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People always ask me, 'Why so many historical dramas?' Because those are the best roles I get to play, and I get to play heroes in those roles.

I find historical figures in general very tricky because you feel at times that you're serving two masters. Not only the arc and wonderful writing that comes with the show, but also the history of a person's life.

But no, I don't think I'm particularly drawn to the period roles or the medieval roles.

For mine, the villains of the piece were always important. In a traditional sense, that's always an important role.

People have their complexities. They have their heroic moments and their villainous moments, too.

It's hard when you play something that people are like, 'Wow that's really cool - you just did something really epic,' because you're not always going to be playing epic characters in a role.

If you look back at the great classics and the epics and myths, they were for everyone. Different people got different things from them, but everyone was invited to participate.

It's interesting to explore the darker side, but the hero piece is interesting as well. It's like choosing between comedy or drama. I like to do both.

I really believed that if I could play that character, who is grounded in the earth and the history of the United States - not the kind of role I usually play - it would help me change the perception out there and my own perception of what I can accomplish as a performer.

Ever since I was a kid, I've always been fascinated by the Arthurian Legend, and, you know, the notion of nobility in battle and the - the notion of chivalry.