Lance Reddick: How Much Does Broyles Know?

Fox's Fringe website has a new video titled "How Much Does Broyles Know?". Lance Reddick talks about his character Phillip Broyles, Massive Dynamic, Good and Evil, and his favorite Fringe episodes (In Which We Meet Mr. Jones and Bound).

What Would You Ask: Jeff Pinkner and JR Orci?

Excited about the return of Fringe? So are the writers and producers.

Writer and Supervising Producer J.R. Orci will join "Showrunner" Jeff Pinkner in an exclusive FringeTelevision.com interview to answer your questions about the future of Fringe.

What would you ask? We'll be accepting questions until tomorrow (3/17) at midnight (EST).

Exclusive: Jared Harris Interview

Right before Ability aired, the wonderful Jared Harris (aka Mr. Jones) was kind enough to chat with me about his character and his experience on the show. Unfortunately, the audio file was too low-res to post, but here's the transcription:

Q. Mr. Jones has been portrayed as a villain so far, but is there any chance he's more of a misunderstood hero?

A. No. I think he's a villain who might be temporarily cooperating with the forces of righteousness, but he's only doing that to pursue his own agenda. He's an opportunist. Look at what he did to that poor guy in the suit! I think he's a sociopath. He doesn't really care. But I can't really tell you for sure, because I don't know where the story's going.

Q. That was my next question. Do the writers and producers give you background information for your character, or do you just get the script?

A. They give you some background, but they don't tell you where it's going, for precisely this reason. We're having a chat, and if I give something away that their whole season finale hinges on...

Q. We wouldn't want that to happen...

A. As far as background, they said he was in the world of espionage and bioterrorism, very dangerous, very bright. That he got himself into that German prison on purpose, because it was the safest place to be for the time being. I asked Jeff Pinkner about the character back when I started, about where I should try to take him.

Click here to read more...

Q. Are we going to see more of you after Ability?

A. I don't know! I'm in pretty bad shape.

Q. You personally? Or Mr. Jones?

A. Jones. He's in pretty bad shape, and I'm not sure where it's going. That episode opens some pretty interesting doors about the connection between [Mr. Jones] and Olivia, and about the Pattern. It's a really good episode. A page-turner of a script. I absolutely loved it when I read it.

Q. Jones certainly seems obsessed with Olivia.

A. Yeah, there were all those drawings a few episodes back. I mean, she's very good looking, but I think it's more than that with him. He needs her, he's trying to manipulate her into trusting him so that she'll do something for him. It's not answered in [Ability] but it's developed a little further.

Q. I sure hope you're coming back; Mr. Jones is my favorite character.

A. Is he? That's very sweet of you to say. My favorite character is the cow. I can't say enough about the cow. I love John Noble, I think he's brilliant, where he takes that character. The dynamic between him and Peter is fantastic. They make me chuckle a lot. And I'm a huge fan of Lance from The Wire. As an actor, he's just incredibly precise, utterly convincing.

Q. What's your experience been like on the set?

A. It's a really good atmosphere there. I mean, it's hard work. For one hour of dramatic television, you're basically shooting a movie every nine days. It's very ambitious. But the atmosphere is very good. There's good banter, a great sense of humor. It's an exciting show, and you can sense that from the attitude of the people involved. They all enjoy what they're doing. It's a great vibe. And of course everyone plays the game that we are right now, try to guess where things are going. The guy that runs Massive Dynamic, William Bell, he always comes up at lunchtime.

Q. Which scene was your favorite to film?

A. The opening scene in Ability definitely ranks up there among my favorites. I love that shot where I'm in the shadows, out of focus in the background, and then I suddenly pop up behind [Mr. Kohl]. That look of insanity in Jones' eyes. He's a nutcase!

Q. How much time is there between when you shoot an episode and when it airs.

A. Well this one (Ability), we finished about two weeks before it aired. That's a really fast turnaround. Normally there's about six weeks turnaround for post-production, but for some reason this one was unusually fast.

Q. As an actor, how do you approach this role on a television show differently from a role in a film, like Captain Mike in Benjamin Button?

A. With Captain Mike, I knew I had that part three or four months before I started shooting. The longer you have to work with a character, the more connections you can make with your own life, your own history. The characterization becomes more detailed and deeper, more intense. It's very hard on Fringe, when you don't know where the story's going. It's much more impressionistic. You go with your gut in the moment, but it's difficult. Some of the choices that you make are probably going to be contradicted later on, and that can be frustrating as an actor.

Q. Yeah, with a film you know the entire arc of the story, whereas with television you only get bits at a time.

A. But it's exciting too. The great thing about television is that it's so immediate. We shot it two weeks ago and now it's coming out. And people are so excited about Fringe, it's this immediate feedback. With Benjamin Button, I shot that two years before it came out. With Lady in the Water, I did an audition without reading the script and then went on my honeymoon. I was in the bush, on safari, with no telephones, and when I got back by agent said we'd made a deal. Then I finally read the script, and I was like "Oh. So that's what this is about." [Laughs]

Q. What's it like to sit in front of the television and watch yourself?

A. It's great fun. When you watch yourself in anything, it's quite a laugh. You can't really concentrate on the story! You remember everything about the day you shot it, the shots and the lines they cut out. You've got an emotional memory of that day. It takes a long time for that to drop away, to just see the character. It takes a couple years to just see it for what it was.

Q. I imagine it's the same for a writer or director, to get that personal experience out of the way.

A. I don't know how directors do it, because they have watch the movie or the episode two or three hundred times. I don't know how they keep the audience's anticipations in their head, how they shape that experience, since they can't trust their own gut reactions anymore. It's amazing how they do that.

Q. Do you have any advice for budding actors out there looking to be as successful as you've been these last few years?

A. It's a tough job. You have to develop a really skin. You're going to get knocked down a lot, but you've got to dust yourself off and get back off. The one thing that keeps you going is your passion. You've got to keep in touch with that part of yourself. Acting itself is the fun part. I love auditioning for that reason. Any day you actually get to do a bit of acting is a good day.

What Would You Ask: David Robert Jones?

Later today, we will be interviewing Jared Harris, who plays David Robert Jones on Fringe.

The interview will be a one-on-one, so there should be opportunity for a lot of questions.

What would you ask David Jones?

Mark Valley Conference Call

Mark Valley, who plays the mostly dead FBI agent John Scott on Fringe was kind enough to participate in a conference call with Fringe Television and other websites.

Here is an exclusive recording I made of the call.

Listen now:


Fringe Television freshman Adam Morgan was able to ask Mark several questions, including some of yours:

A. Morgan: Do you think “John Scott” is really a traitor, or that he’s more of a misunderstood hero on the show?

M. Valley: Good question. I’ve said this before, and I think he’s just a real believer. I think he’s really serious about what he does, and whoever it is that he is working for, he’s extremely loyal to them. Aside from that, I don’t really want to judge it, to be honest with you.

A. Morgan: Okay, and then will we ever see “John” in the flesh again instead of just in “Olivia’s” mind, or I don’t know?

M. Valley: I can’t really say. I think you’ll probably see both, but I can’t really confirm, nor what condition he’s going to be in in either of those situations.

A. Morgan: I was just wondering what your experience has been like with, we’ve already talked about the actors, but what about the writers and producers on the show?

M. Valley: They’re a great bunch, really. My experience with them has been, I really haven’t had a lot of contact with them, to be honest with you, but in terms of where the show is going, I can really appreciate that they’re working as hard as they can to make a good television show. I’m really impressed with the facility they have of being able to adapt to conditions, such as what’s working on the show’s storyline and what’s not working, what they need to bring in, and what they need to show more of. It’s amazing that they can keep an overall show going and still be able to adapt on the fly like that.

To me, that means they all know each other, they all work well together, they all trust each other, they all respect each other. That’s what it shows me, and it’s a pleasure to work with that.

A. Morgan: Okay, and we know that “John Scott’s” current arc on the show is about to be resolved, but is there room for him to come back next season or later on the show?

M. Valley: I think there’s room for even you to be shot with a tranquilizer gun and dragged onto the set of Fringe for a couple of seasons. [Laughs] I think it could happen to anybody, so I’m not going to rule it out.

Click here to read the entire transcript

Mark Vally Conference Call, January 30th 2009

Moderator: Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for standing by, and welcome to the Fringe interview call with Mark Valley.

J. Governale: Thank you, Cathy, and thank you, everyone, for participating in today's call with Mark Valley. On Tuesday, Fringe has a pivotal episode, titled "The Transformation," which will air after American Idol, at 9:00 p.m. on FOX; so without further information, I'm going to turn it over to Mark for some questions and answers. Thank you.

Moderator: Thank you, and our first question will come from Daniel Fienberg with Hitfix.com. Go ahead please.

D. Fienberg: Hello, Mark. Thank you for doing this call.

M. Valley: My pleasure.

D. Fienberg: I want to start with some nuts and bolts questions. What has your contractual status been this season? Is it when they need you, they call you, and if you can show up, you do? How has it worked for you?

