Charles Dance: Tywin Lannister v. Childhood’s End Karellen? Watch Ally Williams as she catches up with Charles Dance and Mike Vogel who star in Arthur C. Clarke’s Childhood’s End, one of the most acclaimed and influential science fiction novels of all time. The book will come to life in its first-ever adaptation this December. The six hour television event will premiere on Syfy over three consecutive nights beginning Monday, December 14, from 8-10PM ET/PT each night. The two fun actors talk about the Bay Area, thoughts on Utopia on Earth, and how Charles Dance’s Game of Thrones character, Tywin Lannister, would fare against Overlord Karellen from the miniseries.
Childhood’s End follows the bloodless takeover of Earth by the alien Overlords, who usher in a golden age of peace, health and security for all of humankind. But why do the Overlords insist on hiding their appearance – and what do they ultimately want? While much of the world enjoys its new found utopia, some suspect there’s a price to pay. As the truth about theOverlords’ intentions is revealed, humanity will discover its destiny may actually be a nightmare, and not a dream. Childhood’s End features a star-studded cast, led by Charles Dance (Game of Thrones), Mike Vogel (Under the Dome), Daisy Betts (The Last Resort), Julian McMahon (Nip/Tuck), Colm Meaney (Star Trek: The Next Generation), Osy Ikhile (The Fear), Yael Stone (Orange is the New Black), Ashley Zukerman (Manhattan), Georgina Haig (Once Upon A Time), Hayley Magnus (TheDressmaker) and Charlotte Nicdao (Please Like Me).Academy Award and Golden Globe winner Akiva Goldsman (A Beautiful Mind, I Am Legend) and Academy Award nominee Michael De Luca (Captain Phillips, Moneyball, The Social Network) are executive producers. Alissa Phillips (Moneyball, Mob City) is co-executive producer. Childhood’s End is adapted by Matthew Graham (creator of Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes, writer for Doctor Who), who also serves as writer/executive producer. The miniseries is directed by Nick Hurran, who received an Emmy nomination for Sherlock and a Hugo Award nomination for Doctor Who. Universal Cable Productions is the studio. Use hashtag #ChildhoodsEnd to discuss the event as it happens.
In some thirty five years as an actor Charles Dance has amassed an impressive body of work in all media from title roles with THE ROYAL SHAKESPEARE COMPANY including HENRY V and CORIOLANUS, and major work in London’s commercial theatre including, GOOD, LONG DAY’S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT with Jessica Lange,and SHADOWLANDS for which he received the London Critic’s Circle Award for Best Actor, through award-winning television series – THE JEWEL IN THE CROWN(BAFTA nomination for best actor) REBECCA, NICHOLAS NICKLEBY,FINGERSMITH, BLEAK HOUSE for which he received an International Emmy nomination and won the Press Guild Award for Best Actor, CONSENTING ADULTS about the ground-breaking Wolfenden Report of 1957 which resulted in the de-criminalisation of homosexuality, and more recently SECRET LIFE – a documentary about Charles Dickens’ turbulent personal life.
Major films include – PLENTY, WHITE MISCHIEF, GOOD MORNING BABYLON,THE GOLDEN CHILD, ALIEN 3, LAST ACTION HERO, HILARY AND JACKIE,MICHAEL COLLINS, STARTER FOR TEN for Sam Mendes’ Company, Robert Altman’s GOSFORD PARK, and KABLOONAK for which he received the best actor
award at the Paris Film Festival in 1996. THE PERFECT DISAGREEMENT directed by Antoine de Caunes, and THE SHOOTER with Wesley Snipes.
