ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: You were talking earlier about howJasonIsaacs: Are you recording?
The recorder is over here.Well, why dont you put it closer?
Some people get weirded out when its so close.Oh for gods sakes.
Credit: Jan Thijs/CBS
People should just get over themselves.
So when I saw you on set a moment ago, during the battle while youre commanding the bridge.
Just be honest.The truth is, no, its not fun.
Scenes that are really fun are scenes between human beings where youre talking to someone else.
There are lots of those in the show.
Its a very different show from otherStar Treks.
Theres a lot more emotional and personal interaction than plot.
I like scenes that are about people.
What you look for as an actor is stuff thats engaging on a human level.
Weirdly, I dont look at the lines ever before I go to set.
you might always absorb it during rehearsal.
But when its 25 non-sequiturs about ships blowing up, its actually hard to do.
Were you aTrekfan before this?
Ive seen every episode many times.
Theres an episode that gave me nightmares, and I recently showed it to my 11- and 15-year-old.
He elevates his dialogue and makes it epic and truthful.
People who think hes hammy are people responding to other people doing funny impressions of him.
If you watch the original hes utterly brilliant.
He was one of Canadas top Shakespearian actors.
He brings that level of commitment and epic high stakes to what could have been ridiculous dialogue.
He and [Leonard] Nimoy together were a genius double.
Anyone who thinks theyre hammy should give a shot to do it themselves.
Im trying to do it now and, Im telling you, its not easy.
What was your reaction to being offered this part?Terror really.
Just the idea of sitting in the captains chair having grown up watching this.
It seemed like a ludicrous and terrifying notion.
What was that on?
It could be bullsh but I like the story.Yeah.
So I thought its a mad and terrible idea.
The producers told me all the reasons why itsStar Trekbut not as you know it.
Its not about the captain, its about [Sonequa Martin-Greens character Michael Burnham], and shes fantastic.
One of my best friends is inThe Walking Deadand Ive taken a great interest in her stuff.
Its serialized, which is unusual.
Beyond the fun of saying Energize!
They gave me some juicy morsels.
Its hard to talk about because theres a complicated and layered story which one isnt used to fromStar Trek.
and that Im going on starvation rations for awhile and get to the gym.
It fits a lot better now than in episode 3.
Shatner got away with it, but by season 3 it was pretty snug.He got away with it.
I have blue eyes and I was enormously relieved.
What can you tell us about your character?Absolutely f all.
Its clear when you meet him hes a man with conflicting agendas.
I seem to take an interest in Burnham, which is surprising.
I generally dont accept a job unless theres something I think I can do with it thats interesting.
The more nuanced the writing the better I look as an actor, its pure vanity.
Whats been the most fun part of this?The first day I said energize.
You beam in and out of places the same way they [filmed] it in the 1960s.
Then once youre here, its like every other job as an actor.
As ridiculous as sci-fi can be sometimes, its got to be completely real to you in that situation.
You have to imagine youve trained in Starfleet, youre in a battle, youre a leader.
The funs over now; the fun is for people watching.
It makes a huge difference for the actors on set.
Youre servicing a million needs.
In the end, its exactly the same as doing dinner theater.
Something truthful and interesting has to happen between people.
If its just reciting plot, people just tune out.
Like in the scene you saw.
Theres new technology [a Klingon cloaking rig] that [Captain Lorca has] never come across.
So on one hand, Im scared.
On the other, I dont want to show the crew that.
So those are the moments that are interesting.
Any good anecdotes from shooting so far?When you fight Klingons, theyre big tough nasty guys.
But their faces break if you touch them.
[The prosthetics are] actually very fragile.
Theres also been this bizarre backlash online about how ethnically diverse our cast is.
I think they dont quite understand whatStar Trekis about in the first place.
Its always been about that.
I think will be surprising for the viewers.
Just the interest out there is insane.
Whats been amusing how wrong fans are about what this show is about and whos going to do what.
There are some genuinely surprising plot twists.
The scripts are about 60 pages and the nondisclosure agreement was about 300 pages.
Really?Well, the books were the bestselling books in the world.
What are we keeping secret?
If I tell you anything theyre allowed to take my childrens kidneys out with a blunt spoon.
The production did have a bit of a challenged reputation for awhile with delays and producers changing.
Did that impact things on your end at all?That is true, and its not a secret.
None of those things matter.
Its not a guarantee of success either.
But Ive been around plenty of things that had teething trouble.
