Luciane Buchanan Interview: Insights from Voices of the Pacific

the first time he’s acted in a short film. So, creating that opportunity for Tongan actors to actually play characters who aren’t just there for jokes or for the ‘ethnic quota,’ or whatever it might be. I know that was a huge deal on The Night Agent, especially for me — we were the first family of any thriller to not have a white person in it.

You’ve accomplished so much already, and your career is just taking off. How did your journey lead you to landing the leading role in Jason Momoa’s Chief of War?

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Oh gosh, I was excited from the get-go. I went in for the original role, and then when I found out that cutoff was going to be rewritten, and Taika [Waititi] is going to read the lines, I was like, “Oh, this is even better!” And then, after our audition when it was like, “Okay, we want you to be the lead,” and it was with Jason, I was like, “Is this even happening?” Because we had chemistry right from the beginning, right when we walked into the room. His good vibes, his sense of humor is so in line with my sense of humor. But Jason, oh my gosh, he would always crack me up and make me nervous but also confident at the same time. And then, when I found out it was going to be on Apple TV+ and he was actually going to step in as the executive producer, I was like, “Oh, my gosh. I’m going to be working with him.” The whole cast, the whole crew, knew that we were making something special.

Fans saw how your character on Chief of War had a new hairstyle in every scene. Can you tell us about how a wig helped you land the role?

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Oh, this is so funny! I’m Tongan and my hair is naturally quite thin, so I have that frizzy hair. I went for the audition, and I was like, “I just want her to be full, long, thick hair like Lisa Bonet.” Lisa Bonet and Jason have such a strong look together, I thought it would be fun. Luckily, the costume designer was thinking the same thing! So, she was like, “Okay, we already talked about getting the extensions; you need to make sure you have big hair for the audition.” So, I sat in the chair, and this wig came out. And once I put on the wig, I was like, “I just want to keep her like this forever.”Honestly, as soon as I put on that wig, I felt like such a baddie. It literally changed everything for me at that audition, and I felt unstoppable. Now imagine, straight after that audition doing the whole 11-page [scene] with Steve [Zahn], and being like, “Oh my God, I am Kaʻahumanu.” Looking back, the wig was such a key element to getting the part.

I know you have got a lot of major projects coming up. What’s one thing you’re excited about for the future of your career?
Oh my God, I always have to go back to Rose, but Lucifer is actually already finished shooting my next project, and then I’ve got Evil Dead, and then Ghost of Tsushima, and another show. I’ve never worked on something this big before, but the best part is the whole cast, the whole crew, knew that we were making something special. And every director or producer that comes in has to understand that we’re all trying to make these characters the best show we’ve ever made. And it’s so cool when people are like, “This is the best thing I’ve ever worked on.” It really is a special moment when everyone is on the same wavelength like that.