Octavia Blake has had one of the most drastic transformations of any the characters on The CW’s “The 100,” a fact that the actress who plays her, Marie Avgeropoulos, is very into.
“I’m really proud of her character arc,” the actress told TheWrap of her onscreen alter ego. “She’s … gone from one extreme to the other between the pilot episode and the end of the Season 2 finale. She’s just changed so dramatically. It’s been such a pleasure to play her.”
On the post-apocalyptic sci-fi drama about a group of teenage delinquents sent down to a potentially hazardous Earth, Octavia started out by pursuing boys and butterflies, but quickly found her inner strength and began training to be a warrior.
“I had no idea where she was headed,” Avgeropoulos said. “Every new script is a new journey. It’s like Christmas morning, you open it up, you have no idea what it is. The writers on the show and especially [showrunner] Jason Rothenberg are really receptive to us as the artists and actors and what we want. At the end of the day, I’m like, ‘I need a sword and a horse.’ I got the sword — I’m still waiting for the horse.”
Octavia has become a fierce Grounder warrior in Season 2, but her newfound strength has put her at odds with Clarke (Eliza Taylor), the defacto leader of the 100, who has gone to dark places in order to save her people — including letting a missile drop on a village where she knew Octavia would be.
“There’s definitely animosity between these two characters now,” said Avgeropoulos. “But they love each other at the end of the day. Octavia looks up to Clarke, but now there’s been a dichotomy change where she looks up to Octavia too. The betrayal was such a major factor in Season 2, we’ll see how they reconcile that in Season 3.”
“The 100” has already been renewed for a third season, but after that mindbender of a Season 2 finale, Avgeropoulos is just as in the dark as everyone else about what the expect for Octavia moving forward. Could she end up in the mysterious City of Light?
“Who knows? I want to see the light,” Avgeropoulos laughed. “I’m sure Octavia does too!”
She also stars in “Tracers,” opposite Taylor Lautner, On Demand on DirecTV now and in theaters Friday.