HBO's Interview with Joe Manganiello

HBO recently sat down with the new star and werewolf of True Blood, Joe Manganiello. He had some interesting teasers for all of the fans of the show who are chomping at the bit for more information. Now that Alcide has finally met up with Sookie, there is yet another man in her life.  Since Sookie is searching for Bill and being courted by Eric, is there any hope for Alcide? Joe says,

"It's really for Alan Ball to answer. Alcide presents a very interesting option for Sookie... They're both kind of in interesting spots as far as relationships go."

Unlike most of the other werewolves we've seen thus far, Alcide has been pack-less.  Likewise, he has also been true to his promise to Eric and actually risked  harm to keep Sookie safe.  How does Joe Manganiello get into the groove of playing a solitary and somewhat less ferocious werewolf? Joe described Alcide as a man who "wants to live his life out quietly." The monster facade Alcide has was "constructed to keep people away from how sensitive they are." Any actor who signs on to True Blood knows that it will only be a matter of time before they are shirtless. Alcide is no exception to this rule as the season goes on. Therefore, Manganiello worked with Ron Mathews (the same trainer who got Hugh Jackman into shape to play Wolverine—ironic, no?)  to get into shape for this role.  Joe describes the process:

I met with him and did two workouts a day.  My shoulders and arms got bigger, but my waist got way smaller.  I've had to get all new jeans.

Due to the fact that going into and out of wolf form leaves you naked, it sounds like Manganiello may be rivaling Jason for shirtless onscreen time this season. Joe believes that he is taking Jason's place as the "piece of meat" on True Blood this season, but he definitely takes it well. Joe said that he won't be the same physically in 15 years, so he's taking advantage of how in shape he is now. Each of the actors who play werewolves actually get a real-life wolf counterpart. Manganiello's co-star, Thunder, is one of the larger wolves in the pack that has been brought in for True Blood. Joe recalls the first time he met Thunder as intimidating. When Joe and Thunder were first introduced, Joe was a bit scared because Thunder kept trying to stare him down. It didn't help that Thunder is a huge wolf and a wild animal. Even though Alcide may not have a group of werewolves whom he swears loyalty to (that we know about yet) on True Blood, Manganiello himself is not without a pack:

My girlfriend has a Yorkie and a King Charles.  She has these two little dogs that she calls my "wolf pack at home."  She's waiting for the were-Yorkie on True Blood.

SOURCE: HBO.com (Photo: HBO, Inc. Screencap by James)

http://truebloodnet.com http://truebloodnet.com/community http://truebloodnet.com/forums