Pirate Ships, the Wall Street of the High Seas
In ‘Black Sails’ From Starz, Pirate’s Booty Is at Stake
Eleanor is one of several strong female characters in “Black Sails,” a must now for these types of shows to fend off accusations of sexism, since when garments come off they almost always come off the actresses, not the actors.
The best pirate series introduced in 2014 that wasn’t canceled returns Saturday night, its gnarly men still gnarly, its brothel still doing a booming business, and its allegiances and morality still ever-shifting.
It’s the Starz series “Black Sails,” which seems to have a charmed life just like some of its characters — it was renewed for a third season months ago even though the 10-episode Season 2 is only just now beginning. That’s history repeating itself: Season 2 was already ordered before Season 1 had begun. The viewing public, it seems, likes its 18th-century pirates rough and its 18th-century prostitutes naked.
Another pirate show set in the same general time period, NBC’s “Crossbones,” took a more cerebral approach last year — without, of course, the nudity. Despite intriguing work by an A-list star, John Malkovich, in the lead role of Blackbeard, it didn’t last.
Starz, though, knows the formula for these costume-heavy action dramas from experience with shows like “Spartacus” and “Camelot.” And that formula is executed with particular skill in “Black Sails,” thanks to some strong performances and an exploration of the consequences of greed that could have come out of modern-day Wall Street.
Season 1 ended badly for Captain Flint (Toby Stephens), a pirate fending off internal dissent while chasing a big payday: a ship supposedly jammed with riches. His crew was staging a mutiny even as his ship was under hostile fire, and he seemed headed for a watery grave.
Season 2, though, doesn’t open on Flint; instead we meet Capt. Ned Low (Tadhg Murphy), who makes an initial impression that jumps him to the top of the show’s ruthlessness scale. He is soon on New Providence Island, pirate capital of the world, butting heads with Eleanor Guthrie (Hannah New), the no-nonsense entrepreneur who spent Season 1 proving that she is as tough as any man in this very manly world, including her father.
Eleanor is one of several strong female characters in “Black Sails,” a must now for these types of shows to fend off accusations of sexism, since when garments come off they almost always come off the actresses, not the actors. Eleanor is an especially interesting female lead because she embodies half of the tug of war that makes up the core of the show: whether the goal of the outlaw life is merely to accumulate ill-gotten gains or to eventually get out of the thievery business and become legitimate.
Charles Vane (Zach McGowan), yet another grizzled pirate captain, perfectly embodied the greedy half of those dueling world views when he said, in Episode 7 last season, “No man is rich who could have a lot more by doing less,” something that belongs on a T-shirt for sale in the present-day financial district.
But Eleanor and other characters want more than just black-market wealth. It’s a dynamic out of “The Godfather,” where the Corleones tried to take the family business into the mainstream. “Black Sails” may be full of pirates and prostitutes, but it’s really about striving for respect, whether from an unruly crew or from polite society.
Hannah New
Biography
Height 5′ 6″ (1.68 m)
Mini Bio
Born in London, England, Hannah insisted at age 4 to attend ballet school, setting her on a performing path in life. She later turned her focus to acting and joined The National Youth Theatre of Great Britain. Her interest in other cultures led her to travel around the world, including Bolivia where she did volunteer work in children’s homes. Upon her return to England, she attended Leeds University majoring in English and Spanish and performing in numerous stage productions in both languages. Hannah earned her a First Class honours degree and promptly moved to Spain to further master the language through immersion and even studied Meisner in Spanish.
Hannah was quickly scouted by View Management, a top Spanish modeling agency, and decided to pursue print and commercial work to support her studies in Barcelona and Madrid and save for drama school back home. She was accepted and attended London University’s Central School of Speech and Drama. While pursuing her degree, Hannah was offered several Spanish projects including the lead in the 11-part mini-series adaptation of Maria Duenas’ best-selling novel “El Tiempo Entre Costuras.” Although against standard school policy, Central allowed Hannah to continue her studies while shooting this and several other projects in Spain and in December 2011, she graduated with a Masters in Acting with Distinction.
Since graduation, Hannah landed her first American role as one of the leads in “Shelter,” a pilot for Warner Bros. and the CW that was produced by J.J. Abrams. She was then cast in Walt Disney Pictures’ “Maleficent” starring Angelina Jolie. Hannah plays ‘Leila,’ the beautiful mother of young Princess Aurora, and the film will be released in March, 2014. She will next star among an international cast in the pirate drama “Black Sails.” The 8-episode series for Starz is executive produced by Michael Bay, Jonathan E. Steinberg and Robert Levine. Hannah plays ‘Eleanor Guthrie,’ a beautiful and courageous owner of a rowdy Bahamas saloon who must run her father’s black market business as supplier to dangerous pirates.
Hannah continues to reside in London, England.
Trivia
Speaks fluent Castillian Spanish.
Has traveled to 20+ countries and has volunteered for 3 months in a children’s home in Bolivia (2003).
Born and raised in London, UK.
Lived in Barcelona for 3 yrs after graduating from the University of Leeds with a First degree in Spanish and English.
Has an MFA in Acting from London’s prestigious Central School for Speech and Drama, which counts Lawrence Olivier, Dame Judy Dench, Rupert Everett, Rufus Sewell and Gael Garcia Bernal among it’s alumni.
Studied Meisner at the Actors Workshop Barcelona with Frank Feys before she went to the London University’s Central School of Speech and Drama. After studying almost 2 years with Frank Feys in Barcelona, they both worked on preparing her for her move to London. They are still close friends.