‘V-Wars’ Star Laura Vandervoort Opens up About Supernatural Role as Mila (Exclusive)

Over the years, Laura Vandervoort has made a name for herself within the supernatural genre for her dynamic performances in Bitten, Smallville, and Supergirl. Now, the Toronto-born actress stars in the new Netflix series V-Wars, once again playing a character (Mila Dubov) with supernatural abilities and an equally extraordinary heart. In an exclusive interview with PopCulture.com, Vandervoort explains exactly why playing these kinds of characters is so electrifying.

Vandervoort disclosed to PopCulture.com that she originally auditioned for a different, human character on V-Wars, but that she later received the opportunity to portray Mila — a move she says ended up working out for the better.

“What I love about Mila and the show is that it’s almost like the B plot of the story is vampires, but the A plot is actually about how these characters interact with one another in a time of crisis,” Vandervroot told PopCulture.com about how her character fits into the exciting Blood-filled world of the series. “They deal with such smart issues that are present today in society that we can all relate to, like we discuss borders, and racism, and disease, global warming, all of that. So I was really attracted to how smart the show was, sort of hidden and masked by a sci-fi genre, but there was so much more to it, including Mila. There was a lot about her that excited me to kind of explore.”

Vandervoort further explained why she enjoyed taking on the supernatural role of Mila more than she might have if the character was human.

“One of the things about this genre in general is when you are playing a ‘mythical creature,’ I always find there’s more room to explore and find different layers of your character,” she said. “I mean, Mila is … there’s so much duality to her in terms of personality, her internal struggles, her morals, an urge that she has within her, but also the need to still have some humanity to her. I find that more interesting than perhaps playing a human in times like this.”

Since Vandervoort has portrayed many of our sci-fi faves in the past, she has a plethora of experience in “humanizing” these characters as a way of connecting with them and, as a result, the audience, as well.

“I’ve been doing a lot of sci-fi, it has been helpful in terms of trying to find other parts to your character that aren’t necessarily on the page. I love humanizing my characters that are not human and finding more to them,” she explained. “I mean, Mila is very similar to my character Elena on Bitten, and I don’t think I truly realized that until I saw the show. I think I just choose to understand and educate myself on the character that I am working on, and I try not to blend in any other experiences. But, it always will be there in some way or another.”

While Vandervoort has gravitated towards these kinds of roles in the past, she’s eager to explore other genres, as well. However, that doesn’t mean that she doesn’t still have a love for everything sci-fi.

“So I got a couple projects in development right now, and I think that’s my main focus,” she said, noting how she’ll be producing and starring in the independent short, Age of Dysphoria. “I would like to venture out more into other genres, such as comedy, period pieces, that sort of thing. If those opportunities came about, I would likely jump for those first. But, I do know I owe a lot to the superhero genre and sci-fi, and will always have a lot for it and definitely consider returning to it if the opportunity was right.”

V-Wars Season 1 is now streaming on Netflix.

Photo credit: Netflix / Peter Stranks