Steadily making her way in the entertainment world, Lucy Martin is a unique, rising talent. Performing as a dancer, in theater, before turning her attention to film and television, there are few young actresses with the diverse background as Martin. Making a name for herself portraying Ingrid during the final two seasons of Vikings, the British actress takes on a new challenge with her starring role in The Seed. Premiering exclusively via Shudder on Thursday, March 10, 2022, The Seed is a new Horror film that encompasses a broad range of styles into one wild ride. Recently, Martin sat down to chat about her career as an actress, working on Vikings, the craziness of The Seed, plus more.
Cryptic Rock – You started your career at a young age in entertainment and have done a diverse mix of theater, dance, and in recent years, film/television. How would you describe your career thus far?
Lucy Martin – Vast in the fact that I’ve done dancing on stage, acting on stage, all the way through to television and films. It is quite a difficult question to answer.
Cryptic Rock – Understandable. You worked in dance and theater prior to deciding to dive into television and film. Are these types of performance different for you as an artist?
Lucy Martin – Yes, they are all completely different way of performing.
Cryptic Rock – And with that you have a broader prospective than many young actors. Since you have started working in film and television you have done a steady balance of both. One of your bigger projects to date was your role as Ingrid on Vikings. What was that experience like?
Lucy Martin – I think about it very fondly. It was an amazing experience working with such incredible people. Everyone on the set from the crew to the cast were the best of the best in every way. It is really a fond memory of mine and I am very grateful for the experience.
Cryptic Rock – And you did a very good job with your role, viewers of Vikings will always remember Ingrid’s character. You now have a new film set for release via Shudder March 10th called The Seed. It is a mix of Horror, Comedy, and Sci-Fi. So, how did this project come about for you?
Lucy Martin – I actually did a film in Malta the year before called The Grand Duke of Corsica (2021). From working on that film I was then sent the script for The Seed. They didn’t necessarily have in mind which character they wanted me to play, but they sent me the script and asked me if I was interested. After reading all the madness I was up for the challenge!
Cryptic Rock – It really is quite a wild film. Your character, Deidre, is a socialite/internet personality type of person who does not seem to care about anything but herself. What did you think about your character?
Lucy Martin – Grotsque! (Laughs) She’s quite a force to be reckoned with and I had a lot of fun developing her as a character. Me and her are very, very different as people, but it was so much fun making her. The script has a lot of dialogue in it, so it was quite easy to get what she was like and what she thought about things; let’s be honest, she spoke about them.
Her character is very honest and direct, so in way it was easy to create her. I loved creating her and it was exhausting. I think it was the most tiring character I’ve played yet, but in a really good way. I haven’t played anyone like her so far. I enjoyed playing someone so different.
Cryptic Rock – She is certainly a character you cannot ignore. You say it was exhausting. She is very vocal, energetic, and obnoxious at times. Was putting all of those characteristic into the role what made it exhausting?
Lucy Martin – I think it’s just the energy in which she lives her life. Every scene Deidre would come into she was always go, go, go. She’s always thinking about the next idea and carrying that through at a high level everyday. That is so different than me and that was tiring, but in a way that I loved it. It was great fun.
Cryptic Rock – Well you made Deidre extremely believable. The film centers around yourself along with Sophie Vavasseur and Chelsea Edge. What was it like working with them?
Lucy Martin – We actually went out to Malta two weeks before we started filming. All three of us lived together in an apartment so we got to know each other very well in a short space of time. Chelsea and Sophie are such great actresses. They made the project really enjoyable. They are fantastic to work off, we all understood each other and gave each other space and time. It wouldn’t have been the same without them.
Cryptic Rock – You all did a great job. An vital aspect for a film with such a small cast like The Seed is the chemistry between the core characters. The friendship between yourself Sophie and Chelsea on screen seems very real.
Lucy Martin – Well it was. Our actual dynamic is very different when it’s just the three of us, because none of us are like our characters. It is quite weird, we are all polar opposites to who we play. We actually really got on and we’re still friends now. We have a WhatsApp group and we talk on there at least every couple of weeks. We meet up together as well. We are lucky that we get on so well and actually made friends.
Cryptic Rock – That is very cool. The other key component to The Seed is the creature. As a viewer you keep trying to figure out what it is; it looks like a turtle without a shell. What did you think about the creature?
Lucy Martin – (Laughs) Initially I thought it looked a little bit like a mix between a turtle, a teddy bear and a little like a mole. However, after the black goo, and after the film developed, it didn’t look so cute anymore. It didn’t look so to us at least, it just looked a bit weird. We didn’t want to touch it. (Laughs)
Cryptic Rock – (Laughs) Don’t blame you there. The Seed is your very first Horror feature. So, is a role Horror something you wanted to do, and would you do it again?
Lucy Martin – I always wanted to do a Horror film. Although I always thought I would be the villain…but I guess I kind of was in a way with playing Deidre. It is also the reason why I took the role. I would definitely work in Horror again, it’s so much fun. I don’t think anything will every compare to the madness that was The Seed though, because I think that covered all Horror bases and was craziness.
Cryptic Rock – It really does cover a lot of bases. You have your Comedy, Horror, and Sci-Fi. You also have a creature who wants to procreate with earthling women.
Lucy Martin – I remember reading that part in the script and thinking, “What! I don’t get this!” After speaking to Sam (Walker) we learned more about what it was about and what he envisioned, so it all started to make sense. Even though it was crazy, and we were all on that crazy journey, we started to understand it.
Cryptic Rock – Well Horror fans are going to certainly enjoy this one! With The Seed complete, what else do you have on the horizon?
Lucy Martin – I just finished filming a boxing film called Prizefighter: The Life of Jem Belcher. I can’t say too much about it, but it’s about the birth of boxing and set in the 1900s. It’s about the journey of a boxer. I can’t say too much more, but it is brilliant film. If you like boxing it will be a great film for you.
Cryptic Rock – That is something to look forward to. So it is another period piece like Vikings. Period pieces are extremely fascinating. Do you enjoy working in that realm?
Lucy Martin – I love it. It’s like time travel. I have always said that I think I’d like to do a Western. When you do a period piece and you walk on set and it like traveling back in time when you are in a different costume. It’s amazing and you kind of get to see a little bit of what it was like.
Cryptic Rock – Right and these type of films/series are most effective when the set design, locations, and costumes look authentic.
Lucy Martin – Yes and Prizefighter: The Life of Jem Belcher is similar to Vikings in that way. I’m wearing a corset in this new film. After wearing it that many hours in a day I learned why people ask not to wear them, especially after lunch time! (Laughs)
Cryptic Rock – (Laughs) And to think there was a period in history people wore them! Last question. As a diverse performer, what are some of your personal influences?
Lucy Martin – I suppose music is a big one for me. I think it is also different performances that I’ve see. Honestly, just life in general, especially when it comes to acting. I take real life and that is something that inspires and influences me in different directions.
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