M. Valley: Contractually, I can't really say too much. Basically, it's one of those situations like they have with most TV shows is they can keep you as long as they want, but it doesn't necessarily mean you can leave whenever you want. That's all I can really say about that.

D. Fienberg: Your situation has been more tenuous than that, because of your character's particular situation, as it were.

M. Valley: It's what they call seven out of 13 or something. That's what they call it. There is regular and then there are seven out of 13. There are different categories. You guys probably know more about this than I do, to be honest with you. Then it goes on down the line. I was never signed up to be in every episode regularly.

D. Fienberg: Is this sort of uncertainty fun for you?

M. Valley: It's fun when you're getting the job, but it's not quite as enjoyable when you're wondering what the next one is going to be.

D. Fienberg: Fair enough. Thank you very much.

Moderator: Next we have Adam Morgan with FringeTelevision.com.

A. Morgan: Hello, Mark. How are you doing?

M. Valley: Hello.

A. Morgan: My question is, do you think "John Scott" is really a traitor, or that he's more of a misunderstood hero on the show?

M. Valley: Good question. I've said this before, and I think he's just a real believer. I think he's really serious about what he does, and whoever it is that he is working for, he's extremely loyal to them. Aside from that, I don't really want to judge it, to be honest with you.

A. Morgan: Okay, and then will we ever see "John" in the flesh again instead of just in "Olivia's" mind, or I don't know?

M. Valley: I can't really say. I think you'll probably see both, but I can't really confirm, nor what condition he's going to be in in either of those situations.

A. Morgan: Okay, that's all I have. Thank you, Mark.

M. Valley: Sure.

Moderator: We will go next to David Martindale with First Newspaper.

D. Martindale: Hello, Mark. Thank you for doing the call. You're not required to remember, but we've talked once before, you and I, before the launch of Keen Eddie, so hello again.

M. Valley: How are you?

D. Martindale: I was wondering if when you signed on, or before you signed on, if you needed anyone to assure you, yes, "John" dies in the first episode, but he has some really cool stuff coming, don't worry. He's not really most sincerely dead. Did you need that kind of assurance so that it wouldn't be just one great episode?

M. Valley: To start out with, sometimes I need assurance as to what to wear when I leave the house. [Laughs] That having been said, I think you can make an assumption on that. But I just always felt, for a guy whose character dies in the pilot, I've gotten an awful lot of work on this show.

D. Martindale: There you go, okay.

M. Valley: That's where I was at.

D. Martindale: You work most with Anna. What do you think of her as an actor and as a person?

M. Valley: I think she's just a fantastic actor, and I really like working with her, because she has such a solid idea of what's going on in a scene and what her objective is and what she's going to do. Yes, I've enjoyed working with her, and as a person, she's just delightful.

D. Martindale: I'll come back if there's time. Thank you much.

Moderator: Next we have Stacy Harrison with Tribune Media Services.

S. Harrison: Hello, Mark. I was just wondering, since a lot of "John" is still quite a mystery, does that affect the way you play him, since maybe you don't know if he is a good guy or a bad guy? Is that hard to convey that then with your performance?

M. Valley: I think that whether he's good or bad, there's a degree of guilt that he carries around with him. Actually, now that I think of it, I actually forget to play that, but it makes a lot of sense though, doesn't it? [Laughs]

S. Harrison: Yes.

M. Valley: I think that when you watch it, you'll have to make up your own mind about that. I just look at him as a regular person. He's done some things and he did them because he believed in them and there is sort of a tragic situation that comes out of it.

S. Harrison: Okay, thank you.

M. Valley: Sure.

Moderator: Next we have Fred Topel with Sci-Fi Wire.

F. Topel: Hello, Mark.

M. Valley: Hello.

F. Topel: [Executive producer] J.J. [Abrams] and other writers promised some closure with your storyline. Do you feel like these upcoming episodes give some closure?

M. Valley: They do answer some questions that have been lingering in my mind, like who he's been working for exactly, and he sort of confirms the verity or the truth of his feelings toward "Olivia."

F. Topel: Some of the recent episodes have been a little more standalone. Is this much more a mythology episode?

M. Valley: I would have to see the final cut the way it comes out. Sometimes it depends on what parts of the story they choose to accentuate and edit, but I would say this is, as they all are, standalone episodes. If you have been watching it, it will sort of enhance the experience of watching it.

F. Topel: It sounds like, for the people who have been following it since the beginning, it definitely addresses earlier things.

M. Valley: Yes, it does.

F. Topel: Okay, cool. Thank you.

M. Valley: Sure.

Moderator: Thank you. We'll go next to Sandy Sahakian with Daemon's TV. Go ahead please.

S. Sahakian: Hello, Mark. Thank you for speaking with us today.

M. Valley: Hello.

S. Sahakian: My question is, do you have a theory as to what is really going on with "John," or do you maybe already know what the whole deal is?

M. Valley: Do I have an idea, did you say?

S. Sahakian: Yes, do you have a theory as to what is really going on with "John"?

M. Valley: Oh, a theory. Yes. My theory is that he is working for the government and he's working for the Postal Service, and he's not very happy about it, and he is a disgruntled postal worker. [Laughs] I'm just joking. I don't have any theories, to be honest with you, because every time I've gone down that road and come up with something, it seems to take a turn in a different direction, so I try to keep an open mind about all of that.

S. Sahakian: How far ahead do they let you know what's coming up for you?

M. Valley: I only know when I get the script, basically. They don't have an episode for any other scripts. But I generally just know, as with all of the actors, probably four or five days before the episode starts, sometimes less time.

S. Sahakian: Thank you.

Moderator: We have a question from Sara Jersild with Tribune Interactive.

S. Jersild: Hello, Mark. Speaking again about whether you play the character differently if you know whether he's a good guy or a bad guy, do you play him differently whether you know whether he's alive or dead?

M. Valley: That's really a good question. I think when you're talking about "John Scott" being inside "Olivia's" brain, then you're dealing with a consciousness, or the way someone remembers someone, as well as his own particular memories and his own conscious. I like to think that his consciousness is actually in her head, so it's actually as if he were definitely alive. No, I think when somebody is dead, your job is a lot easier. I just kind of lie there. You don't really have to do anything, so that's probably the big difference. Work's a lot easier when he's dead. [Laughs]

S. Jersild: Okay, thank you.

M. Valley: Sure.

Moderator: We'll go next to Troy Rogers with The Deadbolt.com.

T. Rogers: Hello, Mark.

M. Valley: Hello.

T. Rogers: Thank you for taking the time.

M. Valley: No problem.

T. Rogers: I was just curious, the action on the next episodes centers around an airplane again. I was curious, how is that different from the pilot?

M. Valley: It's a completely different airline. [Laughs]

T. Rogers: Okay.

M. Valley: The first one was a Boeing 727. This was an Airbus 380. Oh, 627, sorry. [Laughs] No, I have no idea, to be honest with you. They were both big airplanes and they had a lot of people on them, but in terms of how it was different, yes. A lot of airplane crashes on [executive producer] J.J. Abrams' shows.

T. Rogers: It seems that way.

M. Valley: Can you imagine being on an airplane with J.J. Abrams, just kind of sitting there, what's going through his head? He's probably thinking about people screaming and luggage flying everywhere. [Laughs]

T. Rogers: I also wanted to know, do you believe something like this could be happening right now?

M. Valley: Something like what, the stuff on Fringe?

T. Rogers: Yes.

M. Valley: When you look at some things like the spread of an Ebola virus, or some of these other super viruses and strains that just act so quickly, that can get your imagination running. I think that there are aspects of science fiction and technology that can hint toward what this show portrays, but to answer your question, no. I don't think so, but then again, I don't believe in ghosts, and some people say there are ghosts. I just would have to see it myself.

T. Rogers: I'll try to come back. Thank you.

M. Valley: Sure.

Moderator: Your next is Jim Halterman with FutonCritic.com.

J. Halterman: Hello, Mark. Thank you for your time. I was just wondering for people that have not gotten on-board yet with Fringe and are definitely interested, but they know the J.J. [Abrams] philosophy with Lost and everything, it might be hard to step in. What would you tell people who wanted to join with this next episode?

M. Valley: Do you mean viewers?

J. Halterman: Yes, I guess viewers that aren't familiar with the show and wanted to jump in. Is this a good spot to jump in, or do they need to know a lot of what's gone on already?

M. Valley: I think anytime is a good place to jump in, and then they can just buy the DVD edition for the first season to catch up on it in their own free time. [Laughs] It's probably the best way to do it. It's exciting to watch the shows when the episode comes out, because that's when everybody is finding out about it, and it's somewhat of an event, as opposed to just a discrete television show. So I would say start watching as soon as possible and catch up when it comes out on DVD, or you can probably download the episodes too. Get on board.

J. Halterman: That's great. Thank you.

M. Valley: Thank you.

Moderator: We have a question from Ramsey Isler with IGN.

