Actors, Dan Hamill and Jordi Webber have already chosen fitness as a consistent part of their lifestyles but receiving the call to play a gladiator on STARZ latest series, Spartacus: House of Ashur, lit a fire that would prove to get them in the best shape of their careers. In an exclusive chat with M&F, both men talked about the process of becoming gladiator-ready, both on and off set.
“Being naked on camera is terrifying,” says Dan Hamill, “So you better get you butt and your abs, very toned,” he jokes, laughing at the surrealness of it all. The Australian actor, who starred in “Neighbours,” (one of his country’s most popular soaps) and the Canadian series Hard Rock Medical, tells M&F that he was amped to join the cast of Spartacus: House of Ashur as Celadus, a wise gladiator and formidable fighter. The urgency to up his game was shared by Jordi Webber, the actor and musician from New Zealand, who is no stranger to action sequences, having played the Gold Ranger in the Power Rangers Ninja Steel series. Still, the challenge of making the transformation to the gladiator, Tarchon, (son to Hamill’s character, Celadus) was a dream come true. “There’s nothing better than getting paid to do something that’s hard to do,” says Webber.
Spartacus: House of Ashur follows up the Spartacus story, and the shoot required its gladiators to perform with the same superhero level of combat as last seen in Spartacus: Vengeance. For Hamill, one of the biggest changes was to ramp up his cardio in order to build his stamina for battle. In the same vein, Webber shares that morning walks were essential in order to warm up his muscles before getting to set, a necessary part of dealing with long shoots. “You’re in all these thick pieces of armour,” explains Webber. “They restrict your movement, so you had to make sure you warmed up before you even got to set.” Hamill also saw the value in warming up before donning his gladiator gear. “Otherwise, you’re going to get injured,” he notes. “We wanted to get our bodies sorted before dropping in and chopping someone’s head off!”
Starz
Dan Hamill and Jordi Webber trained hard to make gladiator worthy gains
Of course, the process of making muscle gains to become a gladiator began weeks before cameras even rolled. Hamill says that pullups and chin ups were a staple of his prep, helping to hone his arms, shoulders, chest, and lats for a buff upper body. “Jordan doesn’t need any help with his pecs though,” praises Hamill. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but they are quite nice.” Webber quipped back that his superior pec presentation was a result of being shorter than the other actors. “I’ve got gravity on my side,” he jokes. Still, one exercise that was no joke, occurred in bootcamp, when Webber was asked to work with a long sandbag. “I hate the worm,” he shares. “That thing sucks.” Working with the worm involved getting underneath it and resting it on your shoulder before throwing it over the other side of his torso. “It’s an arch nemesis now, if we ever go back for a season two,” says Webber.
Training for Spartacus: House of Ashur required jiu-jitsu, sword play, knife work, and hand-to-hand combat training. To make the show as authentic as possible, striking had to be complemented by learning to roll and move in the correct way. “Brother, that’s not something you do in everyday life,” reflects Webber. Hamill tells M&F that when it comes to
training, he’s always preferred to do it solo, so he didn’t relish the group work. “I’d train weights in the corner, which is kind of my character anyway,” he shares. “We were learning wushu (a Chinese martial art integrating forms from various traditional and modern Chinese martial arts). For me, prepping for this role has definitely ignited a fire. Since making the show, I’m the guy at the side of the gym with his stick doing flips and tricks, and I’m obsessed with it now.”
‘Spartacus: House of Ashur’ was Dan Hamill and Jordi Webber’s most challenging project to date
“What you see on camera is a part of it, but when we weren’t acting, we were stunt training,” explains Webber of making the show. While exhausted physically, the actors would then be required to portray the emotions that the more tender scenes deserved. “You had to tap into the tears,” explains Hamill, saying that becoming a gladiator was a workout for mind, body, and soul. Webber, conquers. “You’re fighting every single day, half naked all the time. There was never an OFF button, we didn’t have doubles for the stunts, I was showing up and performing stunts on wire rigs, same day. In the middle of a fight (the crew) would be like, cool, now we’re gonna clip you in so that you can execute a big dropkick into a wall. Everything was so quick. One of the hardest challenges was protecting your body, and your energy,” reflects Webber.
Fortunately, catering on set was split into a table for gladiators, and then a table for everyone else, so that the workers could load up on high protein foods like chicken and steak. Lean vegetables like broccoli were made available for those who were going to be sans shirt. For a treat after filming, both men would mix cereal, milk, and protein powder to fuel up for the next day. “It was kind of a bonding thing that we did,” shares Hamill, who still counted his macros on a daily basis to stay ripped.
Spartacus: House of Ashur also introduces Canadian actor and model, Tenika Davis, as Achillia, the first female gladiator in the series who is central to the plot. “She came in and hit the ground running,” recalls Webber. “I commend her so much for his role. More than just being a great actress, you have to be really, really physical, and strong, but the greatest strength of all is her mentality. You’re just getting beaten up man, and it’s sore, and it destroys your body. She did it with such grace. Many people would have broken, like ten times over.” Hamill seconds Webber’s assessment. “She’s got a fighter’s spirit.”
