From Benny the Blade in J. Grisham's the Client..........to an amphibious woman with a blade....
LONE WOLF
STUNTWOMAN, ACTRESS AND MODEL GEMITA SAMARRA HAS GONE FROM THE OCEAN’S DEPTHS TO THE EDGES OF HOLLYWOOD, WITH A FIERCELY INDEPENDENT STREAK AND AN INTIMIDATING FOUR-LEGGED CREATURE AS COMPANIONS. JUST TRY TO KEEP UP.
Models
don’t usually turn up to sets brandishing knives. But Gemita
Samarra is packing. The blade in question—the one she uses for
emergencies during freedives—is totally at odds with the opulent surroundings
for today’s photo shoot. But once you’ve spent time with her, watched her
cut through the water in the swimming pool, making equally sharp lines, it
suddenly fits. She’s relaxed, graceful. But there’s a razor-sharp edge to her
too.
The
knife is here today as a prop. (At least we hope it is.) Between takes it sits
sheathed on the dining table. Samarra needs her hands; she has two Vitamin
Volcano smoothies to get through. And it has to be said: They’re making her a
little hyper. Words pour from her mouth quicker than most people can digest
them. She bounds around the set, brightening rooms with that smile, meeting your
inevitable gaze with incandescent eyes …
“I’m totally at peace in my own company. Some people
struggle with that, like they’re terrified of themselves. Not
me.”
It’s
hard not to find yourself a little captivated by Samarra, as much for her
intrepid attitude toward life as her film-star looks. Seemingly not tethered by
the usually practical constraints that govern the rest of us, there’s something
wild about Samarra, maybe even a little feral. Perhaps it’s a consequence of
having a wolf for a best friend. Today is a rare day that Lupa—a wolf and German
shepherd cross, bred by Czech special forces for use in combat—isn’t at
Samarra’s side. “I take her where I can,” she says. That that doesn’t include
photo shoots is a relief to the crew.
A
pet wolf is far from the most intriguing thing about the British-born,
half-Spanish 22-year-old. All on her own she cuts an improbable figure. Few
fashion models swap heels for knives and rise to the heady heights of Hollywood
stunt acting. Fewer still become Bond girls. Game of
Thrones has come calling (you’ll see her in the latest season), and other
parts await. For Samarra, it’s a journey over which she’s always had complete
control, not because any of it was part of a strict career plan. Instead it’s
been her many and varied passions that have dictated her every move. Adventure
comes first. Work can wait.
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