R. Isler: Hello, Mark. How's it going?

M. Valley: Good. How are you doing?

R. Isler: I am doing great. I noticed you majored in math and engineering at West Point, so I'm going to go ahead and call you a geek like the rest of us.

M. Valley: Oh, my God, I've just been outed.

R. Isler: I'm wondering if your math and engineering background helps you get your head around some of the extreme scientific concepts in the show.

M. Valley: It's definitely pretty interesting. I used to watch Numbers just to see what the heck they were talking about, but usually, it's pretty advanced stuff. A lot of the stuff that comes up on the show, like repeating series and things like that, I'm a little embarrassed because I've forgotten what it all is. I need to be reminded, so it's really pretty humbling in some ways. But I guess having been a math major, I am sort of fascinated with numbers and series and formulas and models and simulations and things like that, but there hasn't been a lot of really heavy math on the show. Most of it's been biology and chemistry I think at this point, but yes, I love that stuff. You've outed me. That's my secret.

R. Isler: Thank you.

M. Valley: Sure.

Moderator: Thank you. We have April MacIntyre with Monsters and Critics.

A. MacIntyre: Hello, Mark. Thank you for your time.

M. Valley: Hello. My pleasure.

A. MacIntyre: I'm just curious to know, you've been acting an awfully long time, and I wanted to know what science fiction affected you or impacted you growing up, and what you love, if you do, if you have a particular small screen show or film that particularly impacted you as an actor.

M. Valley: I would have to say it was Star Trek, because whenever they beamed him down, he never knew what there was going to be. There were always repeats on after school, so my sisters always wanted to watch Brady Bunch, and I always wanted to watch Star Trek, so we would have to negotiate.

A. MacIntyre: Who was your favorite character on Star Trek, and why?

M. Valley: It was Captain Kirk, William Shatner. Captain Kirk means William Shatner.

A. MacIntyre: And then you got to work with him.

M. Valley: Yes, I got to spend some time aboard the Starship Enterprise, and he's not the captain, but I really enjoyed working with him.

A. MacIntyre: I was also curious to know of all the characters you work with, John Noble's "Walter Bishop" and Anna Torv's "Olivia," who do you enjoy working with and seeing as an actor? Who do you admire their work? Who makes you laugh, or just you get a real kick out of watching?

M. Valley: I would say I just enjoy working with everybody on the cast. Most of my scenes have been with Anna. She's delightful. She's my favorite on the show, to be honest with you, but as far as the others go, Kirk [Acevedo who plays "Charlie Francis"] is really good actor and I always wanted to work with him.

A. MacIntyre: That's "Charlie Francis"?

M. Valley: Yes. He's a really wonderful actor, Kirk is. I never met Josh [Jackson who plays "Peter Bishop"] before and I never met John Noble before, and I haven't had any scenes with them either. Blair Brown [who plays "Nina Sharp"], she's a wonderful experienced actor, and Jasika [Nicole who plays "Astrid Farnsworth"], they're all just really nice people. There's no drama on the show at all, but I would say Anna and Kirk are probably my favorites.

A. MacIntyre: Thank you so much.

M. Valley: Sure.

Moderator: We'll go to Lisa Steinberg with Starry Constellation Magazine.

L. Steinberg: Hello, Mark. It's great to speak with you.

M. Valley: Hello.

L. Steinberg: I was wondering, what about your role do you find challenging?

M. Valley: What about what?

L. Steinberg: What about the role do you find challenging?

M. Valley: What I think is challenging is playing a character that is in her memory, or in her consciousness. It is challenging trying to think of where he comes from, where he's going, what he's aware of, and what is he not aware of, and what does he remember, and what does he not. That is a little bit challenging. It is sort of taking the character out of the ether and placing him somewhere and trying to figure out how he would react. That I find challenging.

L. Steinberg: What has been your most memorable moment you've had from filming Fringe?

M. Valley: The most memorable moment was probably in the pilot when I was covered in an inch of goo and prosthetic muscle and veins running all over me. It was probably one moment where I was just lying there. I can't think of just one specific moment. I think it was once I was walking down the hallway and somebody saw me and freaked out, and I realized just how grotesque I looked.

Moderator: Thank you. We'll move on to Adam Morgan with FringeTelevision.com.

A. Morgan: Hello, Mark. Thanks again. I was just wondering what your experience has been like with, we've already talked about the actors, but what about the writers and producers on the show?

M. Valley: They're a great bunch, really. My experience with them has been, I really haven't had a lot of contact with them, to be honest with you, but in terms of where the show is going, I can really appreciate that they're working as hard as they can to make a good television show. I'm really impressed with the facility they have of being able to adapt to conditions, such as what's working on the show's storyline and what's not working, what they need to bring in, and what they need to show more of. It's amazing that they can keep an overall show going and still be able to adapt on the fly like that. To me, that means they all know each other, they all work well together, they all trust each other, they all respect each other. That's what it shows me, and it's a pleasure to work with that.

A. Morgan: Okay, and we know that "John Scott's" current arc on the show is about to be resolved, but is there room for him to come back next season or later on the show?

M. Valley: I think there's room for even you to be shot with a tranquilizer gun and dragged onto the set of Fringe for a couple of seasons. [Laughs] I think it could happen to anybody, so I'm not going to rule it out.

A. Morgan: Okay, thanks again, Mark.

M. Valley: My pleasure.

Moderator: We have Melissa Lowery with NiceGirlsTV.com.

M. Lowery: Hello, Mark. How are you doing?

M. Valley: Good. How are you?

M. Lowery: I'm doing great, thank you. Harking back to outing your background.

M. Valley: "Harking back," I haven't heard that.

M. Lowery: You like that?

M. Valley: It's great. I like that. Well, let's hark back, let's continue to hark back.

M. Lowery: Let's hark. I know you have a strong military background as well, and I wondered: do you draw on that as you playing "Agent Scott"? Does that help you with that portrayal?

M. Valley: Yes, it did, because I remember cutting my hair really short and I assumed that he had some military background. What I find with guys that have military backgrounds is sometimes, they go to great lengths to hide it. There are ones that try to hide it. They were previous military and they kind of down it, and I think "John Scott" was one of the ones that didn't. But they use different weapons and everything than I've been accustomed to.

M. Lowery: Right. So, aside from reliving the traumatic experience of cutting your hair, it's really what you hoped.

M. Valley: Yes. I would say that was about as traumatic as the experience of cutting my hair that I ever have to draw from my military experience.

M. Lowery: I think you got off easy.

M. Valley: I really did.

M. Lowery: Having gone through I assume boot camp and other military aspects, how do you think the creators and the writers are doing with the government or the bureaucratic side of the show versus the sci-fi side?

M. Valley: I'm not really familiar with the way Homeland Security works with the FBI right now. There were some friends that have worked in it. Everybody knows that it's a television show, but I think that Michael Gaston [who plays "Sanford Harris"], who has come on, is really fantastic, and I think that character is really believable. I think Lance [Reddick who plays "Phillip Broyles"] always lends a very authentic sense of authority to any character that he plays, and "Charlie Francis" [actor Kirk Acevedo] is really believable as an FBI agent, and I think Anna [Torv who plays "Olivia Dunham"], the FBI would probably take her on right now if she applied. As far as the overall bureaucracy goes, I'm not really familiar with it, and I don't really know how accurate it would be. But in terms of the accuracy in characters that are betrayed, I think I believe it.

M. Lowery: Great. Thank you.

Moderator: We have a question from Troy Rogers with The Deadbolt.com.

T. Rogers: Hello, Mark. It's me again.

M. Valley: Hello, Deadbolt.

T. Rogers: I also wanted to know, what's the coolest thing you've learned about Fringe science since starting the show?

M. Valley: The coolest thing I've learned is a couple of things. Probably that LSD can actually be used for practical purposes [laughs], and maybe the idea that a virus could actually be grown into some sort of parallel organism, like that cold virus is still kind of creeping me out, especially because I have a cold right now. Every time I cough I think, it's not like one of those things.

T. Rogers: I believe that's called the rhinovirus.

M. Valley: Yes. There are probably going to be classes taught with big Fringe Science biology textbooks.

T. Rogers: You never know.

M. Valley: You never know, like at the local Learning Annex, you know. Learn Fringe Science.

T. Rogers: Just one more quick thing. For people who have been debating whether you're a good guy or a bad guy, I think your character is a bad guy. I just wanted to know: what's the best part about playing a bad guy?

M. Valley: The best part about playing a bad guy is that you get to do bad things. What I think is interesting is how you can justify doing just about anything if you really think about it, and convince yourself. That's fun, and there's also a certain liberty you have in your behavior and so forth, not only in the acts or things that you do that are wrong, but just in the way you behave moment-to-moment. It can affect that as well, and I think that's sort of fascinating for me.

T. Rogers: Thank you. Good luck on the show.

M. Valley: Thank you very much.

Moderator: We are out of time, Mr. Valley. Do you have any closing remarks?

M. Valley: I would just like to say thank you very much, and everyone have a nice day.

What Would You Ask: John Scott?

