Astra isn't a little girl anymore. Last season, DC's Legends of Tomorrow reintroduced the person who symbolized a defining moment in John Constantine's career. During an exorcism gone wrong, Astra was dragged to hell -- and it was all Constantine's fault. So, understandably, Astra had an ax to grind when she returned in a major capacity for Season 5. Now, she has built an uneasy alliance with the Legends, on the condition that they use the Loom of Fate to bring her mother back from the dead. However, it looks like her bond with the team will be put to the test in "I Am Legends," tonight's episode.

Speaking to CBR, Astra actor Olivia Swann promised the upcoming episode will show a new side of her character. She teased her favorite scene, which will feature Adam Tsekhman's Gary Green in a major way. She also discussed how Astra's relationship with Constantine will evolve, what it was like to work with Matt Ryan, how the comics helped her ground Astra and more.

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CBR: Tell me a little about how you landed the role.

Olivia Swann: So I had just finished a tour in the UK and I went out to LA to meet up with some management, and my current managers joined me out there. They just gave me the self tape. It was the day I was coming back to the UK. They were like, "Hey, here's this tape for this role and Legends." She had a completely different name and there was all kinds of non-disclosure kind of stuff, and I did a tape when I got back, sent the tape out, and then in about three days, we were discussing me doing it. It was a very, very quick turnaround and it was kind of one of those things were I was like, "I've done the tape, forget about it," almost. And then suddenly it's like, "Oh, now you're doing the job." So it was very cool! Very quick, very cool.

Astra is a role that comes with a lot of baggage, between Constantine's major role in the comics and her own sordid history on the NBC series. What did you know about the character coming in, and what kind of research did you do to prepare?

So initially, I don't think I had known about Constantine. I hadn't read the comics. I didn't know anything about Astra specifically, but as soon as I got the role, I was like, "Right. This is the character. She exists somewhere. Let's find out what I can about her." So straight on, I spent ages going through her story and finding out where she appeared in the comics, especially her as a kid.

I mean, obviously, the stuff in the comic is a lot more graphic and dark, but it's a good base point -- at least for like emotionally where she's at, it's a very good point to think of what she has been through. So I did a load of that, and then, when I got to Canada, I bought the volume, the comic that she's in, the Hellblazer comic, and I was flipping through that. It's kind of just to get a sense of the darkness of the world that she would have grown up in, and that idea of the relationship with her mother is intesting, and how she strives for a maternal link, which is something very interesting to think about, because she does have a lot of baggage.

She's really had a rubbish life. I don't think anyone would want to grow up in Hell, surrounded by demons or these bad people from history. She's been through a lot, and so I wanted to make sure that there was that kind of weight to her, hanging over her, but also she has grown and she's climbed this ladder, so there's this air of "There's no holding me back in that way from the past. I'm now at this level where I'm in control. I have power. I'm on top." So it's very a interesting starting point for her.

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We've heard a little about Astra's childhood and even seen a few glimpses of it, but how does the show continue to explore her history in Hell?

In [episode] 12, we see moments of a slight vulnerability from her. You can see the crack in her armor, as it were, where she realizes that she's the person that can't really fit in with a team because that's not who she is. She's this person who is very comfortable with killing people to get what she wants or, you know, "I'm going to maim someone just to get this thing that I need" or to manipulate, it's kind of her go-to.

So this world where people work together and figure things out and don't harm each other is so new to her. I feel like it almost scares her a little bit. She's kind of overwhelmed in a way, but because she's Astra, she doesn't want to show it. She wants to regain control as much as possible. So that was really, really interesting to play, for sure.

How does Astra's relationship with Constantine evolve moving forward?

Astra still wants her mom back, and John said he'd make that happen. So I think it's safe to say that where their relationship goes depends on whether he delivers or not. At the moment, he hasn't, so at the moment, she still kind of resents the guy. He's the reason for her pain. Unless he's gonna change it, I don't think that's gonna change.

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What was it like to work so closely with Matt Ryan?

Matt Ryan is an absolute dream. I love working with him. He was the first person I had a scene with ever on the show, and he is so lovely and just has this wonderful ease about him. He's so welcoming and doing scenes with him is great. He has this energy that is so infectious, and so you can't help but pick up on this incredible connection that he has with everyone. So for example, in episode 5.5, where we're on the table in Purgatory, that was just the most fun to do, because he just instantly is able to connect -- and me, as a result, I was connecting with him, and it was just so effortless with him. He's great.

Can you tease your favorite moment or scene from this upcoming episode?

I loved working with Adam [Tsekhman], Gary Green. So we have a couple of scenes together, and I think the one later in the episode is probably one of my favorites. It's kind of classic Gary in this very bizarre situation, probably a quite intense situation. I love the absolute opposing dynamic of the two. Gary being Gary, and Astra at a moment where we see a slightly different side to her and I think that was probably -- all my scenes with Gary were probably my favorite, but that one towards the latter end of the episode is my favorite.


Airing Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on The CW, DC's Legends of Tomorrow stars Caity Lotz, Dominic Purcell, Nick Zano, Maisie Richardson-Sellers, Tala Ashe, Matt Ryan and Jes Macallan.

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