Simon Baker - Delware County Magazine
Simon Baker, the television and film star with the Cheshire cat grin, has a lot to smile about these days. Fans of the hit television drama The Mentalist tune in every Thursday evening as much for Simon's charming, cocky and cavalier Patrick Jane as for the riveting crimes his character solves for the California Bureau of Investigation.
Baker's character is an independent consultant, with a troubled past and extraordinary observational skills, who relishes bucking protocol and sparring with his law enforcement colleagues. In reality, Baker is as untroubled as they come: a happily married father of three (Stella, Harry and Claude), who looks much younger than his 40 years. With a charm that's been compared to the late Cary Grant, Baker is able to find the layers in his TV characters.
The show is riveting, yet disturbing, and Simon is top notch as the guy who always leaves you wanting to see and know more about him. Within the bureau, Jane is notorious for his blatant lack of protocol and his semi-celebrity past as a psychic medium, whose paranormal abilities he now admits he feigned. Jane's role in cracking a series of tough high-profile cases is greatly valued by his fellow agents. On a cool winter's day just outside Hollywood, Baker was more than eager to talk about the show, its success, his family life, co-stars and other personal details. As usual, he was calm, in good humor and eager to share stories about his life on and off the screen.
DCM: What is all this success like for you?
Simon Baker: I take it in stride. And enjoy it. You really never know what’s going to happen, so I feel you've got to be grateful for what you’ve got.
DCM: Are you surprised how well the show is doing?
Simon Baker: It is a great ride. And we are very lucky. I feel very blessed. So why is the show such a hit?
Simon Baker: When everything is going really well, I just say to myself, eep out of the way of yourself, Simon. Don't get in front of yourself.? I don't want to analyze it too much. It's good, and that feels right.
DCM: The last time we talked the show was just starting. Now you have a few seasons under your belt. So what have you learned about your character as the show has gone forward?
Simon Baker: There is an element of improvisation to the show. A lot of it we make up as we go in the sense of how things are played and how they are not played. That means trial and error and playing around with different things.
DCM: You play someone with the ability to solving serious crimes by using his razor sharp skills of observation.
Simon Baker: True.
DCM: So do you feel you have become more aware or observant since playing this role?
Simon Baker: No. I am not more aware. But I think I am pretty observant. You have to be pretty observant to be an actor; you are portraying people, so you might as well be observant and study people. And I started when I was young.
DCM: I always see you wearing glasses, so do you wear contact lenses on the show?
Simon Baker: I don't wear contact lenses on the show. It is a nice way to concentrate.
DCM: Can you talk about the skeptical side of the character? There was one episode where a psychic told him something about his daughter that shook him up.
Simon Baker: I think that whether he believes it or not, this woman was able to cut to the quick to go right into him ?into the core of where his psyche is. I still think that he still consciously believes there is no such thing as psychics.
DCM: How dark is he?
SB: Dark is a term that gets bandied around. It is a painful place. It is more a sad, sorrowful place.
DCM: Was The Guardian, your other TV drama, a more difficult show? You mentioned it felt like four years, and it was actually less than that.
Simon Baker: It was a harder show emotionally. I was playing such a depressed character that it rubbed off on me. I never thought I would be the kind of actor who would be affected by the role I was playing ?playing it day in and day out. This is kind of a fun character.
DCM: Talk about how this experience differs from The Guardian?
Simon Baker: This show has a very different type of character, a guy that actually has zest and a lust for life, but a total disregard for it at the same time ? it’s an odd balance. He full of self-loathing, but he fearless and has a good sense of humor. When I first came on and we were doing the pilot episode, the main focus for me what to do a show that was doing to be entertaining first and foremost. With The Guardian, I wanted to act and move people and move the world. I was young.
DCM: What is it about you and these roguish characters?
Simon Baker: I just want to do stuff that is entertaining and fun to do. I was a fan of procedure shows when I was a kid because they were more about people. These days they are more about science. What I liked about this particular character and show, it sets itself up as a procedural show, but it is slightly. It is very subtle, but it is an anti-procedural character who exists in the crime-fighting world, which is a procedural world. There is a good conflict there and a lot of room for interaction there.
