From ‘Arrow’ to ‘The Hobbit’: Salt Lake Comic Con guest Manu Bennett talks fans, career
Bennett
Actor Manu Bennett portrayed the character Azog the Defiler in Peter Jackson's three-part film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit."
Manu Bennett is set to make his second appearance at Salt Lake Comic Con this Thursday through Saturday.
The second annual Salt Lake Comic Con is just days away and is already shaping up to be the biggest and most star-studded incarnation of the event yet. Newcomer celebrities and SLCC veterans alike are gearing up for some face time with their fans and final touches are being put on vendor booths, displays and even the event’s massive guest list.
To help fans get excited for Thursday’s kick-off, television and film star Manu Bennett took a few moments to visit with the Daily Herald about his upcoming convention visit as well as his career in general.
Bennett plays the role of Slade Wilson and the villain Deathstroke in the CW’s hit superhero television series “Arrow” and will be joining his “Arrow” castmates Stephen Amell (Oliver Queen/The Arrow) and John Barrowman (Malcolm Merlyn) at the convention this weekend. According to Bennett, who attended the inaugural SLCC event last fall, it was his experience working with convention co-founder Dan Farr and the environment at the event in general that drew him back for a second showing.
“I just think it’s one of the best cons in the country,” Bennett said of the Salt Lake convention. “In their office, they’re just sitting there responding to fans, making it a real people’s convention. With some of these cons we go to, you can see people who are just looking for the money and filling up space with vendors and tickets, just wanting to make a buck. … They’re all great people, but Dan Farr is a people’s person. I’m fascinated with how he made the top five in his first year, and how big of a success it is.”
According to Bennett, Farr approached him in person last year at another convention to see if he might be willing to come to Salt Lake Comic Con. He eventually agreed, and, after his first visit, he was hooked.
“Dan Farr makes it really enjoyable,” he said. “He treats his guests extremely well and he’s a joy to work with. I think that’s the key. I love his Mormon values. I love it. He’s a wonderful man that knows the power of the entertainment industry, but he’s also breaking the mold, using it in a different way than anyone else who’s running a convention.”
According to Bennett, Farr and the representatives for Salt Lake Comic Con cater their event to their fans, giving them ample opportunities to connect with the celebrities they love.
Finding connections with people like the ones created by Salt Lake Comic Con are exactly what brought Bennett into the entertainment industry in the first place, and also what keeps him there. When he was younger, his family was hit by a terrible tragedy that culminated in the loss of both his mother and his brother in two separate car accidents.
“The emotional fallout from that put me in a difficult condition as a kid,” he said of the experience. “I was in turmoil. It was difficult to concentrate on my studies and my academics suffered. But what it did do is it gave me a lot of potential to put energy into the arts. That’s where I found the connection, and that’s where I started to express myself.”
Bennett’s professional acting career began in the early 1990s when he started appearing in Australian television shows and has only continued to build through the years. His latest and more well-known works include his role on “Arrow,” as well as his part as Azog the Defiler in Peter Jackson’s three-part film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit.” Among his most personally relatable roles was that of Crixus, a Gallic gladiator in the Starz series “Spartacus.”
“Crixus is a really complex character and it really sort of enabled me to go into a full range of emotional performance,” he said. “It touched on everything I’d experienced and was something I think resonated with the viewers … that’s always pushing me to the next level.”
Bennett said one of his best experiences at a convention came because of a fan who was able to connect to him through his work and through his characters.
“The other day a 7-year-old girl came up to me and said she was my No. 1 fan,” Bennett said. “She said her father had passed away last year and when she closed her eyes and wanted to be protected, she thought of my character Slade (from ‘Arrow’). It honestly brought me to tears. I think she understands my loss on some level. I was a 14-year-old kid again. Words are just furniture in scripts and productions. It’s really the character you build underneath the words that people connect with. I’m amazed that a girl her age was seeing through it all, seeing the boy I was back in those days. It makes it all worthwhile. … We’re all just looking for answers, looking for connection and stories are fundamental to that.”
Bennett said he’s excited for another opportunity to meet with fans here in Utah, and will be attending all three days of Salt Lake Comic Con. To learn more about Bennett and his upcoming visit, check out saltlakecomiccon.com.
SALT LAKE COMIC CON
What: Utah’s annual pop culture convention
Where: The Salt Palace Convention Center, 100 S. West Temple in Salt Lake City
When: Thursday from 2-8 p.m., Friday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Cost: $25 to $40 for single-day passes, $60 to $85 for multi-day passes. Discounts are still available for qualifying fans.
Info: saltlakecomiccon.com