Since the 1980s, Mark Ryan's career has taken him from the greenery of Sherwood to the Green Arrow and Hollywood, but with his role in the new Transformers movie his life is really taking on a new shape… Words: John Mosby

It's hard to pigeonhole Mark Ryan. Some will remember him from his days as Nasir in the classic ITV series Robin of Sherwood, while others will know him as the man behind the savage battles in 2004's King Arthur. He has appeared on stage in London's West End, and in TV and film productions ranging from Peak Practice to The Prestige. It is fitting, therefore, that his latest role is a definite case of 'more than meets the eye', playing Bumblebee in the new Transformers movie.

He was originally drafted by the Transformers team to provide on-set voices for all the mechanical heroes, so the actors had a character to relate to, then and there. But his performance was considered suitably impressive to make the final cut when it came to Bumblebee, the Autobot who first befriends Sam Witwicky [Shia LaBeouf] in the movie.

"I think what was most important to [director] Michael Bay was to get the actual dramatic performance physically on the set, so that the other actors had something to bounce off," says Ryan. "It wasn't just the voice, but an immediate, physical presence and the way that the lines were being delivered."

"I think that was why he wanted an actor who had both on-screen and stage experience, rather than an actor who had solely done voices. I had to react to, and sometimes ad-lib with, the actors, even though mostly they weren't actually looking at me. Most of the time they'd be looking at a little red light on top of an 18-foot pole!"

Overwhelming response

Ryan admits to being overwhelmed by the public response to his character. "It's been incredible," he says. "I've been blogging on MySpace and the response has been amazing, even though I only have a few lines in the film. Folks respond to Bumblebee as a character because he is so well developed, and his relationship with Sam is so well put together.

"It's been compared to the relationship between ET and Elliott, but it's also a big part of the American psyche: a boy and his first car. I remember my first car was a cherry red 1964 Ford Corsair, and that I bought it for $200. Being able to drive away and have adventures is a huge emotional reaction, and that kind of character is so much fun to play."

But, of course, it's not just the new fans that feel a connection to Bumblebee, and Mark admits there was a fine line between honouring the expectations of everyone who grew up with the cartoon series and meeting the demands of a whole new generation.

"The politics of Transformers fandom is certainly interesting!" Ryan smiles. "My honest stance has always been that I didn't see the original show when it aired in the 80s, and when I got this job, I knew watching it wasn't going to help.

"I did my research in putting together the characters and the framework to hang these voices on. I scoured the internet and read up on Transformers lore. But there's nothing you can really draw from the cartoons for a 2007 version, because everything has changed. The CGI, the pacing, the editing and the sheer size of the production are all entirely different now."

Pilgrim's progress

Away from his acting career, Ryan is also an established comics author, and has worked alongside artist Mike Grell on DC's Green Arrow series. His latest project with Grell, The Pilgrim, has been gestating for several years now, but will finally see the light of day online later this year.

"It's a story that originated at least 15 years ago," Ryan says of The Pilgrim. "But like all projects, it's taken a little while to develop. Mike Grell is a very old friend of mine and he's a great person to bounce ideas off.

"The story is a mix of historical fact and speculation springing from the real-life psychological warfare that was employed in World War Two, when an elite British team endeavoured to make high-level Nazis believe they were the victims of real psychic and magical influences.

"It's relevant now, because the psychic side of spying hasn't gone away over the years. It turns up under different guises and code names in different countries. Our story is about an entity created of pure mental energy that can materialize anywhere and perform espionage or assassinations leaving no trace.

"It's the perfect clandestine operator, because it knows no boundaries or limits. It has no memory, no mercy, no fingerprints. It feels neither guilt nor pain, until, one day, it remembers."

It's certainly a long way from Sherwood Forest – and with Bumblebee set to return in the next big-screen installment of Transformers, it's a journey that's far from over.

Transformers is on general release now.

Click here for all the latest adventures in the official Transformers comic!