relationship with Bo. It throws a wrench in for sure. I know that people have responded pretty strongly. Some people are really against Nadia already, having not really met her or having a real sense of her. It’s still pretty new.

AE: Yeah, she isn’t exactly a fan favorite right now, I’d say.

ZP: [Laughs] No, I don’t think that she is either. Poor Athena, who plays Nadia. There’s been a bit of a reaction. But some people seem open minded. So we’ll see.

AE: Do you wish that Lauren and Bo had a little more quality time together before Nadia was un-comaed?

ZP: I don’t know. I mean, I think that the idea, the hope is that the show goes a long time. So I think that they are taking their time with it for a reason. I think that perhaps they want to unfold that storyline slowly. So I don’t know. There have been some really great scenes between Bo and Lauren that I’ve loved playing. I like Anna Silk so much. We have such a great time together on set. I don’t know. I know if you ask fans the answer to that question would they absolutely want more things to have happened between Bo and Lauren before something else came in the works. But I don’t know that it is all over yet. You know. I don’t know that Bo and Lauren are done just yet.

AE: And we’re only half way through the second season. How much did you know about Lauren’s backstory before you took the role, and if you didn’t know that much was that a challenge for you?

ZP: I knew very, very little. I knew exactly what you guys knew. I knew that she had a connection to the Ash, but I didn’t know why. So it is a challenge. But you know what, I’d never done that before, had to play somebody where I had so little information about the history of them, especially in a show like this where that’s so important. And it was kind of great. Like, it was challenging but also great because I got the luxury to make some choices that I wouldn’t have been able to make if I had all the information. I had to make choices on how to play certain scenes kind of in my head a little bit. It was fun to do that.

AE: Fans, particularly your gay female fans — which is our readership have really responded to Lauren. Did you expect that and why do you think they’ve responded to her so much?

ZP: No, I certainly didn’t expect the reaction and the response. It has been overwhelming in the most amazing way. I don’t know if I could articulate a single reason why people have responded so strongly. I think to some degree certainly the lesbian community has responded strongly because I think it’s representative of a relationship that is honest and real and genuine. And I have said this so many times, but Anna and I are so committed to making sure the dynamic between Lauren and Bo is one that is real and has depth. It was important to the two of us that it was portrayed that way. I hope and think that to that degree we have.

It is just a real relationship. One of the things about the show is that it’s never sort of mentioned that it’s two women and that it’s a gay relationship. It just is one. It never comes up as a conversation piece that they’re both women. It is just the way that it is and I love that. And I feel that’s the way the world should be. That people should love who they love. This show is a great example of that. No one talks about the fact that Dyson is a boy. I think people have responded because it’s just a relationship that matters and they love each other and care about each other. Perhaps that’s why.

AE: It is really interesting that the show has taken this very matter-of-fact approach to sexuality where it is not discussed and labeled, it just is. I am guessing that was intentional and do you think that’s representative of how people deal with sexuality now or you’d like people to deal with sexuality?

ZP: Yeah, I think that we are in a time in this timeline of the world where sexuality is just becoming what it is and it’s not quite the conversation piece that perhaps it was some years ago or even not that long ago. I think the show is great that way. I love so much that there is never the conversation that they’re women, or that Dyson is not a woman or that there is any judgment on her sexuality. She’s a succubus and a female who sleeps with lots of people, and there’s no judgment on that. Certainly there is more judgment in our society for women who do that as opposed to men who do that, and the show never references that. It just is what it is and I love that

AE: To put labels on things, do you think Lauren’s character actually is a lesbian? And do you feel a responsibility playing a queer character on television?

ZP: I think everything would suggest that she is a lesbian. It wouldn’t surprise me because of the nature of the show if something changed down the road. But I only say that because it wouldn’t surprise me because anything could happen on this show. But everything we know about her up until this point, which is what I know too, suggests that she is a lesbian. And, absolutely I feel a responsibility for sure. As an actor I want to be as truthful as I can in any character and this is no different. Because the fan response has been so big and so strong that I have felt more of a responsibility to make sure that I am committed to bringing that character to life in a three-dimensional way that honors who she is. Lauren is such a great character to play. She is pretty complicated and layerrd and also a lesbian. And I’m thrilled to be able to play her.

