Remember that time James Frain got killed by act of Jack Bauer on 24? Well, now it's his turn to be the guy with the gun. On BBC America's original series Intruders, James plays Richard Shepherd, who's hot on the trail of the titular characters who jump into other people's bodies, and whose failure to kill one of them is going to bite everyone in the behind. We connected with James this week to ask him about his intriguing role before tonight's new episode of Intruders.
"A good script always stands out, whatever genre," said James, whose other TV credits include The White Queen, True Blood, andGrimm. "It felt compulsive and original. I always look for what the audience will experience."
"Cable series have more time to focus on characters, and a structure that allows for a development in character as you go along," he told us. "Network shows have a pressure of time and space that is completely different."
It's not the first time James has brought an antagonist to life - he's got a knack for raising the tension level on any show in which he appears, so he's often called upon to play on the dark side. What does he think of that?
"I don’t keep a record of the parts I’ve played, and I don’t compare characters, but maybe I should?" laughed the actor, who's gone bad most recently as Rutledge on Sleepy Hollow. "I could construct a graphic that grades badness and madness levels? Interesting idea."
But he's not all bad: in season four of 24, James' only crime was who he'd been married to. As Paul Raines, the estranged husband of Jack's girlfriend Audrey, he got tortured by Jack before being shot trying to help save the day, and wound up dead after Bauer forced CTU doctors to operate on a terrorist with critical information instead of saving him. Talk about an unlucky break - or rather several of them.
So which is his favorite non-villainous role? "Forney in Where the Heart Is has more fans than any other character I’ve played," he told us.
Now he's chewing plenty of scenery onIntruders, as Shepherd continues his pursuit of the sociopathic Intruder inside nine-year-old Madison (Millie Brown) and conflicts with the dogged ex-cop Jack Whelan (John Simm). And the best is still to come.
"There were some complex and moving scenes in Shepherd’s story that expanded his dimensions as a character later in the series," he teased. "They were beautifully written and a pleasure to play."
"[I] knew very little, and enjoyed finding out as the scripts came through," he continued. "[It] felt more lifelike, because in life we don’t know what is going to happen to us until it happens."
"The most important thing about a character is how he explains himself to himself," James added, "Shepherd compartmentalizes in a unique way."
Intruders comes at a time when there's an excess of great British television on the airwaves, so we asked James which shows from the United Kingdom have captured his interest.
"The acting in Downton Abbey has been consistently excellent across the board.Luther, well I could watch Idris Elba read the phone book; he has an incredibly powerful screen presence," he told us, finishing his recommendations with Intruders' schedule-mate Doctor Who. "Matt Smith is a tough act to follow as the Doctor, but Peter Capaldi is an inspired choice. He’s been one of my favorite actors for many years."
Intruders continues on BBC America; for more on the show, you can also check out our previous interview with series star Tory Kittles.
Photo Credits: BBC America
