Astarion from Baldur’s Gate 3 is certainly up there in the hall of fame of killer RPG companions—not just because he’s literally a killer as a vampire, but because he’s a nuanced, complicated character performed by a very talented actor. It’s no shock that Neil Newbon, who played him in Larian’s finest, received awards for his work.
But he’s not really interested in retreading the same ground. That’s per a recent interview with FRVR, where the actor explained his reasoning while discussing David Bowie: “I think he understood that extreme repetition breeds stagnation as an artist … I always liked that about him as an artist, that he was constantly trying out new things.”
As a matter of fact, it’s Bowie’s influence on Newbon that’s encouraged him to mix things up: “I’ve definitely avoided a few roles recently not because they were bad projects or anything, just because they, for me, the character—they kinda want the Astarion thing.
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“It was just like, ‘Well, I don’t really want to do that again. It’s too close to the character I’ve already done, I don’t think I could offer anything necessarily that’s interesting to this particular character’.” In the specifics, it’s more about the role itself than the actual timbre of his voice, though: “That’s a different thing, I’m talking about when people say: ‘This character’s just like Astarion!'”
It all makes sense—after all, Newbon really seems like he adores the craft, and I cannot imagine a worse torture than being stuck in the same type-cast venn diagram of flamboyant and tragic for the rest of your acting career. Torture for him, mind—dulcet tones for us, but I’m certainly glad he’s able to stretch his legs. For instance, as a religious space insect in Starfinder: Afterlight.
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