It seems like Anna Hutchison has a boundless supply of energy and enthusiasm.
Even after long hours of filming Spartacus: War Of The Damned, the diminutive actress is still delighted to chat about everything from her flame-red wig – “It’s outta control! I come in at 5am and get my wig put on and leave at 7.30pm and be blonde again” – to the three-week bootcamp she had to do with the stunt team before taking the role of Laeta.
The source of her energy is an even greater mystery when she reveals that she is hiding in her trailer to avoid the on-set catering while she lunches on a small cup of porridge instead.
It’s not some crazy celebrity diet. Hutchison, voted Sexiest Woman on TV in TV Guide’s Best On The Box annual readers’ poll, is taking part in the Live Below the Line anti-poverty campaign, where participants live on $2.25 a day.
“Do you notice how I’m in solitary confinement right now It’s so tricky.
“I’ll pop into makeup and smell the bacon and eggs and I don’t even like bacon and eggs but at the moment I do. It’s only five days, and for some people it’s their life. It’s really hard to even try to know how they’re living. I think my toothpaste costs more than the food.”
In addition to limited food and a tiring filming schedule, she also began training for the New York marathon but had to bow out after injuring her foot. As if that wasn’t enough activity, she has also been learning another language.
“I want to go to Spain. I’ve been learning Spanish while I’ve been doing this and it’s such a cool language. It all looks so colourful.”
While that regimen would turn most people into zombies, the LA-based actress is busy portraying a Roman woman who is involved with the rebels, including Spartacus, played by Liam McIntyre, in the final instalment of Spartacus.
“Liam’s awesome,” she says. “He’s such a good guy. I hadn’t seen his series because it wasn’t yet on air. So when I got the part Rex our producer said, ‘Watch the series’ and I saw the one with Andy (Whitfield) and I just loved it so much.”
Hutchison says the training bootcamp helped her bond with the stunt team and she learned a raft of skills.
“I had horse-riding lessons. It’s been outrageous because you know when you’re a kid and you go to horse-riding lessons after school – I was never one of those ones, but my friends were so it’s felt like I got all that stuff that I semi missed out on as a little one.
“I’m really making up for it now but with the most incredible riding instructor. It’s just amazing and his horses are so well trained, they seem mechanical…
“It’s just been this crazy world of learning all these new skills. There’s sword fighting, stunt training – a bit of Power Rangers has helped with knowledge of how to take a hit.”
Hutchison has been a regular on Kiwi screens in shows such as Go Girls and Underbelly: Mr Asia, and her international career is also gaining momentum with a lead role in the film Cabin In The Woods.
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“It was a very fun film. It’s nice to be part of something that’s just cool and entertaining.”
-TV Guide
