Nika Futterman voices the character Assajj Ventress, who is quickly becoming as legendary as Darth Maul in the world of villains in the "Star Wars" universe. Futterman has also voiced parts in "Dead Space: Downfall," "Open Season," and "Batman: The Brave and the Bold." Ventress is in this week's episode of "Star Wars: The Clone Wars," entitled "Bounty." After being kicked out of the Sith training program by Count Dooku, she's decided to take up a new career path-bounty hunting. I had the opportunity to talk to Futterman about the role and what we can come to expect from the character in the near future.
Tell us what it was like to get the role of Assajj Ventress in an iconic series like "Star Wars: The Clone Wars."
It was actually the hardest job to get. I really had to work for it. I did like three callbacks. I needed to get this job because I wanted to be a part of this universe which is way too cool. That was the first thing. When I did get the job I started to realize I didn't want to make this character the evil chick that has only one level to her. It became something else. It became about finding out all the different things about her vulnerability and how kick-ass she was. I was finding out what she was about at the same time the writers and creators were creating her. They were giving her this real backstory about who and what she was. She wasn't just that evil chick. She has this serious history of why she became who she is.
Do you find yourself doing research for the character through the "Star Wars Encyclopedia" or other Expanded Universe resources?
A lot of my character has been created in the last couple of years. There isn't a whole lot of backstory. Where my character is going now is completely new. A lot of times its like, "Guess what Nika? Guess what's going to happen now with Ventress? Guess what she's becoming? Guess what she's transforming into?" I'm like, "Oh, that's so cool." There really isn't any other reference for me to check out. Everything's just completely new. I don't really have that option like some of the other characters that have a real history down on paper.
Do you get the scripts in advance? If so, how far in advance?
If you had a script where you had a lot of lines they would send it to you a couple of days before a few years ago. I don't get the script until I get to the session most of the time. That's how top secret it is. They don't even want us to know.
Do you sit down with supervising director Dave Filoni one on one or as a group to discuss the scripts before voicing begins?
He doesn't sit down with us during the week. He definitely sits down with us at the session. We'll have this whole hour-long discussion before we start reading the script. It's the whole crew. If your character is heavy in that script, it's kind of a one on one. Dave is really incredible like that. If it takes two hours for everyone to get the vibe of what's going on, then he'll take it. That's how they do it. They don't do it beforehand. It's a surprise for everybody what's going on when we get in there. It's pretty cool but it takes some quick adjustment to go, "Oh, wow. Crazy." It's especially that way for my character, which is making some serious changes in the upcoming episodes. She's really transforming into this other person.
The last episode, "Massacre" dealt with some really dark and heavy personal issues surrounding the character of Assajj when she goes back to Dathomir. Can you elaborate on that?
You find out what her life has been about. She's been a pawn in many ways. She became who she was and the bitter side of her came out. Her parents die, the person who was taking care of her was killed, and she basically has been looked down upon by everybody. That's really where I started. What makes a person become evil? What makes them feel they no longer trust anybody? She started off as this person who wanted to be trustworthy and then as things happen in her life, she's like, "Everybody's done this to me. Now it's just me, myself, and I." Here's this person who's been left on her own to fend for herself completely.
It's very intense. It's a sad episode. I was talking before about how she's loved but her so-called family has all died. More of that happens. It's the end of her former life and the beginning of her new one as a completely different person. She now completely feels like she's on her own because of what happens on Dathomir. It's intense. The Nightsisters get wiped out with the exception of Mother Talzin. We don't really know what's happened with her. She had this one place left in the world that she felt she was a part of. Now it's completely gone. She has to make this decision about her life. What's going to happen next? Who's she going to become next? How is she going to survive? She's going to figure out any way that she can do that. It gets her a fresh avenue to start this new existence. You feel even worse for her. You start understanding why she's an angry woman.
Can you share with us a little bit about the next episode, "Bounty"?
