"The lovely Judi Shekoni will be playing the Amazonian vampire Zafrina in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn. She took some time from her busy filming schedule to talk with Team-Twilight!
Read on for what she had to say about being destined to play her role, charities she is interested in, Zac Efron as Edward Cullen, working with Mackenzie Foy, and her love for Jake Gyllenhaal. You can also find out why I want her to be my new BFF.
Team-Twilight.com: Right after your casting was announced, along with about 15 other actors, we ran a poll to see who people were excited to see onscreen in Breaking Dawnand you won the poll with about 30% of the vote.
Judi Shekoni: That’s awesome! Wow!
TT: You really kind of embody what people expect from Zafrina. Does that put a lot of pressure on you for the role?
JS: Well, not now I’ve nearly finished shooting. Maybe if I’d known it before. I think this is probably the best time for us to have this conversation. That’s amazing. I really do think – because obviously I’ve read the books and I saw the movie – and I’m kind of into the esoteric spirituality thing, and the character is so similar to me, you know physically and even a lot of the characteristics I feel like I embody. I was just blessed with, you know, it kind of aligned. When I read it, I was like, “Wow this is kind of similar,” and then to go in on it, I felt like I definitely had a lot of the characteristics. Hopefully they all carry through on screen and I kind of achieve everything that people expect and want. It is a great character and I am in love with her.
TT: When you went for your audition, were you auditioning for Zafrina or just for any role in the film?
JS: No, I was auditioning for the Amazons, so for both of them [Zafrina or Senna]. Obviously, I wanted Zafrina because she has a special power and I’m all about the special power! I specifically went in there dressed like the character with my braids in. I was like, I think I am gonna get arrested because I look too much like the character. I feel like I’ve tried too hard and they’ll think I’m a stalker or something. Before, as well, I made sure I recapped everything. So I went by myself at twelve o’clock at night the day before the audition and watched Eclipse. By myself in the Chinese Mann’s Theater in Los Angeles. But what was really funny is, because it was midnight, there was no one in any of the screens, and I went into the wrong screen and for like 10 minutes I am watching Charlie St. Cloud with Zac Efron.
TT: I don’t remember Zac Efron being in Twilight!
JS: Yeah, Edward looked different in the other movies. And I don’t remember him being on a boat! And then I realized I was in the wrong screen.
TT: Your character has a lot of interaction with Renesmee. Have you spent much time with Mackenzie [Foy]?
JS: I have, yeah, and she’s so lovely, such an amazing child. Like when I have children, I want them to be like her, just so well brought up. And that’s pretty much the consensus of everywhere and everyone, just saying what a well brought up, polite girl that she is. And very mature, as well, for her age. She’s super lovely, and it’s great, the relationship that they [Zafrina and Renesmee] have in the book is very strong and powerful and I hope that it carries across on screen.
