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A Conversation with Eric Etebari, Part One
(Ian Nottingham) April 2001
Q: Who is this mysterious dark creature Ian Nottingham?
A: This mysterious dark creature Nottingham is basically, well the way I've developed it, is he's like a ten-year-old child trapped in a man's body. Has no understanding of emotions, feelings, love, touch. He's been kind of someone who I believe has been sheltered from anything that would allow him to be independent. Which I think makes me quite the devoted servant to someone like Irons. I -- lack a sense of my own feelings so I rely on him for information, ideas, aspirations and goals. Stuff like that. So it's almost like this child trapped in a man's body doing manly things without any understanding exactly of what he is doing.
Q: What is his relationship with Sara Pezzini?
A: His relationship with Sara Pezzini is intriguing to him. It's new. I think it's the first person he's come into contact with where he's starting to venture into emotions and feelings. She's bringing out thoughts and ideas and emotions out of Nottingham that he would otherwise not have experienced. He starts to have feelings for Sara Pezzini. It's almost as though she's becoming like a mother quality. A sister quality. A girlfriend quality. She's bringing all these characteristics to Nottingham that he's avoided his whole life so that he could be focused and do the job at hand without any interruption. So I think that relationship with Sara Pezzini is growing into a direction of love, of caring, of compassion for another human. When he sees all the trials and tribulations that she's going through and I think he's starting to develop a sense of attachment 'cause it's so new.
Q: So on one hand he has this man who helps him set goals and is like a father figure. On the other hand he has this woman who could be his sister, his mother, his girlfriend. Where is his allegiance?
A: Nottingham's allegiance is undefined. Irons believes his allegiance is to himself. Sara believes Nottingham's allegiance is to Irons and Nottingham believes his allegiance is to his job. His duty. I think as the show continues to develop, his allegiance is going towards himself. His own feelings. His own actions. His understanding and definition of what right and wrong is. So as he grows and develops from like a ten-year-old to a sixteen-year-old to a twenty-year-old, he will determine whether his allegiance goes more in a direction of someone like Sara Pezzini or Irons. He could, you know, after all this information and all these episodes realize, 'hey, you know, I like the power of the dark.' Or he might say, 'I'm an altruist not a nihilist.'
Q: How much of his motivation is the Witchblade itself?
A: The Witchblade motivates Nottingham as a voyeur. I think he's looking at the Witchblade as an object of information. Understanding. It seems to create situations and scenarios that are educating him. Feeding him ideas and feelings that he otherwise would never feel. I don't think he so much wants to control the Witchblade as much as he is attached to the Witchblade's journey. He feels, 'Wow, this seems to be a source of new things. New experiences.' So I think he's drawn to the powers and the nuances the Witchblade brings out of people and it's helping him create his own line of right and wrong and define his own line of love and hate and happy and sad.
Q: What actually are the powers of the Witchblade?
A: Well aside from the powers the Witchblade possesses, aside from the weapons and the gauntlet and the mind-reading stuff, I think its greatest power is feelings. And I think the Witchblade, it really plays on your psyche. Your feelings. Your anger. Your sadness. I think it makes you question yourself. Challenge yourself. At points, it gives you confidence to think that, 'okay, I have this Witchblade. I can achieve anything.' And then at times it doesn't appear and then you have to rely on yourself at this point. So I think a lot of the power of the Witchblade is kind of weird. It possesses these powers but at the same time it really makes you look into yourself for those powers. It makes you look internally.
Q: So does the Witchblade control Sara Pezzini or does Sara Pezzini control the Witchblade?
A: I believe the Witchblade is controlled by Sara Pezzini. Unknowingly by Sara Pezzini. Which would be perceived to be as if Sara's being controlled by the Witchblade. But as you start to realize that it's Sara's actions, it's the situation that she's going through and her feelings, which are bringing the Witchblade alive. And once she understands that 'I am the motivating force behind these powers,' she'll have more control of it herself. But realistically I do believe that's why it's chosen Sara. Because she has the power to control the Witchblade.
Q: Then why is she so reluctant to take it and run with it?
A: Well, I think power's a very dangerous thing. I think that she's reluctant to accept the Witchblade because with power comes responsibility and with responsibility comes a whole bunch of things. Duty. Honor. And I don't necessarily know if she's willing and at this point ready to take on all those responsibilities. She's been through a lot and I think she feels that at this point the Witchblade is a hindrance to her life, but in actuality it's something that is going to enrich her life and give her power to achieve things that she'd like to achieve as a police officer. As an outstanding citizen of this world. As a humanitarian. Someone who's willing to put their own life at risk for the better of everybody.
Q: If you had to list the reasons why Yancy Butler makes the perfect Sara Pezzini what would those reasons be?
A: Yancy Butler makes a wonderful Sara Pezzini because Yancy Butler's human. She has feelings. She's extremely funny off set. She's extremely caring. She's tender. She's wonderful. She knows everybody's name. She's a true professional. And I think that it would be too easy to play Sara Pezzini as just some hard-nosed detective that's just tough rugged and athletic. I know that a few of the other people had mentioned that what makes her wonderful is her athletic ability. What I think makes her wonderful is that she's genuine. She's true to herself. She's true to her feelings. She's true to herself as an actress. She gives what she's feeling at that moment and I think that you want a character that is real. That you can identify with. That isn't necessarily so above the average person, you know? Off set, Yancy's just one of the boys. One of the girls. Snd it's admirable. I've never met anybody who's worked so hard and is such a professional. And I think to play Sara Pezzini with the amount of work that is entitled -- she's set a standard for me definitely. I've never seen anyone so dedicated. Work so hard. And walk off with a smile on her face. Even if she's hurting. She really comes to work ready to work and leaves you no room to complain for anything. It's, 'Yancy can do it; I can do it.' I am in awe over her as a professional. As a person. And as I said, a human.
Q: So she's one of those women that kicks ass.
A: She's a woman that kicks ass. But she doesn't do it with vanity. I look at her like she's a reluctant hero. The reluctant hero. Not someone who is just jumping to the vanguard to be the hero, but someone who has to be pushed. Who has to be antagonized to create. . .um . . .what was the question (LAUGHS)?
Q: (LAUGHS) I said so she's a kick-ass woman and you said she is, but she's very vulnerable.
A: Yeah she's vulnerable. She brings out vulnerability and I think that's what makes her really likeable and adorable -- that she has that combination between kick ass - but I think kick-ass is secondary. I think what she feels on screen is genuine. I think her pain is genuine. I think her laughter is genuine. I think kick-ass is just part of the job. I don't necessarily think it's who she is as a person as much as it's what she forces herself to do to get done what she needs to get done. And she's one of those people that will do what is necessary to get done, whether it's kick ass or not. But. . .I don't find her so much as a kick-ass person as much as someone who's just there to do a good job, you know, and give it her all. Whatever that requires.
Q: Have you seen her other work?
A: I saw some Brooklyn South stuff. I saw a film she did, I'm not quite sure of the name of it. Yeah, I was impressed but I didn't know the person, so I wasn't as impressed. You know, I don't think the other shows required as much as this one, so I really tried to separate her past experience and judge her new. Judge her for who she is in this show. What she brings to this show. I think as an you'd rather be judged for your present work than your past work. 'Cause I'm sure you finish shows you do, jobs, and you look back and go, 'Oh God. I could be so much this. I could be so much this.' So I judge her more for what she brings today than what she's done in the past.
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