INTERVIEW: Battlestar Galactica’s Aaron Douglas

Battlestar Galactica’s Aaron Douglas, Veronica Mars and Flashpoint’s Enrico Colantoni
By: Kat Angus
Date: June 5, 2009
Source: TV Casualty

 

Last night, I had the pleasure of attending CTV’s UpClose party, where they had stars of all their fall shows mingling and taking photos with us regular schmoes. As if that weren’t enough, there was an open bar, a barbecue and, oh yeah, an ICE CREAM TRUCK. Best party ever? Possibly. The Degrassi kids were all there – they’re all, like, four feet tall – as was (bleh) Ben Mulroney, some Corner Gas people (double bleh), plus a few of the So You Think You Can Dance Canada people dancing on podiums. Except that the podiums were so narrow that for all the moves they could do, they might as well have just hired mediocre go-go dancers.

But. But! I did get to speak to two people who made me, on the inside, squeal like a little fangirl. (On the outside, I was, as always, the consummate professional.) I am speaking, of course, of Aaron Douglas and Enrico Colantoni. Douglas was there to promote his new show, The Bridge, while Colantoni was there with the rest of the Flashpoint crew. I have to say that Enrico is one of the most delightfully goofy men I’ve ever met in real life, though, as he later told me, it was probably just for show. So! For your reading pleasure, here are my interviews with both of those lovely men, including what Colantoni wants to see from any potential Veronica Mars movie (fingers crossed).

 

Aaron Douglas

 

How does working on The Bridge compared to Battlestar Galactica?

Oh, it’s so much work. With Battlestar, I was in a cast of 15, 16 people, so there would be weeks where I worked five days or weeks where I worked one day. Now, I’m working every day, all day 15 or 16-hour days. It’s long. It’s fun, but it’s long.

 

How did you connect with your Bridge character, Frank Leo?

That’s an interesting question. I don’t know; I don’t really go in for any of that method stuff. I just go in, say my lines and hope someone likes it. And I still have a job, so I guess I’m doing a good job. I like to think that if the Chief had been a cop, he’d have been Frank Leo. He and I have a stuff in common, too.

 

Like what?

We both like cigars and Scotch.

 

How did it feel to have The Bridge picked up by CBS?

Well, great. It’s CBS, the biggest network in the States. You can’t ask for much more than that, really.

 

Do you feel any pressure, since it is the biggest network?

Not really. Like I said, I just go in and say my lines and hope for the best. If people like it, great; if not, onto the next thing. I don’t waste my time worrying about how the show’s going to do, because what happens, happens. But CBS has been great.

 

Are you enjoying being on display at this party?

You know what? It reminds me a lot of the cons, except I’m not signing anything, which is nice. It’s nice to meet people who like what I do, and this way I’m not answering the same questions over and over again.

 

Which question do you get the most often?

“How did it feel when you found out you were a Cylon?”

 

…So I won’t be asking that question, then.

Thank you.

 

I’ve spoken to other Sci-Fi stars who say that at the cons, there will be tons of screaming and attention during the panels, but as soon as they go out on the floor, nobody will talk to them.

Oh, no, I get stopped. You can’t just walk through the floor, because people point and take photos and ask you to take pictures with their baby. It can take hours. But it’s great, you know, because these are people who just really loved the show and supported it, and to actually see the people who kept you working is great.