In a few hours, I'll be interviewing Mark Valley, who plays John Scott on Fringe.

The interview will be the same format as the John Noble Conference Call interview, which mean I'll likely have the opportunity to ask only one or two questions.

The question I have for John Scott:

"During the Synaptic Transfer, some of John Scott's memories have moved out of John's mind into Olivia's mind. Are there any memories that Olivia may be missing any that are trapped in John's brain?"

What would you ask John Scott?

TVGuide Interview: Jared Harris’ Theoroes About Fringe’s “Mr. Jones”

TVGuide has an interview with Jared Harris who plays David Robert Jones.

Like most J.J. Abrams shows, Fringe is characterized by mysterious characters and dense, intricate plots. Fringe's mystery man of the moment is the elusive Mr. Jones (Jared Harris). When Harris sat down with TVGuide.com, we couldn't help but ask him how he thinks Jones is involved in "the pattern," how long he thinks he'll be around and what his creepy fixation with Agent Dunham (Anna Torv) is all about?

Interview: Fringe Comic Book Writer Mike Johnson

The second issue of the Fringe comic comes out tomorrow, January 28th.

According to the Wildstorm website:

The secret history of Walter Bishop and William Bell continues in this exclusive tie-in to the hit Fox show Fringe! Witness their first attempts at pushing the boundaries of science and reality!

Comic Book Resources has an interview with one of the writers, Mike Johnson, who reveals what will be happening in Fringe #2, and the rest of the Fringe series:

Johnson revealed the next chapter in Bishop and Bell’s early history is explored in “Fringe” #2, on sale on this week. “Things get even weirder for them,” laughed Johnson. “By this time, [Bishop and Bell] are sharing a lab and starting to experiment with things that the university would probably not approve of, if it knew about them.”

"Fringe" artwork by Tom Mandrake The budding relationship serves as the plot thread stringing the six-issue miniseries together. A series of backup features, telling done-in-one mysteries, are also included. “Each issue in the series is divided into two parts: the first half, or A-story, will continue the story of Bell and Bishop, while the second half, the B-story, will be a self-contained short story with unconnected characters that plays on a different Fringe-y concept, with subtle ties to the show itself,” Johnson explained. “The A-stories with Bell and Bishop form one over-arching story that culminates in both ‘Fringe’ #6 and the pilot for the show, so make sure you watch it again. And the B-stories are each self-contained short stories. We are all huge fans over here of ‘The Twilight Zone’ and ‘The Outer Limits,’ the classics, so our B-stories are homages to sci-fi parables like the ones in those shows.”
"Fringe" artwork by Tom Mandrake

Johnson said Walter is an interesting character to write because in the “Fringe” comic stories, he’s a “different guy” than the one we see on the show. “He’s young, he’s just starting his career, and most importantly he’s not crazy,” offered Johnson. “At least not in the conventional way, but we put hints in there that all will not end up well in his world.

“As for Bell, we’re playing with the idea that he will end up the richest man in the world one day, in charge of the biggest corporation in the world, Massive Dynamic, but he starts as an idealistic young scientist.

”While he said we may see Olivia and Peter at some point in the comics, Johnson added, “Just not in the way you might think.”

Readers will also be introduced to some new supporting characters in “Fringe” that play important roles in the shared history of Bell and Bishop, but they have not yet been introduced on the TV show proper. “Or have they?” Johnson teased.

You can read the full interview at ComicBookResources.com

J.J. Abrams Interview: iF Magazine

iFMagazine.com has an exclusive interview with Fringe co-creator J.J. Abrams, discussing the role mythology plays in the show, the dynamics between it’s characters, how to keep viewers week after week, and how Anna Torv is like Fringe's Clint Eastwood.

Click here to read the interveiw:

Exclusive Interview: 'STAR TREK' DIRECTOR J.J. ABRAMS GOES OUT ON THE 'FRINGE' WITH HIS NEW SERIES

The creator gives iF the scoop on his new series and tells us why Anna Torv is his Clint Eastwood in the new series

By CARLOS DELGADO, Contributing Writer
Published 1/27/2009

With Fox's new hit series FRINGE currently hitting mid-season, it was about time we caught up with co-creator J.J. Abrams to talk about the role mythology plays in the show, the dynamics between it’s characters, how to keep viewers week after week. And if you're expecting some big scoop about STAR TREK, well, that's a whole other article down the road.

iFMAGAZINE: When people talk about FRINGE, a lot of times they talk about the mythology, but also, they talk about the father/son relationship between Walter Bishop and Peter Bishop [Joshua Jackson]. Did you realize how important that was going to be or did that just sort of develop?

J.J. ABRAMS: I’ve always been obsessed with the father/son dynamic, or parent/child. In FELICITY, ALIAS, or LOST. Mostly that’s been [co-creators] Damon [Lindelof] and Carlton [Cuse]. That relationship is always a primary one, and in a weird way, Olivia’s character [Anna Torv] is just now finding her real connection to this world. Not just what her job is but [emotionally] why this world of FRINGE science is intrinsically connected to who she is.

iF: What about Anna Torv’s character, Olivia Dunham?

ABRAMS: Here’s what’s cool -- not only do the next episodes start to connect things that are out there, but it also reveals that this experience is not the first time she’s crossed paths with "fringe" stuff. And again, you have to be careful, because you can get too mythological. But like I was saying, a lot of mythology storytelling, it’s just about doing the job to make it palatable for people who don’t study your show. You can’t expect someone, given a week of busy life, to come back next week and be like, “I’m back.” Some people will, but most won’t. But you just have to say, “Okay, if I’m new to this, I don’t want to get into it.” Which is why [last week's] episode… it [began] with a woman who’s been kidnapped. To me it’s like, I’m compelled to watch that episode. Like "who is she? Why was she grabbed? What does that mean?" It’s cool.

Also by the way, another little stupid secret. I think Anna, Olivia, who are a little adrift -- who is she? When I start to think of her as Clint Eastwood, when I start to think of her as the typical, as the relentless woman of few words but driven to… it’s like a weird thing where I started to like get a sense of who she is. Because she’s pretty great at being tough and dark. And then when she has moments of levity, you love her. In this one episode, her sister visits, and at like the worst f*cking time. And she’s got a little daughter, so it’s this great counter point and it makes me feel like, “Oh my God, she’s like me!” Like a crazy day, but when it comes to the important stuff, family, you have to turn all that off. I think Anna’s terrific playing that driven thing with moments of sweetness. But she’s a very different person to write for than Jennifer Garner, Evangeline Lilly or Keri Russell. It’s been interesting.

iF: But she didn’t seem that tied to John Noble’s character, Dr. Walter Bishop.

ABRAMS: Well, she wasn’t . And now she just comes to depend on him for the… you’ll see that there’s a connection that goes far deeper than her job.

iF: Since FRINGE is a new show, how hard has it been to find the show’s voice?

ABRAMS: It’s been hard because I was finishing STAR TREK. It’s Alex [Kurtzman], it’s Bob [Orci], it’s Jeff [Pinker], it’s me. It’s a little bit broken up in that way. But I feel like we’ve started to find the voice of the show a few episodes ago. And the ones that start to air now makes me, for me, feel like… like I can tell you what episode of FRINGE isn’t, where before I was like, “Well that could be our show!”

iF: What isn’t it?

ABRAMS: Well, it’s not one that is so mythology based that you have to go, “I don’t understand what the plot is.” It’s that weird balance of what’s the story you’re telling. It’s so obvious. Once you figure it out and you go, “Oh my God!” you’re like, “no sh*t.” But it’s what that personal story, that little baby step of the character, and how does this connect to the weirdness of the week. How does that reveal that thing? How does that become and it’s all about externalizing that internal step. But it’s that thing where every time you talk about it, people talk to me, it seems cheap but when it works, it’s exciting.

Joshua Jackson Interview: Regis and Kelly

Joshua Jackson was on Live with Regis and Kelly, talking about Dawson's Creek, theater, hockey, and of course Fringe. During the interview, they played a Sneak Peek clip from the FringeThe No-Brainer episode , which I have edited out and placed in the Fringe Spoilers section.

Fox Fix: Kirk Acevedo Interview

Fox Fix has a new interview with Kirk Acevedo, who plays Charlie Francis on Fringe. Host Jessica Holmes asks Kirk if his character is a good as he seems, does he know more than he lets on, and does he have feeling for Olivia? He also shares his interesting theory on how he thinks Fringe and Lost might be related.

Fox Fix also has an interview with J.J. Abrams and Roberto Orci, which we have posted in the Fringe Spoilers section.

Joshua Jackson Interviews: Craig Ferguson & BuzzSugar

Joshua Jackson was on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson Tuesday night, talking about Fringe, living in Paris, and "stroking the slug". Craig showed a sneak peek from the upcoming Fringe episode Bound, which I have removed and placed in the Fringe Spoilers section.