His debut as a film director and writer was LADIES IN LAVENDER with Judi Dench and Maggie Smith for which both ‘Great Dames’ were nominated for European Film Academy Awards. He has starred in the television series TRINITY, and MERLIN, as well as a new television adaptation of GOING POSTAL by Terry Pratchet. He filmed THIS SEPTEMBER directed by Giles Foster, also staring Eileen Atkins in the summer of 2010 and went on to film a second series in 2011. He filmed a two-part adaptation of the Peter Pan story for Sky entitled NEVERLAND in 2011, directed by Nick Willing also featuring Rhys Ifans, Anna Friel and Bob Hoskins. He also filmed GAME OF THRONES for HBO and Sky Atlantic, in which he stars as “Tywin Lannister”. Recent films include Roland Joffe’s THERE BE DRAGONS, YOUR HIGHNESS
directed by David Gordon Green also staring James Franco and Natalie Portman,IRONCLAD directed by Jonathan English, also featuring Derek Jacobi and Brian Cox,
Deepa Mehta’s WINDS OF CHANGE, the filmic adaptation of Salman Rushdie’s MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN, and THE AWAKENING – the fourth film in the UNDERWORLD franchise. In 2012 he shot the Russian film VIY in Prague, alongside Jason Flemyng, STRIKEBACK 3 in South Africa – again for HBO, and the political thriller SECRET STATE with Gabriel Byrne for Channel 4. Later in the year he travelled to Australia to shoot PATRICK directed by Mark Hartley.
In 2013 he shot CHILD 44 alongside Tom Hardy and Gary Oldman and directed by Daniel Espinosa. In the summer he starred alongside Benedict Cumberbatch and Kiera Knightly in THE IMITATION GAME being directed by Morten Tyldum. Charles began 2014 by filming DESPITE THE FALLING SNOW in Belgrade – starring alongside Rebecca Ferguson, Sam Reid and Anthony Head – and Paul McGuigan’s FRANKENSTEIN with James McAvoy and Daniel Radcliffe. Towards the end of the year he wrapped shooting on Burr Steers’ PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES, the long-anticipated film adaption of Seth Grahame-Smith’s New York Times best-selling novel. He also appeared in THE GREAT FIRE, a four-part drama for ITV, in which hestarred opposite Jack Huston, Andrew Buchan and Rose Leslie. He was recently seen in Universal’s DRACULA UNTOLD opposite Luke Evans and Dominic Cooper. At the beginning of 2015 Charles returned from Australia where he filmed CHILDHOOD’S END, directed by Nick Hurran, in which he plays ‘Karellen’. He then went on to shoot Thea Sharrock’s ME BEFORE YOU, in which he stars alongside Sam Claflin and Emilia Clarke. Most recently, Charles has filmed an adaptation of Agatha Christie’s classic mystery novel AND THEN THERE WERE NONE for the BBC,starring alongside Sam Neill, Douglas Booth and Aidan Turner.
About Mike Vogel
An accomplished actor with a distinguished career in both film and television, Mike Vogel stars in the Syfy six-hour miniseries Childhood’s End, as Ricky Stormgren, a humble Midwestern farmer whose life is turned upside down when he is chosen to be the sole representative on Earth for the alien Overlords.Ricky struggles with his new-found fame as a blue collar prophet, facing the weight of the entire world looking to him for answers.Adapted from Arthur C. Clarke’s iconic novel. Childhood’s End follows the peaceful invasion of Earth by the mysterious Overlords, which begins decades of apparent utopia at the cost of human identity and culture.Vogel has just completed season three of CBS’s mega hit Under the Dome, created by Stephen King and produced by Steven Spielberg. Vogel shot a terrific arc on A&E’s Bates Motel opposite Vera Farmiga. He also shot the independent films McCanick for Josh Waller and Jake Squared for Howard Goldberg. Vogel starred in Pan Am opposite Christina Ricci on ABC. He also starred opposite Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling in Blue Valentine and in The Help opposite Emma Stone and Octavia Spencer for DreamWorks. Some of Vogel’s past screen credits include: She’s Out Of My League, Cloverfield,Poseidon, Rumor Has It, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Vogel resides in Nashville with his wife and three kids.
