It has been two decades since the release of the 2003 film “Underworld,” in which Kate Beckinsale portrayed the iconic vampiress Selene, a role that continues to define her career.
The path to action stardom was neither smooth nor straightforward for the now 50-year-old British actress. In a 2016 Role Recall interview with Yahoo Entertainment, Beckinsale revealed the challenges she faced early in her career.
During her time in America, she found herself auditioning for roles as tough characters like cops, which contrasted sharply with her early career breakthroughs in period costume dramas such as “Much Ado About Nothing” (1993), “Cold Comfort Farm” (1995), and “Emma” (1996). People had a certain perception of her, which she was determined to change.
Then came the script for “Underworld,” a film written by Danny McBride (not the comedic actor) and directed by Len Wiseman, whom Beckinsale married in 2004 and divorced in 2019. This script presented a formidable challenge: playing Selene, a fearless vampire assassin embroiled in a generations-long battle between her immortal kind and the Lycans, an ancient race of werewolves.
Beckinsale initially hesitated. “Oh, I don’t know if I could do that. I’ve never even thought about being that sort of person,” she recalled. The role demanded skills she had never possessed before.
“It was really frightening because I had never fired a gun before. I ran like a girl. I mean, it was a disaster. I really had to be mentored into that,” she confessed.
Throughout production, she underwent a transformation, with stuntmen being initially shocked by her lack of combat skills. “Throw a few punches,” they urged her, to which Beckinsale humorously mimicked her initial attempts at punching, admitting it was far from graceful. “Oh my god. This is gonna take a minute,” they remarked.
Despite the challenges, Beckinsale persevered, and the film “Underworld” was released on September 18, 2003. Surprisingly, it became a box office hit, grossing $95 million worldwide on a budget of $21 million. While it received mixed reviews from critics, it quickly gained a dedicated fanbase, and Beckinsale’s performance garnered her Best Actress nominations from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror’s Saturn Awards and the Teen Choice Awards.
The success of “Underworld” spawned four sequels: “Underworld: Evolution” (2006), “Underworld: Rise of the Lycans” (2009), “Underworld: Awakening” (2012), and “Underworld: Blood Wars” (2016). Although Beckinsale made only a brief appearance in “Awakening,” she reprised her role in the fourth and fifth installments.
As for the possibility of a sixth installment, Beckinsale has left the door open. “I always am [in shape],” she stated, emphasizing the physical demands of her character. “But you know you get a little bit more anxious if you’ve got a skin-tight suit and have to jump off a building. You step up the cardio a bit.”
However, she has remained cautious about committing to another sequel, explaining, “I feel like I’ve played that character a lot of times, so I highly doubt I would do that. But again, I’ve been saying that since the first one. So, I don’t trust myself.”
Meanwhile, Len Wiseman has reportedly been developing a TV spin-off of the “Underworld” franchise since 2017, though it has yet to materialize. The future of the series remains uncertain.
