Living the day-by-day lifestyle of a struggling artist, she
insists that as hard as it was, it was nothing but pure,
unadulterated fun. She scored herself an agent, started
taking acting classes, and tirelessly trained. “I was a small
girl from Winnipeg and I was doing my thing, meeting
people... living the dream!” But it was a grueling time –
working full-time at a bank, serving at restaurants part-time,
and heading to auditions on the miniscule downtime she
had. Must have been her stubbornness that brought her
from her rollercoaster Vancouver years to landing the lead
role in a major network television show.
For the uninitiated, Revolution is NBC’s indirect dystopian
answer to AMC’s The Walking Dead. No, there are no
flesh-eating undead, but that show was never really about
the zombies. Like The Walking Dead, Revolution’s overt
themes deal with, in Spiridakos’ words, “a world outside
of what we know.” Set fifteen years after all electricity in
the world powered done in one night, Spiridakos plays
Charlotte “Charlie” Matheson, a young adult struggling to
survive. Since there’s no electricity, the world has fallen back
into a literal post-modern Dark Ages, complete with rural
town populations, bloodthirsty raiders and a power hungry
government. It’s comparative to Bethesda Softworks Fallout
videogame series, sans the nuclear annihilation – note that
Spiridakos is also an avid fan of the games, according to GQ
magazine (nerd bait alert!).
Charlie Matheson starts off as a spunky rebellious girl,
running into danger head first, crossbow in hand and
self-preservation instinct handily stored away. Opposite
Billy Burke (nee Charlie Swan, aka daddy to Twilight’s Bella
Swan), they traverse across the United States to find out
why the power went out and how to get everything back in
working condition. Tall orders for a girl barely in her
twenties. Progression was imminent though, “I love that
she’s gone from somebody who’s vulnerable and a bit naive
to the world around her, to understanding the warrior that
she’s going to be,” Spiridakos says.
It’s an easy proclamation for Spiridakos to say she’s in love
with her character, the show and all the relationships, plot
twists and turn in Revolution. She’s giddy with glee when
talking about her craft. And to her, it’s all about the acting
craft that sets her gears going. “I love the craft. It’s such a
vulnerable thing. I love the opportunity to inspire
somebody, the opportunity to relate to somebody. Having
the ability to [sympathize] with somebody, on such a grand
scale, is amazing.”
Since all she cares about is her craft, Spiridakos has no time
for the Hollywood hullabaloo that most television stars
seem to be propelled towards. Instead, she focuses on her
family, whom she speaks so much about. A person’s
relationship with their family speaks volumes about their
character, and Spiridakos is a comfortably family-oriented
person. All that Greece must have done wonders for their
relationship. “My brothers are my best friends in the world.
They know everything about me, and we do everything
together when I’m here [in Winnipeg]. My folks, we’re on
the phone every day. Every time I need a little dose of
normal, I come here.”
It’s the normality of Tracy Spiridakos that brings out the
best acting in her. If Revolution, as she says, is all about the
character relationships, it’s only right that she personally
builds stronger ones around her. Also, she’s proud to say
that she’d do exceptionally well if ever a post-apocalyptic
dystopian situation ever happened – “There’s a lot of times
where I turn off my phone and all my gadgets. Just
throwing it to the side, just sitting down and hanging out
with my family. Talking with my dad, hearing his stories of
when he was younger. Play like I used to when I was a kid;
go outside and play street hockey or soccer with my
brothers.” Much like her character on the show, who’s
fiercely familial, it seems that family is all she really needs.
Isn’t that how it should be?