George Henare is acting royalty in New Zealand with a huge body of work in theatre, television and movies spanning more than three decades.

His first screen performance was as a suspected killer in the 1976 TV play The Park Terrace Murder. From there Henare starred as Hone Heke in the epic TV drama The Governor. Moving to the big screen, Henare portrayed the evil tohunga in The Silent One.

Henare’s other film and television credits include Mercy Peak, Shortland Street, Hercules and Xena, Rapa Nui, Once Were Warriors, and The Legend of Johnny Lingo. His most recent project is the yet to screen adaptation of Witi Ihimaera’s novel Nights in the Gardens of Spain.

In this ScreenTalk interview, Henare discusses:

• The responsibility of representing a historical ancestor in The Governor

• Having his entire body waxed to play a villain in The Silent One

• Being blown away by the intensity of the storytelling in Once Were Warriors

• His first experience of budget ‘downsizing’ on the set of Crooked Earth

• Fantastic catering and an awkward child co-star on Hercules

• Playing the father of a gay son in Nights in the Gardens of Spain

• Having his role in the The Lovely Bones dramatically downsized

• And why he believes evil characters are the real heroes

This video is available on YouTube to embed and distribute via a Creative Commons licence.

NZ On Screen:  Interview, Camera & Editing – Andrew Whiteside