By Kenn Gold
Peter Facinelli’s character on FX’s hit series
Damages may hold the key to unraveling the mystery. Whatever happens with Greg Malina though, it’s clear that he is more important to the overall story than it seemed at first glance.
Damages is the surprise summer hit legal thriller starring Glenn Close, which leaves viewers wanting more each Tuesday night.
Facinelli recently took time out to sit down with MediaBlvd Magazine and other media to discuss his work on the hit show. He also talked about the various other projects he has been involved with, and has upcoming as well as the complexities of family life with a job that has him traveling from one coast to the other on a weekly basis.
How long of a run are you going to have on Damages?
Peter Facinelli> You know, I don’t know. Gregory is kind of torn between two sides right now and every time I flip the page, I wonder if I’m going to be in the next episode myself. So it’s all up in the air right now, but because my character pertains to this one particular case, I believe when the season is over, then my part would be over.
It looks like Gregory is going to be deeper and more involved in the conspiracy than we maybe originally thought. Can you give us any insight into where it’s going with the rest of the episodes this season or what you have filmed so far?
Peter> Well, I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you. Like I said, he was in Florida. He knows what’s going on and he is being torn between two sides. And that’s pretty much all I can tell you. I can’t tell you any future episodes because I don’t want to ruin it for you. But he is, after Katie has been knocked out, pretty much the missing link in the whole case.
Can you tell us, does he have any redeeming qualities?
Peter> It’s hard because I know in the episodes you’ve seen, he’s kind of a dirt bag, but I think he’s just a guy that was in the wrong place at the wrong time and got caught up in something and is just in survival mode. So I don’t necessarily see him as a bad guy. It’s hard for me because I have to be careful how much information I give out. I don’t want the powers that be coming after me. I’m really paranoid right now myself. I feel like people are listening in.
Would you prefer living on the East Coast raising your family there versus the West Coast.
Peter> You know I grew up in New York, so New York is always going to be home for me. But I have been living out in California for ten years, so I really prefer living in California because raising a family, I really like the suburbs to live in, as much of a suburb as you can get in Los Angeles. But for me, if I lived in New York, it would have to be in Manhattan, because I love Manhattan. It’s just a melting pot of different people and places and art and theater. And so, if I was single, I would totally live in New York.
So it’s kind of nice that I’ve actually been going back and forth. I’ve been flying in, doing three days and flying back home. So it’s been a nice treat for me because I’ve gotten to see my family. I’ve gotten to spend quite a bit of time in New York, but then I get to fly home and be with my family here.
How did you come to the role of Greg and how much of the back story did they tell you in advance.
Peter> Well, I knew the writers beforehand because I did a pilot with them called The Inside that actually got picked up by FOX and subsequently, we all left the project for different reasons. So we weren’t attached to the final project that aired, but I knew the writers and I wasn’t even aware that they had done this pilot.
They called me on a Friday and they said, “Hey, do you want to come and do an arch on our show?” And they sent me the pilot and I thought it was phenomenal. I said, “Of course.” And I was shooting on a Tuesday, so I had like four days to basically prep for the role. But at the beginning stage, I don’t think they even knew where the character was going. They had a small idea, and then it basically unfolded itself.
And that’s why I love this show. It kind of gives you pieces, and just unfolds itself like a good novel. A lot of times I don’t even know where the characters are going. I flip the page and where I think it’s going is completely the opposite.
What appealed to you most about the character of Greg?
Peter> You know, it’s hard to say what appealed to me because he’s such in a hard place, but it’s fun to play that character because he is in that place of being sandwiched between two sides and not knowing exactly which side to turn to. He’s kind of a very lonely character and all he had was Katie and she’s gone now to, you know. So for him, he’s just kind of swimming in this huge ocean and just looking for somebody to help him because he wants out on one side, but he’s not sure if he should go to the other side and tell them the story.
Do you think he’s inherently a good guy caught up in a bad situation or do you think he’s more of a bad guy like Arthur Frobisher?
Peter>No, I think he’s a good guy caught up in a bad situation.
What do you think is the best part about being on Damages for you personally?
Peter> You know it’s such a phenomenal cast and the writing is so good. Like I said before, reading it is as fun as watching it and every time I turn the page, I don’t know what’s going to happen next. And then I get to work with these phenomenal actors. It’s been a blast; I’ve been blessed to be a part of it.
It seems like one of your past projects, Fast Lane, is getting a lot of mentions again. And I know it is pretty popular in reruns. Are still getting fan mail from that. Are people kind of rediscovering the show from the reruns?
