Mark A. Sheppard

Mark Sheppard is one of the most popular non-starring series actors in Hollywood. Why? He’s in all the most popular shows from BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, to SUPERNATURAL, to LEVERAGE, to CHUCK, to ANGEL. He’s very recognizable and his fan base love that he works just as hard as any actor on any series but spreads himself across multiple series. In our final part of our interview with Sheppard, he discusses BSG, his video game work and the recently finished LEVERAGE Con-con. iF: Can you talk about your work on BATTLESTAR GALACTICA?

MARK A. SHEPPARD: I did end of season three, and then I appeared sort of midpoint of season four, and then I’m at the end of season four. I came in at the end of season four and never left. It was interesting, because I think the first three episodes, from “The Sun Also Rises” through “Crossroads 1 and 2,” Romo was a far more mystical creature than he ended up. [In] ‘Sine Qua Non,’ much as I love [writer] Michael Taylor, and I do love Michael Taylor, I didn’t really understand the concept of Romo losing his mind. I don’t think he loses his mind over a dead cat, or the dead cat being the last straw of him losing his mind. So it became a very difficult episode to do, it because more about Adama [Edward James Olmos] chasing after Roslin [Mary McDonnell], which is good, because it felt very different. I got to work with [director] Rod Hardy, which was a lot of fun, and Rod and I had worked on a lot of subsequent shows together. It was a very odd position for me. I think “Blood on the Scales” was really interesting, where they put Adama on trial at the end of the mutiny. And that to me was [writer Michael] Angeli [having] custody of the character. There was at least three minutes of stuff between me and Zarek [Richard Hatch] that came out of that scene. I was laughing, because I think Angeli had always wanted me to kill Zarek since season three. He was like, “Romo Lampkin should strangle Zarek with his bare hands,” because without a coup, or without that situation, without the justification, Romo would be the only person who could say, “This is for the greater good” and live with it. That was Michael’s position to Ron, but it never worked out that way. I’m sure there was a time when I was the fifth Cylon. It was pretty obvious that I would be at some point, and it got passed up for a very good reason, which is that it became too damn obvious that it would be this person on the edge of something, and I don’t think that went on for very long, but the thought was there. I also believe that some people thought that Romo would come and go and that would be the end of him, and I think he resonated very much with the fans and the story. I was very lucky to be given a role at the end of something. To have Romo given to me was just the most wonderful gift. Very few guest star roles in BATTLESTAR that endure.

iF: Were you disappointed not to turn out to be Cylon?

SHEPPARD: No, not at all. It doesn’t say whether I am or not, really. I mean, I’m the President, for God’s sakes. What else do I need? You know, it was actually written in that I renounce the presidency. And it got taken out, so I ended up as the President. I was looking at Eddie [Olmos]. ‘You’re the President, right?’ ‘I guess [laughs] – I am the President.’ So I’m like the last President of the Colonies and the first President of humanity, which makes it a lot of fun for me when I’m shopping at the grocery store and somebody says, “Hi, Mr. President.”

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SHEPPARD: Change “power” to “passion” and I think you’ve got it. It’s a want and a desire above everyone else’s want and desire, because you can’t say Crowley is the ultimate power, you’re not giving me the Devil, or a Devil, to play, you’re giving me Crowley. Romo Lampkin is not Adama.

iF: But then, Adama isn’t the President.

SHEPPARD: Right. So it’s an interesting part. I think it’s a very common thread. Badger [in FIREFLY] is inhabiting his own area. Within the scheme of things, he’s not the main guy, he’s not the major guy. It’s the primary fact that he’s somebody who’s more passionate.

iF: Now, is that something you look for in the roles, or is that something the people who hire you see in you, or is it a combination of both?

SHEPPARD: I don’t know. Do we really care? There are characters that I know that I want to give a voice to. I remember going into an audition for something that I subsequently did in a different role, but it was a wonderful director and it was a network show. I read what I read. It was the third time they’d called me in to do something, so they really wanted to give me an episode. And the producers where there and everybody was there. I finished reading for this character, and the director looked at me and said, “Can I say something?” I said, “Yeah.” And he gave me a string of notes. And I was like, “You’re absolutely right. I’ve got to tell you, that’s the best set of notes I’ve ever heard. And I’ve got to be absolutely honest – I can’t stand this character and I really don’t want to play him. Because you’re correct, that’s the way it should be.” And I remember the producers going, “No, no, we’ll find you something else.” It was the weirdest conversation. I couldn’t work out if I’d been incredibly rude or incredibly honest. I think that’s just to show the fact that, unless something rings true to me, even in a fantastic way, unless there’s an element of truth within an environment, a character has very little interest to me. Things that are stereotypes – you read so much stuff, it becomes so offensive over the years. Major shows, major films – it doesn’t matter what it is, if it has no depth. I always thought our entertainment was there to educate us in a way. I think that I shy away from the one-dimensional or two-dimensional characters that are an accent, a voice and a mannerism. I don’t think that works very well for me. It gives me nothing to enjoy. I enjoy playing Sterling, which tells you how well it’s written and how well it’s protected, how well Dean and everybody else has directed me over the time, I guess. They’ve protected that character within that universe. And Badger yet again. Badger could be a very stereotypical geezer, and I don’t think so – I think it’s an exercise in betrayal. In the pilot, he feels betrayed and looked down upon by Mal. It’s a class war. Maybe I make those things up myself and maybe I find them, but I think when you get people like Ben Edlund and Ron Moore and Michael Angeli and Michael Taylor and Jane Espenson, those people tend to have a sense of story that goes beyond the one- or two-dimensional characters.

iF: You voiced a videogame. Do you imagine what you’d be like playing him as an onscreen role?

SHEPPARD: Yeah, of course. DRAGON AGE: ORIGINS came up as well, for EA. DRAGON AGE: ORIGINS is a very clever RPG, it’s a console RPG, it’s very well-made. But Blur, the company that EA used to make their commercials, millions of dollars, brilliant realizations of what the game is and characterizing the games – it literally looks like a movie, but it’s animated. The thing that got me was, they brought me in not for the game, but for the E3 presentations, and then they put me in for commercials, and I ended up doing the TV commercials, which was a fantastic experience. And you see the level of work that goes on behind videogames. I went to E3 last year and I got to hang out and play [the games]. I had a great time. We were talking about the evolution of characters in gaming and it’s a fantastic place to play. They are more and more interested in putting actors in what they do, as opposed to just a voice, because [doing voice work for videogames] used to be the lowest thing on the totem pole and now it’s becoming more interesting. You get things like CALL OF DUTY: MODERN WARFARE 2, and my buddy Craig Fairbrass is in that, and they’ve got some great voices in that. It makes the game real – the realization makes the game real. I’ve just been having fun doing my MAN VS. WILD promos for the past few months. It’s a fun time for me.

iF: And you’re also continuing on the convention circuit …

SHEPPARD: Of course. It’s a great way to meet the fans. I come from live music and live theatre, [so it’s good to have] an interaction with my fans, the compatriot lovers of sci-fi that I can hang out with, because I’m a fan, too, it’s not like I’m in some different position. I can’t go hang out in their living rooms, so it’s fun – it’s like we go find a big living room and hang out together. It’s always under the guise of it’s a convention, but all it really is, is really hanging out and talking and sharing ideas. I really enjoy it. Dean [Devlin] realized this as well, and they’ve decided to do the Con Con [for LEVERAGE in March]. I’m sure the thing’s going to be fantastic. It’s an honor to meet and participate in the enjoyment of your art with your fans and your fellow compatriots in that way. The geeks are inheriting the Earth – it’s the fun part.