AE: How are you different from Lauren? From past interviews you seem to have a really good sense of humor. Do you wish you could bring that more to the show, or do you wish you could kick ass more on the show? I saw you kick ass on Nikita.

ZP: [Laughs] Oh, yeah, Lauren and that character were a little different. Well, I think we’re different in a lot of ways. I think she is really fearful and does overcome it to some degree. But I don’t know if I would have taken what she took for as long as she has done. She has really been subservient to the Ash and Zoie I don’t know is as subservient as that in her life, if I can talk about myself in the third person. In that way, I think I enjoy life a lot more than Lauren currently does and I think in part that’s her position in the world of the Fae. There’s not a lot of time for her to have a lot of fun. So we’re pretty different. But I can be pretty nerdy though. We might be equally nerdy.

AE: Obviously the fans have really responded to Lauren and you’ve become the target of a lot of female attention and adoration. How do you feel about all that Dr. Hotpants/Doccubus love that’s coming towards you?

ZP: [Laughs] I don’t know how I feel. It’s great. I mean, any kind of positive attention is good. I’m so thrilled that people have responded in a positive way. The alternative could have been difficult. So I think it’s great that people are enjoying the character. I was saying to someone the other day, I seem to have a lot more marriage proposals nowadays than I ever had in my life.

AE: Well I’m telling you, just so you know, if your door swings this way or considers swinging this way, you will never be single.

ZP: [Laughs] Oh, good, well I will certainly take that into consideration.

AE: Just putting it out there, just so you know.

ZP: Thank you, that’s good to know.

AE: Obviously, you already mentioned it, but you have great chemistry with Anna Silk. Was that chemistry immediate? How do you enjoy working with her?

ZP: Anna and I knew each other – not really well, but being in television the community can be small so we’d kind of crossed paths over the years, but had never worked together. I can’t say enough about her. She’s such a good person, she is such a fantastic actress and she brings it 1,000 percent every day and that’s saying a lot because she is there every day and is she is in pretty much every scene and having to do some really amazing stuff. And she somehow manages to do it with grace and with a smile on her face and with all kinds of humility. She is a really humble person. And we just laugh a ton. We are constantly laughing though our scenes, Anna and I, and I feel like we have to get it together a lot of the time to make it through the serious scenes. She has such a great sense of humor.

AE: Our fans are clearly pulling for more of Anna and you together and more Doccubus, do they have reason to hope in the rest of the season? Is there more to come with Bo and Lauren?

ZP: Yeah, I would say the story is not over. We aren’t done yet. There is more to discover with respect to Bo and Lauren. I mean, I think there is reason to be optimistic to some degree. It is a show and I think we’re going to go through all kinds of things. I think the fans will be elated and I think the fans will be devastated and I think the fans will run through the gamut of emotions. I love the ups and downs of it.

AE: Speaking of the seasons and the longer arcs, how do you think the show has evolved from its first to second season? How has having almost double the episodes changed the storytelling and the dynamics?

ZP: When we started shooting season two we were only supposed to have 13 episodes and the last nine came somewhere in the middle of that. So the writers had to very quickly come up with a longer arc which is a complicated thing to do when you build an arc around 13 episodes and on a dime have to change it to be 22. I think they’ve done an exceptional job at it considering the time restraints they were under. It has evolved in all kinds of ways. We’ve learned so much more about them. Lauren was such a mystery in season one, so many questions about who she was and whether she was good or bad and what her intentions were with the Fae, with humans, with Bo. I think we’re starting to see her a little more fully and have a little more empathy with the situation they are in. The same with all of them. The biggest evolution with the show is learning about who these people are. They all have good intentions despite the fact that they make huge, huge mistakes within those intentions sometimes.

AE: Some fans have complained a little that the show seems less overtly sexy this season. Some say that might a response to being picked up by SyFy in the states. Do you feel there has been a toning down of the show at all?

ZP: I’ve heard that come up a couple of times and I don’t know. I’m not sure when they knew we were picked up by SyFy at that point. So I’m not sure it has anything to do with the US at all. I mean, there are so many reasons why an episode would be tamed down or not, there are a million reasons. Being in the position I am in as an actor, I have no way of explaining them all. No one comes to me and explains those types of things.

AE: Speaking of SyFy, how excited are you for the show to debut in the United States to get that larger exposure?