Buzz Sugar also interviewed with Josh at FOX's TCA after-party. They discussed:

• Coming back for a new batch of episodes
• Learning Peter's secrets
• Peter and Walter's relationship
• Working with JJ Abrams
• Giving Peter a reason to stick around:

...He may not like to admit it, but he's human and he wants to take care of his dad. At the core of it all there's a very simple emotional story going on: Peter is an abandoned child who has a chance all these years later to build some sort of relationship with his father. If you took away all of the science fiction, that's a workable story in and of itself."

You can read the full interview at BuzzSugar.com.

Fringe Will Return For Season 2 This Fall?

The Hollywood Reporter, covering the 2009 TCA Winter Press Tour, is reporting that FOX entertainment president Kevin Reilly "heavily hinted" that Fringe will return in the fall for a second season!

It's a keeper ... They've really found the storytelling model now ... what you're going to see in the second half in the year, if you follow the serialized story you're going to find [satisfying content each week and yet] the stories really do re-set themselves each week I would not expect it to take off after 'Idol' but I do think it will tick up another level.

Perhaps he meant the second-half of the First season? Either way, it sounds like he is a big Fringe fan, and the show will be sticking around for a while.

Reilly was also asked about the Remote-Free TV experiment used on Fringe:

Will the RemoteFreeTV experiment continue? If Fox has its way, yes, but the model that uses half as many commercials for shows like "Fringe" and "Dollhouse" remain a tough sell for advertisers. When asked if RemoteFree was a success, Reilly says, "For the most part, yes. Viewer feedback was great ... advertisers were very happy ... studies showed retention was high ... but not every advertiser wants to pay that premium." Plus, there's an additional production factor of doing shows that are slightly longer than usual.

Joshua Jackson on Cosmopolitan Cover

Joshua Jackson is on the cover of Cosmopolitan magazine, and in a feature titled "Fun Fearless Males 2009". It's mostly "ship" talk, but he does mention Fringe:

Q: Any close calls on the Fringe set?
A: During a torture scene, I had a wire up my nose, and it pierced my sinus. I was gushing blood. That’s when you realize what you do for a living is totally absurd.

Q: Do you and your character have anything in common?
A: Neither of us are joiners. I'm not religious, mostly because I think the organization of it perverts the idea of spirituality.

[scans: Joshua Jackson Network]

John Noble on Good Day LA

John Noble, who plays Dr. Walter Bishop on Fringe, was interviewed Monday on Good Day LA. The first video featured a clip from the upcoming episode Bound, which I edited it out, and placed in the Fringe Spoilers section. The second video is a web extra interview.

Fox Fix: Joshua Jackson Interview

Fox Fix has a new interview with Joshua Jackson, who plays Peter Bishop on Fringe. Host Jessica Holmes asks Josh about Peter Bishop's relationship with his father - Walter Bishop, the secrets in his past and present, and his true motivations to stay in The Pattern investigation on Fringe.

Fox Fix: Mark Valley Interview

Fox Fix has a new interview with Mark Valley, who plays John Scott on Fringe. Host Jessica Holmes asks Mark: Is he alive or is he dead? Did he love Olivia Dunham? Who was he working for? What's the deal with The Observer?

Exclusive: Chance Kelly Interview

We recently had the opportunity to talk with Chance Kelly, who plays rogue FBI Agent Mitchell Loeb on Fringe. Chance was on the set, filming the episode we will see after the break - Bound on January 20th. He discussed what it's like to work on Fringe, and gave some interesting insight into his character - that maybe his character might end up being a good guy, and the reason for shooting Joanne Ostler:

That broad might have had it coming, kidnapping little kids...

Listen Now:


We would like to thank Chase Kelly for his time, and to Jen and Adele of the Fringe Dwellers Podcast (The official podcast of FringeTelevsion!) for conducting and recording this interview for us.

What Would You Ask: Mitchell Loeb?

Tomorrow, I'll be talking to Chance Kelly, who plays rogue FBI agent Mitchell Loeb.

He is the guy who wrapped a parasite around his heart to find out where "The Gentleman" lives (Little Hill) in In Which We Meet Mr. Jones, and as seen here, pulled an apple out of safe in The Equation.

If you have anything you would like to ask, leave your questions in the comments, and I'll ask as many as I can.

Fringe: John Noble Conference Call

Fox held a conference call last week where a handful of journalist asked John Noble questions about Fringe and his character Dr. Walter Bishop.

On the accent:

John Noble: The character of “Walter,” because of his nature, he’s a top academic. We knew that he was probably born in – well, he was born in England, but he’d spent most of his life in Boston, which has a unique sort of accent anyway, and had lived in this sort of very worldly, peopled with scientists from all over the world, so he kind of lived in a different world and has picked up what we called a Transatlantic accent, so it is American, but it has sort of elements of British in there as well, and that’s the term we use in vocal, talking about vocal stuff is Transatlantic, and we did that quite deliberately because of the background of the character.

On Walter's relationship with Peter:

Julia Diddy (FanCast.com): “Walter” seems to almost be torn in terms of his loyalty to “Peter” and his loyalty to science, as if his experiments are also his children in a sense. ... It seems like there’s a sibling rivalry with “Peter” against science, so I was curious about the process you go through to play that.

John Noble: It’s an amazing observation. It’s true. It’s absolutely true what you say. Given a task, that “Walter” is incredibly focused, myopic when he has a task to do, and really other things become secondary. And we know this with a lot of people in our society are workaholics, and find it difficult to split their time between their work and their families. Now this is an issue that many of us deal with. This is an extreme case of that. And when he’s on his science, he really doesn’t have time for this squawking child next to him or for the wife, and I think there are plenty of examples of that in society, but “Walter’s” is just heightened a little bit.

FringeTelevision.com has an exclusive recording of the entire interview here:



Or, click here to read a transcript of the interview.

J. Noble: Hello, everybody.

Moderator: We’ll go to the first question from Joshua Maloni with Niagara Frontier Publications.

J. Maloni: John, thanks for your time today.

J. Noble: You’re very welcome.

J. Maloni: I have to say, yours is definitely one of the best new characters this season. Watching you last night chewing the gum and calling Jasika, “Asteroid,” I mean it’s just comic genius, I have to say. I’m wondering, how do you approach the parts and how much fun is it to play?

J. Noble: Well, the second part of it, it’s as much fun as it looks like. I mean it’s an absolute hoot playing. It’s obviously got serious aspects to it, but I treat it as a hoot to play the thing. Preparation, well, that’s probably the hardest bit, getting the timing right and doing the preparation on the scientific work. But working on Fringe is a great job. I mean it’s a great group of people to work with, and amazing scripts from the minds of J.J. Abrams and other people. They’re geniuses. Living inside their heads much be a very strange thing to do because they’re always coming up with something different. Overall, fantastic experience, and thank you for the comment about “Walter.”

J. Maloni: Yes. I mean, like you said, J.J., his shows, I mean the storylines are always, you know, they’re incredibly clever, but they’re also complex. And for the audience, at times, it can be a little challenging to follow. As a cast member, do you find it sort of challenging to follow all the sort of twists and turns?

J. Noble: Yes [laughs], absolutely. But I could also say that, as an audience member, I kind of enjoy reading things that make me concentrate or watching things that make me concentrate, and so, you know, that’s what Fringe does. And I watched an episode on Tuesday night, and I was in it, but there were things I missed, and I said, what was that? What did they say there? So I mean it’s fascinating to be watching something that does require concentration.

J. Maloni: Definitely. Thanks, John, for your time.

J. Noble: You’re very welcome. Thank you.

Moderator: Next we have Sarah Jersild with the Tribune Interactive.

S. Jersild: Thanks so much for taking my call.

J. Noble: You’re very welcome, Sarah.

S. Jersild: We were just talking about how “Walter” is this incredibly genial fun character, but he’s got this menace behind him, which we saw when he drugged “Astrid,” when he – we just discovered he was doing experiments on “Peter” as a child. How do you balance that being this sort of cuddly guy when all of a sudden we find out, he’s kind of scary?

J. Noble: Yes. It’s the dark side to stuff, isn’t it? I guess it exists in all of us. But with “Walter,” because of who he is and how he is and how bright he is and how disturbed he is, it just sort of surfaces a bit more often and a bit more radically than it does in most of us. I don’t find it that hard to find. I mean taking each moment when I’m doing a scene, I take each second and look at what’s gone through at that point, and sometimes those reactions just come out, to be honest with you, out of frustration, the character’s frustration, or out his greater purpose, whatever, out of his madness. But it’s certainly interesting to play, and it shocks the people I’m playing with at times. You see these shocked reactions from the other actors, but that all makes some good fun too.

S. Jersild: Great. Thanks so much.

J. Noble: You’re very welcome.

Moderator: We’ll go to David Martindale with the Hearst Newspapers.