Peter> You know that show had such a phenomenal life, I’ve gotten fan mail from all over the world. From Brazil to Europe to China, it’s been crazy where it has been shown. Yes, it has been in a lot of reruns on a lot of different stations. I know it was on G4 Network, it was on Court TV. But yes, definitely for a series that only had one year, it has definitely in the last four or five years been on a lot. I’m glad. I thought it was a phenomenal series. I had a fun time doing it. I’m glad that people are discovering it and rediscovering it and I hope that it continues this way.
One of the other really great projects you were in was Touch the Top of the World. Could talk a little bit about that, and what you had to go through for the role?
Peter> Well, I played Erik Weihenmayer and he was a blind man who climbed Mt. Everest. If someone were to come in and say to me, “If you were to play a perfect role, what would you want to play?” And I’d probably say, “A blind man that climbs Mt. Everest just sounds so outrageous.” And it was a great part to play. I got to play him from like 17 to 30, so it was an epic piece. And I got to play him when he was a wrestler in high school. He was a blind wrestler in high school, and so I had to learn how to wrestle and I had to learn how to mountain climb and I had to learn how to rock climb. It was a great experience.
Then for the blind part, I wore contact lenses that didn’t allow me to see. I didn’t want to just play the blindness and lose Erik, because that’s not who he was. He’s not the blind guy; it’s more of an external thing. And, so once I had the contact lenses, that took care of that external part and then I could just play him, and it was a great experience. And a phenomenal experiment as an actor, because all I had was my listening tools, so I really had to listen. Yes, it is one of my favorite projects I have done, and it is just a good story.
Are you’re allowed to ad-lib your dialogue at all?
Peter> Well, they let you ad-lib at times, but because they’re working so hard on the dialog, they really prefer that you stick to it. If you want to add something to the end and if it works, it works; if not, they can cut it out. But in the middle of a scene, it’s better on this series to really stick to the dialog.
Also I think why they put so much emphasis on it is because if an actor comes in and changes a line, it might affect a piece of story that might be coming out three episodes from now. So you really have to as an actor just stick to the words. Because if I try to change something, all of a sudden that piece of information might not get across and two episodes from now, people won’t understand it. So it’s a very interesting piece. This whole series for me has been different because it’s not close-ended; it’s like one long puzzle.
Was there anything about Greg’s storyline that really surprised you when you opened up the script that day?
Peter> Yes, in future episodes, you will see what I’m talking about. No hints, I can’t talk to you about it, but I can tell you that there are a couple more surprises with my character.
They worked this into the show during the bar pick-up scene, but how often do you get the Tom Cruise comments or the comparison to Tom Cruise with your looks?
Peter> Oh, you know I’ve gotten it a lot in my career. So when I read that , I thought it was pretty funny. I’ve had a lot of reviews that compared me to him in some way, either in my speech or the way I look or in some mannerism. I think the writers knew that about me. I think I talked to them about that once and they actually just called it out there and I thought that was funny. I don’t think I look that much like him where people get confused and think I’m him. But I do get, “Hey you resemble Tom Cruise,” at times.
Could tell us about some of your other upcoming projects.
Peter> Well, Lily was a short that I had done. My assistant was a filmmaker about two years ago, and I thought he was talented, so I said, “Why don’t you write something and we’ll do it together?” And he wrote it and it came out really well, it just won some awards at the film festivals. Oliver Stone saw it and gave it a great quote, so he’s ecstatic. A and I’m happy to be able to help launch his career because I think he’s talented as well.
And Finding Amanda is a project that I’m excited about, that Peter Tolan directed. A lot of people know him from FX’s Rescue Me, one of the writers and creators on the show. He wrote and directed a movie called Finding Amanda with Brittany Snow, myself and Mathew Broderick and that’s a really funny movie. I’m excited about that, I think that will come out the beginning of next year.
How do you keep it all together with the family, three young kids, flying back and forth for work?
Peter> I don’t know, didn’t you hear my dogs yapping before? It’s not always a piece of cake. You know, I have a great wife and she’s very supportive. I’m very supportive of her and we just make it work. My wife’s schedule right now is crazy because she’s rehearsing so much. So I’m here with the kids and she’s off rehearsing and then I’ll go to work. And we also have a nanny that helps, so we have a lot of help.
But at the same time, we don’t just leave the kids to the help because that’s not how we raise our family. We want to be involved parents, so we really do as much as we can. But it’s a balancing act, especially since I have three children. My daughter has soccer. Another daughter has something else and I have a baby who is crawling around trying to eat toys. It’s pretty hectic at my house.