ZP: I’m over the moon about it. I’m so thrilled they’ve invited us to play on their channel. I am thrilled. I think they reach a huge audience and we’re so lucky to be over there. And I think that audiences are going to love it over there, I hope. I think the feeling on the show is the same for everybody. It’s going to be really cool.

AE: Are you prepared for if it becomes a hit in the states.

ZP: I’m mildly terrified to be honest with you. [Laughs] I’m joking, entirely, but there’s been such a big response so I’m bracing myself a little bit.

AE: More marriage proposals!

ZP: I know, I’ll be fending off marriage proposals with a tennis racket. I think it’s going to be great. If the reception is anything like it has been here in Canada, I think it’s going to be fantastic.

AE: Well you actually already do have tons on international fans.

ZP: [Laughs] I don’t know how. How are they getting it?

AE: Through somewhat legal means, I am sure. But I recap the show so I know there are readers from all over the world. Why do you think it’s had such universal appeal and been so widespread even though it is a show made and broadcast in Canada?

ZP: We’re in a time when science fiction and fantasy really hit a nerve with people. True Blood and Buffy, all those shows. People really seem to respond to those kinds of shows and I think we’re part of that family. And I think it’s a pretty good show, if I can say so myself. I think people are responding to a pretty good show. We’ve got some really great actors on the show, some amazing writers and producers. There’s something about the team of people who have come together to put this show on works really well. In terms of the core six characters, they are just so different from each other — Hale and Trick and Dyson and Kenzi, who is fantastic — they are so different from each other. So there is kind of someone for everyone in there.

AE: Speaking of your support system there, does your wardrobe department have a stealthy leather fetish because you guys wear a seemingly endless supply of fabulous leather goods.

ZP: I know, you are right. There seems to be a lot of leather. There are a couple of pieces that if ever the show finishes I might request.

AE: What else can people expect from the second half of the season? What other things on the horizon for Lauren and Bo, Lauren and Nadia?

ZP: The larger picture, there’s the idea that something is coming and that there is a threat to us all. We start to sort of delve into that a little more toward the end of season two. And because we’ve been introduced to new characters, Nadia and Ciara, we kind of delve into that a little bit too.

AE: So for you, what else is on the horizon? Are you doing anything during the hiatus?

ZP: Our hiatus will only be a couple of months, so I don’t know. Might not be a bad idea to do a little traveling, to go to somewhere, maybe Thailand. Where should I go?

AE: Some nice, warm, sunny destination sounds good.

ZP: Where are you, are you in the states?

AE: I’m in California.

ZP: Yeah, maybe I should go there, that’s warm right?

AE: Yes, definitely warmer than Canada. No snow or ice.

ZP: I was in L.A. a couple of years ago and loved it.

AE: Or you could spend the rest of your hiatus dressing up you cat. I saw that picture you tweeted out.

ZP: Oh my God. [Laughs] I actually haven’t stopped laughing about that picture. I literally put this little sort of wool coat on her and she fell over, rolled onto her back and stayed there. She was just like, “I am out. If you’re going to do that to me, I’m done.” She totally surrendered. She’s like, “You’ve stripped me on all dignity.”

AE: That has just only further endeared you to the lesbian population, dressing up your cat in a plaid jacket. So there you go.

ZP: Aw, because I dressed up my cat. I put the same one on my little dog, but she wouldn’t let me take a picture of her. She did the opposite. She just ran off. I’m just running around finding random animals to put this coat on because apparently that’s what I do on my spare time. Just any kind of animal that will stay still long enough for me to shove them into this little blue coat.

AE: Well and with that, anything else you want to say to your fans on AfterEllen.com?

ZP: I can’t say thank you enough to everyone who has watched the show and been so supportive of the show and the character Lauren. I feel so grateful and lucky and honored to be able to play the character. I’m so thankful that they tune in every week and how committed they are. Because it does mean a lot of us all.

AE: Well, get ready for your barrage of even more marriage proposals after Jan. 16.

ZP: Oh God, I need to send a few your way.

Lost Girl returns on Showcase in Canada to begin the second half of season two on Jan. 22 It will begin airing its first season on SyFy in the U.S. on Jan. 16. Read the Lost Girl SnapCaps weekly on AfterEllen.com.

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