You’ll soon be appearing in X-Men: Apocalypse, too. Now you’re more versed in dealing with fanboys thanks to Star Wars, do you think it helps going into another beloved franchise?
No, not really - the only fanboy I’m interested in is myself [laughs]. I’ve been a fan of Star Wars and particularly of X-Men and Apocalypse the character for a very long time so I’m excited to attack the character and inhabit that space just as someone who’s a big fan.
Are there any comic book villain clichés you’re keen to avoid?
It’s not always helpful to look at things as the villain. With sci-fi and fantasy, the story is actually human. When someone writes about mutants in X-Men, it’s not really about mutants, it’s about us. I’m researching the character and trying to understand what was trying to be expressed when they created this character for Apocalypse, and people’s fear that comes with that, what does that encompass.
Can you reveal more about what makes him tick?
You have to look at why he’s called Apocalypse. Where does the word Apocalypse come from? It doesn’t mean destruction, it means to lift back the curtain – a Greek term. A lot of ideas came for this guy came from the Book of Revelation, the Four Horseman and all that stuff, so it’s interesting.
Did you read many comic books as a kid?
I did. Spawn is one. X-Factor of course another. It was X-Men for a while and then a separate team became X-Factor, which, ironically enough, is also the first appearance of Apocalypse.