The M Interview: Jaimie Alexander on being nude and tattooed
Thor actress Jaimie Alexander stars as an enigmatic amnesiac in new TV series Blindspot
Jaimie Alexander loves her fans - and credits her astrological sign for it.
"I am a Pisces so I can feel energy all of the time, and I don't want anybody to ever be afraid to come up to me and ask for a picture or a handshake, especially children."
The 31-year-old US actress said: "I like to put people at ease and say it's all right and I won't bite and I am a nice person, I think."
Her affability has attracted more than 130,000 followers on Twitter, where she describes herself as a "professional ninja and pizza eater".
We were at The Beverly Hilton hotel to talk about her new TV drama Blindspot.
At 1.75m, Alexander is as statuesque and striking as the Asgardian warrior Sif from the popular Thor movies she is best known for.
In Blindspot, Alexander plays Jane Doe, a mysterious amnesiac completely covered in tattoos that hold the key to her identity and, of course, the safety of the world.
She is discovered naked in a body bag in the middle of Times Square by an FBI agent (played by Sullivan Stapleton), whose name - Kurt Weller - is one of her tattoos.
Their relationship is complicated as they try to unravel the secrets of her past and build a shaky alliance.
Blindspot airs on Warner TV (StarHub TV Ch 515) on Tuesdays at 9.50pm.
The ink covers every inch of her body. They are not on a body stocking and take seven and a half hours to apply daily.
"We take the tattoos which are on paper transfers, lay them down and wet them down, and then we pat them once they are on to make sure that they don't move around. And yes, there are certain areas of my body that are hand-painted and so that gets a little interesting. We just try to talk about the weather."
She laughed and said she actually finds the process fun.
"I make jokes about it all the time. We listen to the Beatles on Pandora and that is our good luck station. And we have great coffee and great conversation and before you know it, hours and hours have passed and this amazing art gets created."
An interesting side note is that Alexander has nine of her own tattoos under Jane Doe's.
Her first appearance in the show was a nude sequence in Times Square shot at 4am on a cold night.
She recalled: "My body is so covered in those tattoos and it really feels like I am not naked. You have to strain to see anything inappropriate.
"I was actually in the body bag, and there were times that I didn't want to come out because it was so cold and I liked being in there.
"But it was an incredible experience to shut down one of the most iconic places in the world.
"It was eerie getting out of the bag and seeing that there were no people around and no sounds, nothing. It was almost apocalyptic."
NEW FIANCE
Alexander's new fiance Peter Facinelli, 41, co-star from the 2011 flick Loosies, was waiting at the back of the room during the press conference.
Facinelli is best known for his role as vampire patriarch Dr Carlisle Cullen in The Twilight Saga movies. The couple dated for three years before he popped the question in March.
His divorce from Beverly Hills, 90210 actress Jennie Garth, with whom he has three daughters, was finalised in 2013.
Alexander said: "I kind of knew him because we did a movie together and we had the same manager. He was more like a pesky older brother and quite honestly I thought he was annoying.
"And then later on, we saw each other in Australia (at a sci-fi convention) and it was just this fated thing. He's an amazing guy."
What was it about him that made her fall in love?
"He is just a bright light and he is funny and his kids are amazing and they have my heart. We have all just sort of evolved into this big blended family which is really fantastic."
But if you probe about wedding plans, she will get evasive.
"To be honest, I am just really enjoying being engaged to this man I love with all my heart. And I don't need a piece of paper right away and I don't need to rush into that to prove that I love him and he loves me.
"And honestly, if we didn't get married for another 10 years, that would be fine, and if we get married in a week, that's fine too."
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now
