Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with Jupiter’s Legacy’s Tyler Mane

Audiences are raving about Tyler Mane’s thrilling performance as the iconic Blackstar in Netflix’s Jupiter’s Legacy. Adapted from the popular comic book series, Jupiter’s Legacy follows the next generation of superheroes in an epic drama that spans decades and navigates the dynamics of family, power, and loyalty.

Tyler’s character Blackstar tests their moral compasses, proving that things aren’t always black and white.

Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to chat with Tyler about his starring role in Jupiter’s Legacy and bringing this supervillain to life on the small screen.

PC: How did you discover your passion for the arts?
Tyler: Wow. I was a tall, skinny kid with glasses and braces. I grew up in Canada. I was slightly dyslexic, so I hated school. I would find my escape on Saturdays watching Stampede Wrestling and the Hart family, and then I would go from there to the cartoons. I would read my comic books until the action shows would start. At the end of the weekend, I would watch The Wonderful World of Disney. After I saw that, I had to go to bed. I knew I had to go back to school.

From that, I decided I wanted to be a pro wrestler. Everybody was like, “How are you going to become a pro wrestler? You’re this tall, skinny kid.” So, I started working out and training in the martial arts, and I decided that it was something that I really wanted to do.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Tyler: When I look back on my influences, I would turn to people like Arnold Schwarzenegger for action. The Hart family was a very big influence in wrestling. I got to meet with Stu Hart, and he decided that he was going to train me. They were very big driving forces for me to get in and follow this business.

PC: You’ve had a lot of success throughout the years. When you look back, is there a particular moment that stands out to you?
Tyler: In my wrestling career, it was getting the opportunity to wrestle Andre the Giant in the Tokyo dome. I was one of the last people to wrestle Andre before he passed away. That was one of the biggest wrestling moments.

In my acting career, I’ve been very blessed, from playing Sabretooth in the first X-Men movie to King Ajex in Troy, to being able to take on the iconic character of Michael Myers in Rob Zombie’s Halloween, and now playing Blackstar in Jupiter’s Legacy. It’s hard to pinpoint any one moment.

PC: In addition to acting, you’re also a producer and writer. How has your work behind the scenes made you a stronger actor and vice versa?
Tyler: When you’re acting, you’re wondering and thinking, “I should be getting more roles or doing things.” When you actually put on that producer’s hat, you see how many people submit for every role. While I was working on Compound Fracture, one of the roles had over a thousand submissions and the other had over eighteen-hundred.

You can only pick one person. It comes down to several different things. It’s like, “Do they fit in with the cast/ensemble you’re trying to put together?” It’s not necessarily any person’s acting ability or their look or any of that. Do they fit in with the piece that you’re trying to produce?

Once I did that, I realized that you’re not going to win every role. You’re not going to be able to do that as an actor. That was one of the reasons why I wanted to get into producing—I wanted to create roles for myself.

Jupiter’s Legacy

PC: You’ve got a new series out now. Tell us about Jupiter’s Legacy, your character, and what attracted you to this project.
Tyler: Jupiter’s Legacy tells a story of families and how they have to deal with each other through the decades. It’s about Utopian and the Union, and they have their issues. There’s a financial crisis in the 1920s and 1930s. Sheldon Sampson follows his instincts and his dreams to go to this island. They’re gifted with superpowers and are asked to protect the world.

I play Blackstar, who was the ultimate supervillain. He’s cocky. He’s snarky. He’s snide, intelligent, and powerful. He’s got an anti-matter battery in his chest.

Sheldon Sampson and the Union live by this code that they think they have to follow. I prove to them that mortality isn’t black and white; it’s subjective. Utopians believe that. My character, Blackstar, is pressing this issue with him and testing him on his code to see and show him that there are several shades of gray; it’s not black and white. Ultimately, I make him have to pick between his code and his family.

PC: When you’re working on a project that’s based on a popular comic book series, how much of the source material do you use as a frame of reference in your preparation?
Tyler: As soon as I was asked to audition for Blackstar, I immediately ordered the comic books and started reading them. Luckily, with a graphic novel turning into a feature film or TV series, there’s room to expand on characters, room to expand on storylines, and that’s exactly what they did. In the comics, Blackstar doesn’t stick around for too long, but in the TV series, he becomes a pivotal piece with testing the code and testing Utopian.

PC: The series is out now. It’s been incredibly well received. What do you think is resonating most with audiences?
Tyler: It parallels what we’re going through today. It deals with our moral compasses, politics, the financial situation, and how it pertains to all of us. It’s very relevant to what is going on in the world today—that’s one of the major reasons that I was drawn to it. I really enjoyed watching it and seeing it evolve.

PC: Do you have a favorite scene or moment that you’re excited for fans to see?
Tyler: It’s hard to pick a specific scene—those fight scenes were epic and unbelievable. But then the scene with Ben Daniels’ Brainwave where we got to spar a little intellectually was fantastic.

Also, at the very end of Episode 8 when I get to test the Utopian on his code. It’s a very strong storyline, and it was amazing to be part of it.

To keep up with Tyler, follow him on Twitter and Instagram. Watch Jupiter’s Legacy on Netflix today.

Photo Credit: Brezinski Photography