Assajj gets to this point where she's like, "It's all gone for me now. I have to just learn to exist. How can I make money? I'm going to become a bounty hunter. I'm just working for myself. Nobody is going to be my boss. Nobody is going to screw with me or screw me over. Everything is going to be for money. I'm making this a pure business decision. I'm going to exist in a way that's purely on a business level because that's the way I can function." That's how she goes into it. What's so interesting and wonderful about it is she starts off in the next episode, "Bounty," thinking like that. This leads into her first bounty hunting job working with Boba Fett. You see what a kick-ass chick she is. She's like, "You don't know who you're messing with. You think you're all that. You're not even a tiny little piece of me. I'm so much better and bigger than you." She ends up in this relationship with this young princess and finds herself connecting with her. You now get an idea that she has a heart. She has a choice in this situation where she saves this princess. She didn't have to. She ends up feeling like, "Wow. This person is me and I can't screw her over like I've been screwed over." She goes into her new life thinking, "I don't care what the job is. I'm doing it. I'm taking the money. Forget anybody else and their life. If people have to be killed, whatever. I don't care. What's beautiful about the episode is she completely changes. You end up seeing this compassionate side of her.
Are you a "Star Wars" fan or is it just a job for you?
Once you become a part of this world, you're a fan in a different way. It's just your world. I find myself thinking all the time when I'm trying to figure her out, "What was she doing then? What is her place in this whole universe?" I think that's part of being an actor. You're constantly trying to feed from the world. Doing this project is unlike anything I've ever done in my whole career. I've been doing this for twenty years. There's no fanbase that even compares to "Star Wars." It's so mind-blowing. The other thing is there's such a vast universe and it's so real. It's the same as being into a TV show. Once you're in it long enough you feel like it's your real world. I think everybody who's part of this project does that. I would say maybe other people more than me. They have so much more knowledge than I do. It's not because of a lack of interest. It's just that I'm not in the show as much as Ahsoka [Ashley Eckstein]. She really does the homework. She can answer the questions and does the research. She's a geekster. It's awesome when I go into a session with everybody like Ashley, Catherine Taber [Amidala], Dee Bradley Baker {clone troopers], and James Arnold Taylor [Obi-Wan Kenobi]. They know so much. It's like listening to Chinese. It's really exciting. There's something that's nice about being the dummy in the room. You can learn a lot. I've taken this on as this real role in my life. When I go in there, it becomes this real thing. I'm just in it. I feel her. I become her, like doing a movie or a television show on camera. I feel like everybody who does this feels that way. We go in there and become those characters because the universe is so massive and real. How often do you have a canvas that's already been so painted? That's what the universe is.
Explain the difference between voicing "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" and the video games?
I'm still Assajj. What's makes a video game different is you're not interacting with the other actors. You're talking to the audience because they're the player. It's a different thing you're relating to. It's all of us together when we're in the series recording session. We're acting off of each other. I don't have that back and forth with the video game. It's a completely different feeling. The lines are usually short, they're said for a purpose, and a lot of the time it's to the player. You're talking to someone who's not really there. It doesn't feel as real, but I still try to come from that real place.
What is Nika Futterman the person about?
I'm not a big TV watcher. I grew up in a house where we weren't allowed to watch television. I think that's why I approach everything from a different place. I've hardly seen anything I've ever done. I spend a lot of time reading. I have two kids. I did all of that late in life. I waited late to get married and have a kid, so now that's a huge part of my life. I have a daughter who's three and a stepson whose 17. My little secret thing is I'm a poker player. I spend a lot of time playing poker. My job as a voiceover actor is the best ever. It leaves me some time to obsess over the game of poker. The last couple years I've been obsessed with becoming a world class poker player. I spend a lot of time playing poker tournaments around Los Angeles. I can relate to Assajj. She's this kick-ass chick that tries to take down all the men. I don't think it's specifically men. It just happens to be that men are the bad guys most of time. She's taking them down. That's how I feel at the poker table. I haven't done any of the celebrity poker things. I'll probably end up doing that this year because I've been taking down some big tournaments. Philosophically, I'm a lover, not a fighter. I'm the opposite of Assajj.
You can see an exclusive clip from the episode "Bounty" right here.
You can see exclusive images from the episode "Bounty" right here.
For more articles by Eric Shirey, check out:
'Clone Wars' Sound Designer/Voice Actor David Acord Talks About His New Role
General Grievous Voice Actor Matthew Wood Talks About 'The Clone Wars'
Catherine Taber Talks About Voicing Amidala for 'Star Wars: The Clone Wars'
Eric Shirey is the founder and former editor of Rondo Award nominated movie news websites MovieGeekFeed.com and TheSpectralRealm.com. His work has been featured on Yahoo!, DC Comics, StarWars.com, and other entertainment websites. Eric has interviewed and worked with actors like Harrison Ford, Brooke Shields, Kenneth Branagh, Gerard Butler, Brendan Fraser, Selena Gomez, and many more.