D. Martindale: Hello, John.

J. Noble: Hello, David.

D. Martindale: I love the show. You’re really wonderful in it.

J. Noble: Thank you.

D. Martindale : At my softball game this weekend, I think I saw “The Observer” milling around. I was very concerned.

J. Noble: I think he was there.

D. Martindale: Yes. Yes.

J. Noble: Yes. He was supposed to be there.

D. Martindale: Do you have a head for science? Do you have an aptitude for even fundamental science?

J. Noble: Yes, I do, but more on a theoretical level than a practical level. One of my best friends, a fellow who I shared a house with many years and we were at the university together, he’s a brilliant scientist. He’s also quite mad. But we would talk, and my thought was the art, his was the science, but we could talk for hours. We found common ground in the theory, the theoretical side of it, and so I’ve always understood that or being able to talk about it, and also have written quite extensively. But put me in a lab with a whole lot of instruments, and I may not do so well.

D. Martindale: And I’ve heard it said that the line between genius and madman is very, very thin, and “Walter” definitely walks on both sides of that line. Do you find, I mean do you find this friend of yours, for example, some inspiration for that or someone else?

J. Noble: Yes, I certainly do. His name is Dr. Ted Steal, and he’s an extraordinary man, and he’s always ridden on the edge of the scientific community because he’s just absolutely no good at politics, but he’s a genius, and so, but he was a man whatever he did he did with absolute passion and focus and so if we were out drinking and partying, or if he was playing tennis or football or going after a girl, whatever he did, it was with complete and utter focus. That’s one of the aspects that “Walter” has as well. But he was also a lovely man, but he’d also fight people. I mean, at a turn of a hat, he would fight people, and so he was a fascinating guy. In fact, he’s having his 60th birthday this week, I think, and I can’t be there in Australia with him, but he’s an amazing man, and I’ve based a lot of this on him.

D. Martindale: Wow. That’s terrific. Thank you so much. I love the show.

J. Noble: Thanks so much for your comment.

D. Martindale: You bet.

Moderator: We’ll go to Fred Toppel with SciFi.com.

F. Toppel: Hello, John.

J. Noble: Hello, Fred.

F. Toppel: In the upcoming episodes we’re going to see later this month and next, what are some of the great “Walter” moments we’ll see?

J. Noble: In terms of – I guess there are always two things. There are the sort of bleak and dark moments that you see sometimes, and there’s also the comedic, well what play as comedic moments. We’ve just really finished off the final episode that will be going on in December, and there are a lot of “Walter” moments in there just him being inappropriate really.

There are a couple of quite – the next episode, which goes on next week, we see “Walter” from a different angle, very vulnerable. He goes back into the asylum, and we see the very, very fearful man return for a while, although he does have some wonderful moments early in the episode. But when he goes back inside, he turns back into this incredibly fearful, stuttering fellow who we saw when we first met him.

It’s a very interesting journey that we see “Walter” go through. You know, he also solves these extraordinary things either because he had done them in the past or because he simply has the intellect to think now. We’re getting more episodes where “Walter” hasn’t done that experiment sometimes, but he has the mind to be able to see a way through it, so that’s the sort of thrust of things you will expect to see in the future.

Deepening of the relationship with the son, of course. There’ll be a lot more of this. As you go through, you know, this season and the next seasons after that, you’ll see the ensemble of actors interact a lot more than maybe we’ve seen at present. The relationships with the “Olivia” character will become more like relationships do when people who know each other for a while and start to kind of have an investment and care, and care for each other. We certainly will see that in the first episode coming back next year where we all bond together to support “Olivia,” and she for us. So that’s the sort of thing you can look forward to.

F. Toppel: That sounds great. Just as a follow up, do you approach “Walter” with some sort of logic for some of the weird, seemingly random things he says, or do you just go with it?

J. Noble: I think there’s – as an actor, I always have to find a reason. I can’t just sort of say something out of the blue, so I always find some sort of neural pathway in there, some image that it’s tapped. It’s like we are, we’ll see, we’ll smell something or we’ll hear a sound, and it’ll take us into a memory. You know how that happens to you as well? And so it’s like he continually has these little memory jolts that will – but instead of keeping them to himself, he talks about them, and say, “I had a fruit cocktail once in Atlantic City.” And that’ll just come out because it’s a memory, so he’s quite inappropriate at times.

F. Toppel: He’s a fantastic character, so thank you for talking to us about it.

J. Noble: Thanks so much. It’s lovely to talk to you.

Moderator: We’ll go to Marisa Roffman with Zap2it.com

M. Roffman: John, how are you doing today?

J. Noble: How are you doing, Marisa?

M. Roffman: Okay. I’m doing very well. I’m very happy to be talking to you.

J. Noble: Thank you.

M. Roffman: So I have a question because “Walter” has been – he’s obviously very grounded in mythology between “William Bell” and Massive Dynamic. Are we going to see more of that in upcoming episodes at all? Do you know?

J. Noble: There’s going to be a growth in that sort of in the mythology. It’s not going to be laid all out for everyone to find in one episode.

M. Roffman: Right.

J. Noble: Of course, you understand, Marisa, that J.J. won’t do that.

M. Roffman: Of course. No.

J. Noble: And in fact, one of the things that they also do, these people, is that they keep the process pretty organic, and as things happen, as things happen in their mind, this is the writers I’m talking about, or an actor, one of the characters will invent something or a new character will evolve, and they keep it open to evolving the script as they go along. We’re constantly getting rewrites. Sometimes just before we go on set, we’ll get a rewrite because they’ll have a better idea on what line to say there. And so that’s, whilst that’s challenging, it’s also very, as I said, organic. I personally love working that way.

M. Roffman: Okay. Well, thank you so much for your time.

J. Noble: Thank you so much.

M. Roffman: Have a great day.

J. Noble: Bye.

Moderator: We have Troy Rogers with TheDeadbolt.com.

T. Rogers: Hello, John. Thanks for taking the time.

J. Noble: Good day, Troy. How are you?

T. Rogers: Not too bad. Do you have any say over what type of food “Walter” is looking for from episode to episode?

J. Noble: No [laughs], but it’s very funny because this week we had a week where we hadn’t been filming. We’ve been doing a lot of preparation for the next episode, and also sort of ADR and publicity. But I’ve had a chance to have a look at the blogs going on, and there are blogs going around about what “Walter” is going to eat. It’s very funny stuff, and the whole – there was one I tuned into, and it was going for pages and people having such fun just about what “Walter” is going to have to eat next. I think they finally … with a cheese steak, so we’ll see if the writers put it in.

T. Rogers: Yes. A lot of the people think you’re going to eat something sweet….

J. Noble: No [laughs]. Isn’t it funny though? It’s great fun that a television show and a character can get people having so much fun with each other.

T. Rogers: Yes. Exactly. Actually, another follow up, I was just curious what’s the weirdest thing you’ve learned so far working on the show?

J. Noble: Golly. Do you mean within the content of the science?

T. Rogers: Yes. Concerning the cases that you guys….

J. Noble: We’ve got some coming up. A lot of it is – I get more interested in the neural aspects of it, I suppose, than say the parasitical elements of it. When it goes into that sort of neural stuff and it’s a little strange in that sense, I get very excited about it. Obviously the parallel universe episode we did, which was called “The Arrival,” was probably outside of the realm of what we normally think about, although I have to confess, I had a very similar conversation about parallel universes with a friend of mine sitting in the university campus 30 years ago looking at the stars, and so it was an interesting thing to revisit that. You remember what I’m talking about?

T. Rogers: Yes.

J. Noble: So that was kind of memorable for me, that one.

T. Rogers: Okay. Great. Thanks again for your time.

J. Noble: Thank you, sir.

Moderator: We’ll go to Suzanne Lanoue with The TV MegaSite.

S. Lanoue: Hello. Thank you for being here with us.

J. Noble: Thank you, Suzanne.

S. Lanoue: I noticed that you’re speaking voice, your natural speaking voice, is very different from the one you use on the show. And I know you have quite a bit of experience acting and directing and teaching acting and all that. I was wondering, I noticed that the character has a lot of vibrato in the voice, and it almost sounds like – I don’t want to stereotype – I don’t want to say bad – stereotype like the great actor voice. I was wondering how you came up with it.

J. Noble: The character of “Walter,” because of his nature, he’s a top academic. We knew that he was probably born in – well, he was born in England, but he’d spent most of his life in Boston, which has a unique sort of accent anyway, and had lived in this sort of very wordly, peopled with scientists from all over the world, so he kind of lived in a different world and has picked up what we called a Transatlantic accent, so it is American, but it has sort of elements of British in there as well, and that’s the term we use in vocal, talking about vocal stuff is Transatlantic, and we did that quite deliberately because of the background of the character.

S. Lanoue: Did Mr. Abrams help you with that when you say we, or do you mean … coach?

J. Noble: No. I guess that was my job to think about that and come up with something, but it was accepted. I mean, if they hadn’t liked it, they would have told me, I’m sure.

S. Lanoue: All right. Thank you very much. I love Fringe, and it gets better with every episode.

J. Noble: Thank you so much.

Moderator: Next we have Joe Diliberto with Soap Opera Weekly.

