Growing up in Myrtle Beach, SC, Madison Iseman couldn’t imagine that one day she would play mighty Athena, the ancient Greek goddess of war – and wisdom.
“Knights of the Zodiac,” opening Friday and adapted from a bestselling Japanese manga series “Saint Seiya,” is a $60 million live action international fantasy that begins when a young woman, Sienna (Iseman), discovers she is the reincarnation of Athena. Her protector is the orphan Seiya, aka the Pegasus Knight, played by Mackenyu. In Japan, “Zodiac” has already opened as “Saint Seiya: The Beginning.”
“I’m so honored they thought of me when they thought goddess,” an upbeat Iseman, 26, said in a Zoom interview. “Such a beloved character who has been around far longer than I’ve been alive.
“I always look for projects that are just so far from anything I’ve done before. I like to stretch and not get stuck in one role. So when this came I’m a huge fantasy lover, I love Greek mythology. It just checked a lot of boxes.”
Iseman knows, “Anime manga never really made it in the States. I quickly discovered it’s beloved pretty much everywhere else in the entire world. And it’s exciting to be part of anything that people love so much.”
Iseman’s biggest imprint so far has been in fantasy and horror hits: the two “Jumanji” reboots, “Goosebumps 2,” “I Know What You Did Last Summer” where she played twins, and “Annabelle Comes Home.”
“Honestly, horror is one of my favorite genres. Truthfully, the fans are like no other people. They are the most diehard fans you can possibly find.
“What I like the most is there’s really no rules. When you’re dealing with the supernatural, anything goes! Which is just fine. You’re able to play with high stakes, there’s a lot of drama. Screaming! Crying.
“But also at the same time you’re still having fun. Sometimes you get on a really dark drama, and it’s gut wrenching and by the end of the day, someone can still be screaming and crying – and the director’s laughing. It’s just, like, a different environment.
“Also, I was a huge horror fan when I was young. My friends and I used to make little scary short films when I was in high school. It’s kind of how I got started — not started in the business but how my creative side started flowing, through horror films.”
Now that she has the ability to choose, “I look for interesting stories that are new and fresh. That’s a big one. Also, female characters like Athena who are driving the story.”
