HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY -- LUKE GOSS AND ANNA WALTON

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- They are Prince Nuada and Princess Nuala, the brother and sister who are empaths at odds in Hellboy II: The Golden Army.

So it seemed appropriate that Luke Goss and Anna Walton, who played the underworld royalty, were paired for their interviews from the recent hellboy junket.

Following is an edited transcription from the roundtable interview.

Question: So was it fun being a nemesis in a movie like this?

Goss: Absolutely. It's a job that's got to be done, for sure. It can intimidating, without a doubt, when you start the process of working into Nuada's mindset, physicality.

Question: How much preparation did you have to do for all the fancy swordplay?

Goss: Nine weeks. Nine weeks of training. I had so much help. The guys were all so gifted and talented and athletes. And they're like, "That was a great first day, second day." And I was like, "It wasn't, was it?" They were like, "No, that was rubbish. But it'll be OK." So weeks and weeks in, you being to think that you might actually pull this off.

The hardest thing actually was to do it on set. We never reheased, ever, with costumes, which you think would make sense. A part of using the spear is feeling it on your back, and when you can't feel the weapon, it's a learning curve. And you've got to do it on the set in front of everybody.

Question: Don't you have a martial arts background?

Goss: No. Blade II was a huge help for me. We did 10 weeks of training and then a couple of other movies after that, and it's an asset that you've done a lot of fight training. You acquire an ability and makes sense to kind of encourage it any time you can.

Question: Do you think of your character as kind of tragic with Shakespearan quality?

Walton: Well, I hadn't ever thought of it like that. It is tragic. I think she's also there to represent the love story with her and Abe. It's another take on that interspecies marriage thing, the fact that it doesn't matter what you look like and it's the beauty inside.

Question: What did you think of yourselves when you saw yourselves in full makeup and costume?

Walton: Obviously, we became very used to it because we lived with it for six months.

Goss: It was fun. People always think you have your costumes way before, but it's fittings and fittings and fittings, dozens. I didn't get my finished, finished costume and complete look all tied together until my first day of principle photography. Of course, I had been in versions of the costume. When you stand on that first day and you look in the mirror and you've got your head in shape at that point, you're absolutely ready to try and see if you can least try to bring this man to life. It's am amazing feeling.

Walton: The only difficult thing I found was that I actually had eight makeup tests. Before we started filming, I was so focused on getting Nuala's look right, which is frustrating in one sense because you at that point you're establishing your character and you don't really want to be focusing too much on what you look like. You want it to be sort of normal. Once you finalized it and you start filming, you kind of forget about what you look like. You use it.

Goss: You want to know your face, don't you? You want to know what you have so when you're imaging your interactions and backstories and things and internal monologues and things you're never going to see, it's nice to know the guy that you are.

Question: I don't see your character as being a bad guy. You're only bad really depending on which side of the fence you're sitting on.

Goss: Guiilermo (del Toro, director) said to me, "Luke, Nuala is right." That was the directive he gave me. And obviously the directives he gave other people are theirs, but mine was certain was that Nuala was right. I would do what he does.

I've been raised to honor the agreement (as Nuala). I've been raised to have honor and nobility and a sense of our people, my father's people. It's not like we're twisted on that. But I can't accept the demise of them inevitably... I can't allow that to happen.

Walton: And it's not that straightforward for her, either. Them being almost the same person, she understands that and recognizes it. And she's in a very difficult position. For both of them, it's about honor. She's being the one that's agreed with her father that she'll do whatever it takes to keep the truce in place. I don't think that's necessarily that easy. Part of her doubts. And this is the part of her (Nuala) that believes in the justice of their people. Therefore she has be the one to be responsible and hold the truce together.

Goss: The divide between us. We had so many conversations -- over so many vodkas. (laughs)

Walton: Before we were working obviously.

Goss: But they feel the same. If one gets injured, the other does. It's trying to find that line of divide physically, trying to find that line of divide for your allegiance and choices. They flirt with each other so much all the time, they're almost the same. That was the hardest thing. We so shared so many conversations about that exact subject. It was a lot of fun.

Question: What surprised you about Guillermo, the director?

Walton: Everything, really. I didn't know really what to expect. I've seen his work, but obviously didn't know him as a person. I was on a daily basis just fascinated to watch him working and his constant involvement in every aspect of the filmmaking, the fact the was always creating and always drawing and always hanging around, tweaking the little monsters. From the slightest detail, like the ears needed to be moving a little bit more on one of the creatures or something.

And just the fact, I don't know how he slept. I don't think he did sleep.

Goss: He would go straight to editing after filming, to check on how that was coming along. A few hours rest and he was back.

Walton: It was inspiring. You felt like the least you could do is deliver the same amount of energy that he had.

Goss: I was very excited. I had worked with him before (on Blade II). And I've seen him work and one thing he doesn't do is he does not guess. He does not guess. He's not like, "We can't work this out" or "Maybe we'll do this." He has an absolute knowledge of filmmaking and the process of filmmaking. It has limitations and he can stretch those limitations in a pioneering kind of way.

I was like a kid in a candy store. I couldn't wait to get back on that set with him. It's intimidating, but he's also encouraging and you can't help but grow working with him.

Question: Has he grown as a director?

Goss: I think so. Not only has he grown as a director, but it's lovely to see that he has more square feet around him now. When he moves his arms, he doesn't bump into these people second-guessing him. He can move and walk freely and act freely creatively. As a friend and someone who loves him dearly, it's such a nice feeling to see such a huge studio that is not only behind him but understands the filmmaker that they have. As an observer only, it's just nice to be a part of that, to witness that, after you've seen it before when it wasn't exactly like that.

Question: Anna, can you talk about your previous fighting experience?

Walton: In Mutant Chronicles, which is the film I did before Hellboy, which is coming out next year with Ron (Perlman), I was his protector in that, so my fight training was extensive in that. I had to look like I was very, very good.

Question: What kind of fight training?

Walton: I was using two swords. It was a mixture of a martial art and something more involved, with a little bit of fencing in there as well. It became it's own unique style. I have yet to see the film, but it was certainly a lot of fun.