J. Diliberto: Hello, John. It’s a pleasure.

J. Noble: Thank you, Joe.

J. Diliberto: I love the relationship on the show between you and your son, your character, that is, and your son. How important is the father/son relationship, and do you expect the dynamic between them to shift or change in any major way, i.e. “Walter” maybe becoming a little more normal?

J. Noble: From my point of view, and I think Josh Jackson will back this up, probably the most, the thing that has held our interest most so far has been that relationship and, in a sense, as individual actors, what we’ve worked on, we’ve probably talked more about that, Josh and I, than about anything else. We just kind of feel that it’s special to do that sort of thing and feel a bit of responsibility to try and get it as right as possible. Judging by the feedback we’re getting, it’s working, and it’s resonating with a whole lot of people.

J. Diliberto: Absolutely. Yes.

J. Noble: And we’ll continue to do that. It’s not going to turn into any sort of soft, “Oh, I understand, and now I know I love you” time, and walk away into the sunset. It won’t happen any more than it happens in families. But they’ll continue to grow. The depth of their relationship will continue to grow. There’s no question about that.

J. Diliberto: Cool. Thank you so much.

J. Noble: You’re very welcome.

Moderator: Our next question is from Rachel Bishop with TheTwoCents.com.

R. Bishop: Hello, John.

J. Noble: Hello, Rachel.

R. Bishop: “Walter” has arguably some of the best dialogue on TV today. You’ve touched on this a little bit, but have you found it difficult or perhaps challenging would be a better word to play a character who not only has very technical, scientific dialog, but also has an extremely non-linear thought process?

J. Noble: No [laughs]. I don’t know what it says about me, but I haven’t actually found it very hard at all [laughs]. I hesitate to give you that answer, but no, I haven’t. I don’t. I find it fun. I don’t know, I’ve always been attracted to that sort of humor anyway, and I guess around our home, I mean all of us use that sort of offbeat humor, so it wasn’t so difficult. And trailing off great lines of what sometimes sound like nonsense also appeals apparently, so I do that occasionally. No, it wasn’t too hard [laughs].

R. Bishop: Good.

J. Noble: Thank you.

R. Bishop: You make it look very easy, so I guess it was easy.

J. Noble: Well, what I’m saying is that I enjoy doing it. It’s not something that I find terribly difficult and have to worry about. I mean it comes certainly naturally, I think.

R. Bishop: Good. Now what have been some of your favorite scenes or moments thus far in the series that we’ve seen?

J. Noble: Yes. Well, anything to do with the cow. Anything to do with the cow, I mean, I adore working with the cow. It just makes – the cow makes me laugh. I don’t know why. Everyone gets all sort of gooey and funny when the cow comes in. And then, of course, I got to milk the cow and, you know, because they rang up and said, “Do you need some coaching to milk a cow?” And I said, “Certainly not. I could milk a cow. I’m a country boy,” so that was great fun milking the cow. I don’t know.

It just – the one where … in the pilot where we’re eating Chinese watching “Sponge Bob,” and that cow was on our necks, myself and Jasika. That was the funniest thing because it was nuzzling up against us trying to get the Chinese food. It wouldn’t stay until I gave it some, but it was just the funniest night doing that scene about 4:00 in the morning. Those sorts of things, there’s a whole lot of them.

One of my favorite games at present is to try and make – I’ve got this thing where I try and make “Broyles” laugh because Lance Reddick plays it to a tee. So I go out of my way whenever I have a scene to try and make him laugh. Of course, as actors, we have great fun with this because, in rehearsals, I succeed. But as soon as the cameras roll, there’s no way. It’s going to be absolute headlines across the nation. “Broyles Smiles” one day.

R. Bishop: That’s great. Well, I really enjoy “Walter,” and I feel like I want to buy him a root beer.

J. Noble: That’s very kind of you.

R. Bishop: Thank you for your time.

J. Noble: Thank you so much.

Moderator: We’ll go back to David Martindale with the Hearst Newspapers.

D. Martindale: I have one more for you. As big and broad as you get to play this character, has it ever happened yet that somebody’s stopped it and said, “John, don’t you think you’re going a little bit big in this scene?”

J. Noble: Sure. Absolutely, David.

D. Martindale: Do they let you bounce off the walls if you want?

J. Noble: No. The agreement that I have with every director that comes in, the term I use is: “I’ll push the edge of the envelope, and then you can pull me wherever you want to.” But I find it easier to go for, you know, “Let me take all the risks, and then tell me what is too much” rather than starting with nothing or starting from very little. I start with a lot, and sometimes they’ll say to me, just pull that one back. It’s no big deal. Or just, you know, change that or just pull the vocal level back there, which I’m more than happy to do, but it means that I have to trust the directors. But I’d rather try for the sort of big effect and then pull it back than start with nothing and try and build it up.

D. Martindale: That’s true. They give Oscars to actors who go big. They don’t often give them to actors that don’t do much.

J. Noble: You have to have a trust in your director. Basically your directors and your editors, you have to say to them, “Well, look, I’ll do this, but don’t hang me up to dry here.” That trust, I mean, I have that with the people I work with. It would be terrible if you thought suddenly that you were being hung out to dry doing this big performance, and it was out of character and out of context, and they kept it in there, making you look like a fool. Then that wouldn’t be so comfortable.

D. Martindale: I get you. Do you ever have “Walter” moments? I mean just where you space out?

J. Noble: Yes [laughs].

D. Martindale: People look at you like you have lobsters crawling out your ears when you do it.

J. Noble: Yes. My daughters do that quite a lot, actually [laughs]…. No, we do. We have a lot of fun of that in nature, but I do have “Walter” moments. My mind goes off onto quite strange places at times, and I’m told, I’m told that this happens.

D. Martindale: It makes sense to you, though.

J. Noble: Absolutely makes sense to me. I’m confused as to why other people just don’t understand.

D. Martindale: I get you. Cool. Thank you so much.

J. Noble: You’re welcome, David.

Moderator: Next is Sarah Jersild with the Tribune Interactive.

S. Jersild: Can you tell me a little bit about the relationship that “Walter” has with “Olivia” and with “Astrid” because the big relationship you have is with “Peter,” but you’re also seeming to get more in-depth relationship with the two women.

J. Noble: Yes. Look. It’s been one of the things that has had to come slowly. We’ve had a man who has obviously been – I don’t think he would have ever been particularly good with women anyway, you know. I think he would have been a pretty horrible husband, not because he’s a bad man, simply because he wouldn’t have thought to be nice. Then he comes out, and he’s confronted with these two girls, and he doesn’t know how to talk to girls, so it’s taken time to learn. He still can’t remember “Astrid’s” name.

S. Jersild: Right.

J. Noble: Which is, I have to say, one of the great joys is working with Jasika on that whole, you know, the name business. She is such a funny girl. I can’t wait to see what they come up with her eventually, but she’s a very, very funny woman. And the one with “Olivia” is fascinating because that’s far deeper. My sense is that “Walter” starts to feel almost paternal towards her. But obviously you can’t go into that path, and just on occasions I can see that “Olivia” wants to ask “Walter” something, but then she’ll back away. We’ve seen a couple times that that’s happened. Somewhere down the track, I think that there will be a coming together of those two, and I don’t know this for a fact, but I just feel it’s inevitable, and I think it’s something that “Walter” and “Olivia” will need to do.

S. Jersild: Right. One of the things you were talking about earlier was there will be a newsflash when “Broyles” smiles. I just found out that he’s actually a jazz musician.

J. Noble: He is [laughs]. He’s a wonderful musician and composer.

S. Jersild: Is there a lot of music on the set or is something like that, and did it surprise the heck out of you when you found out?

J. Noble: It did. When I first met the man, I mean, he’s a very quiet, dignified man. We started to talk, and I suddenly find out that his first degree was in music and he’s, in fact, a composer and a jazz musician, among other things. He’s a man of many parts. But he’s quiet and enigmatic and a very noble man to just spend time with, so I’m very impressed with him, I must say.

S. Jersild: Thanks again.

J. Noble: You’re very welcome.

Moderator: We’ll go to Amy Amatangelo with the Boston Herald.

A. Amatangelo: I joined the call a little late, so I apologize if someone asked this before.

J. Noble: That’s all right, Amy.

A. Amatangelo: I was wondering how much thought you give to the whole idea of “The Pattern” and what is “The Pattern,” and do you have to deal with a lot of people trying to get information out of you, fans of the show thinking you might know something more than they know at this point?

J. Noble: Do you know, we don’t know. I don’t know what The Pattern” is. “Walter” doesn’t, and that kind of works okay for me. We know, and having a global conspiracy of sorts, I mean, goodness me, James Bond opening this week, we’re used to the idea of global conspiracies. I don’t particularly want to know what’s going on in terms of the writers’ minds. As to people asking, well, yes. But it’s not offensively. It’s just, “Do you know anything? And I say, “I don’t know,” and I mean it, so I can’t be drawn really, Amy. But no, a little bit is revealed, and these writers have in mind a plan that could last one, two, three years, or however long it lasts, and they will bring that all to a conclusion at the right time. We can’t reveal everything now because where do you go, so there’s a long way to go.

A. Amatangelo: I actually laughed out loud this week when you called – you were on the phone with “Peter” and you say it’s your father. That whole delivery, I thought, was just so funny in just the way you did it. But I was just curious, is all of that on the page? Is it a lot of rehearsals and back and forth? Is any of it adlibbed on your part to kind of get that … to make a line that really is not that funny, very funny?

J. Noble: What I get is the ink on the page. No, I mean the interpretation of the character is mine. As an actor, I talk an awful lot about rhythms when I’m talking about acting. I don’t want to bore you with this, but that’s what I do, just creating different rhythms within the scene and the act of the scene. See, I did bore you there, but so I mean I’m always looking for rhythms that will work because it makes life interesting rather than just playing through on a flat line the whole time. Lines like that, I don’t know. They just kind of sound right to do it like that.

A. Amatangelo: In the science on the show, we hear a lot when people on medical shows that they have trouble getting the medical jargon down and they have to kind of rehearse. Are there any particular things that you’ve had to – because I feel like your character also often has a lot of the exposition because you’re saying what the science is behind what’s happening? Has there been anything in particular that’s been challenging about that? Half the time, do you even understand what you’re saying…?

J. Noble: Yes. I do what research I can, and I do it off the Internet. So if there’s a chemical described, then I’ll go and see what they’re talking about basically just for my own satisfaction or procedure. The times that it’s more likely to affect me is after we’ve been filming for about 15 hours and we’re onto our tenth take. Then I could start to jumble … it’s really interesting. It doesn’t happen the other way around, you know, at the beginning. It’s after when we start to get tired that things will come out jumbled. But it does take a little bit of work, Amy. Yes.

A. Amatangelo: Great. Thank you so much.

J. Noble: You’re very welcome.

Moderator: Next we have Tara Bennett with SFX.

T. Bennett: Thanks so much for your time today.

J. Noble: You’re welcome.

T. Bennett: One of the things that’s been interesting about your character is that you have had to really kind of do some more of the gory work on the show.

J. Noble: Yes.

T. Bennett: I was wondering if at any time that’s been kind of jarring for you or if there’s ever been a moment when you’ve had to look in a body cavity or something that you’ve kind of gone … even yourself got a little shiver?

J. Noble: No. There hasn’t been. Now I spent quite a long time doing a semi-regular [role] in Australia as a neurosurgeon [on a TV show], so I got to look inside bodies, I’d say, a bit. I was thinking about this yesterday, Tara, in terms of, it looks odd, doesn’t it, to see a man looking inside….

T. Bennett: Sometimes. Yes.

J. Noble: And yet, I thought, “Well, could I do that?” And the answer is yes. But what I would find difficult was when “Walter” can seem to harm or to hurt people and not feel anything. I think that one, but you see we don’t hurt each other, and we don’t hurt the actors that are there and the prosthetics don’t get hurt. I think if there was genuine pain being inflicted, I would feel far less comfortable than I do.

T. Bennett: Thanks so much, and I love your performance.

J. Noble: Thanks.

Moderator: Next we have Julia Diddy with FanCast.com.

J. Diddy: Thank you so much for your time today.

J. Noble: You’re welcome, Julia.

J. Diddy: First, I wanted to know what your own thoughts are about science and scientific advances pushing the envelope, and how does that inform your character?

J. Noble: In my lifetime, you know, lasers were considered to be some sort of futuristic foolish idea. This is in my lifetime, and we use them on a daily basis for everything now. I believe we are only tapping the edges of what is potential … as we learn more through quantum mechanics and string theory, we’re finding out that all sorts of things are possible that we didn’t think were. We’re becoming less ignorant as to the possibilities. We can imagine the impossibilities, as J.J. Abrams likes to say. So I don’t have any problem with any of it, and I just went off on a great big tangent and forgot the question.

J. Diddy: You actually handled it beautifully.

J. Noble: Thank you, Julia.

J. Diddy: In terms about your feelings of science and forming your character. And the only other question, very quickly, you touched upon this a bit already in terms of your character’s relationship with his son. But I’d like to hear just a bit more in terms of “Walter” seems to almost be torn in terms of his loyalty to “Peter” and his loyalty to science, as if his experiments are also his children in a sense.

J. Noble: I think that’s a beautiful observation.

J. Diddy: It seems like there’s a sibling rivalry with “Peter” against science, so I was curious about the process you go through to play that.

J. Noble: It’s an amazing observation. It’s true. It’s absolutely true what you say. Given a task, that “Walter” is incredibly focused, myopic when he has a task to do, and really other things become secondary. And we know this with a lot of people in our society are workaholics, and find it difficult to split their time between their work and their families. Now this is an issue that many of us deal with. This is an extreme case of that. And when he’s on his science, he really doesn’t have time for this squawking child next to him or for the wife, and I think there are plenty of examples of that in society, but “Walter’s” is just heightened a little bit.

J. Diddy: That makes perfect sense. Okay. Thank you so much.

J. Noble: Thank you so much.

Moderator: We’ll go back to Troy Rogers with TheDeadbolt.com

T. Rogers: Actually, following up on that science question, I was wondering what are your personal views on fringe science? Are you into big foot and UFOs and stuff like that?

J. Noble: No, not UFOs. No. I’ve got nothing against them, but it’s just not something that tantalizes my imagination. I think I’m much more fascinated by what we’ve discovered, as I said a while ago, through quantum mechanics and so forth. What was started off by Albert Einstein essentially, who just opened the floodgates into a new world, and then we suddenly find out that we can bend time or the string theory … and it just means that anything is conceivable, and I find that fascinating. We don’t know anything. We don’t know what black holes are even. Do you know what I mean? To me, I get excited by it.

T. Rogers: Yes. So do I because isn’t the theory that we only use 10% of our brains.

J. Noble: Yes. But, you know, we’re moving exponentially. We’re moving so fast that today’s technology is out of place by next week. It’s an exciting time to live in keeping up with these guys. I don’t know. I’m glad to be alive to observe it. I think I’ve lived in an amazing time. I think I’ve lived in amazing times.

T. Rogers: Excellent. Thanks again, John.

J. Noble: You’re very welcome.

Moderator: We’ll go back to Joe Diliberto with the Soap Opera Weekly.

J. Diliberto: Thanks. Hello, again. You were talking about acting before and some of the processes you go through. My question is actually about another actor on the show who is not in it a hell of a lot, but I love her, Blair Brown.

J. Noble: Of course, I know you were going to talk about her.

J. Diliberto: And I was wondering because her character is so kind of diametrically opposite. She’s so focused and everything like that as opposed to yours. Do you think there would ever be any scenes between the two of you?

J. Noble: Absolutely has to be. Absolutely has to be, I mean, apart from the fact that Blair and I want to work together. That’s just a personal thing. But she’s already been interviewed and said, “Yes, Walter and” – what did she say? “Walter and Nina used to be together.” She’s invented this whole scenario. The first time I ever met the woman, when we did a read through the first time, she said, “Well, down the track, I can see that we’ll finish up having a big of go.” She’s a very funny woman. That’s the theory that somewhere down the line, maybe they were even together, which is absolutely feasible, and it’ll be, I’m sure, a very interesting challenge working with Blair Brown. She’s a smashing actress.

J. Diliberto: Yes. Absolutely. That would be so excellent. I hope it happens.

J. Noble: So do I.

J. Diliberto: Thank you.

J. Noble: You’re welcome.

Moderator: Our final question will come from Sarah Jersild.

S. Jersild: Can you tell me a little bit about the experience of actually building the relationship with “Peter” on the show, how you and Joshua Jackson sort of worked between the two of you to make it such an authentic father/son estranged relationship?

J. Noble: We talked. We talked. Joshua and I talked very openly and, frankly, right from the beginning, about this amazing thing. You know, he – we’re both men. I mean, I am a father of a son, and fortunately I have a very good relationship with him. But we understood how complex these things are between men, as indeed they are between women as well. It was something that touched us both and interested us both, and so we became very animated right from the beginning, Josh Jackson and I, about the responsibility of playing this correctly, getting this right. And we still talk about it. We still get excited about it. We’ll go into each other’s caravan and talk about that issue, nothing else but that issue, trying to find the truth in there. And sometimes it’s not clichéd sometimes. Sometimes it’s ugly. It’s not what you’d expect, and we’re trying to get all of those elements into it. We take it pretty seriously.

S. Jersild: Great. Thank you so much.

J. Noble: You’re very welcome.

Moderator: We have no further questions in queue. Do you have any closing remarks, Mr. Noble?

J. Noble: Simply this. I mean the people that have been asking questions, thank you for the continued support and the lovely comments you’ve made today. You know, I think the journey of Fringe has only just started. Every energy that I sense around the place is to take this good, very good show, and turn it into a great show. That’s the discussion. That’s the energy that’s going into it, and your support and the way you’ve spoken today obviously you have support of the show, and I thank you for that. It’s going to be a great ride. I think it’s going to be an amazing ride, so thank you so much.