DCM: So this show appeals to you now because?
Simon Baker: I am a sucker for a joke. I am a cheap jokester.
DCM: I wanted to ask about the smile your character Patrick Jane smiles at the oddest moment.
Simon Baker: It depends on the situation and the circumstance. My take on it generally is that all things change. It depends on where the smile comes and where it is related to
DCM: Tell me more.
Simon Baker: Often, it can be to disarm someone. Most people who are under scrutiny that are suspect tend to set themselves in a very locked way and they don't expect the policeman or detective to be candid and genial and relaxed with them, so it disarms a little bit. You know how when you are in a very bad mood and someone smiles at you in a really warm way, it is infectious and you let your guard down. And you go, that had an effect on me.
DCM: Are we going to see the flirtation between your character and Robin’s character as the two of them grow?
Simon Baker: Some of them you can attribute to workplace banter. If you work in an office, there are generally people you get on with and some you don't get on with. There are people you confide in and don't confide in. I think the nature of our relationship is flirtatious, but my character is flirtatious just in general. I think also at times, it is paternal and maternal, depending on which way it goes. Almost like sibling rivalry as well. I think it works on a lot of different levels.
DCM: When you first got the role, did you base Patrick Jane on anyone, like John Edwards?
Simon Baker: I did watch a bunch of mentalism and different forms of magic on YouTube. I watched less for tricks than the way they perform it. I think the guy that I was most intrigued by was Darren Brown. Not that I base anything on him, but he has a seamless quality to him.
DCM: Go on, please.
Simon Baker: Well, with John Edwards there is a lot of performance and I think my character is historically in the flashbacks more in the vein of a John Edwards and now is more in the vein of Darren Brown in a sense, but not really like any of them. When we started shooting, I realized it is about disarming someone and getting under their skin and have them feel comfortable and not feel like you are inflicting change or thoughts or ideas on to them. I bring a lot of my own ideas to that.
DCM: Do you really think that Patrick Jane is psychic?
Simon Baker: Within the show, we embrace the debate and it gives us lots of room to play around. I think he say he was if he needed to get someone to believe it so that he could get to the truth for a case. DCM: How do your Australian fans differ from the US fans?
Simon Baker: The fans in America tend to shout out my name and clamor for autographs, while their counterparts in Australia are more subdued. Both groups are appreciated, though.
DCM: Why come back to TV after several movies, including The Devil Wears Prada, Something New and Land of the Dead?
Simon Baker: When you’Ve doing a weekly TV drama you have to adhere to a rigid schedule. I had to get used to that again. But it IS worth it if the work is that good.
DCM: What is your fitness regimen these days?
Simon Baker: My wife, Rebecca, got me a spinning bike for Christmas a few years ago, and I still use that when I have time. I keep it in my office.
DCM: What do you do when you are on it?
Simon Baker: I listen to podcasts. Elvis Mitchell, the Treatment. There are various medical podcasts and science podcasts I listen to. Not music. Not very often.
DCM: Is the U.S. your home now?
Simon Baker: Yes, it is my home and has been for many years. I work five days a week and I can't get away from it. I work long hours.
DCM: How do you like it?
Simon Baker: It is good. It is very good. I like living in America. I love living in Los Angeles. It has been great for me. It has really made my life interesting.
DCM: Have you thought of being a citizen?
Simon Baker: My wife and I talked about it, but like most things in my house, we procrastinate. Then I went to work.
DCM: You previously mentioned your Nana. Did she have a big influence in your life? Simon Baker: She used to say some interesting things that I remember. That old fashioned turn of phrases and expressions that I love to remember, and that take me back to my childhood.
DCM: Why do you think Australian TV and film actors are so popular in the U.S. in recent years ?Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe, Naomi Watts, Poppy Montgomery, Anthony LaPaglia, Emilie de Ravin, and more?
Simon Baker: It is a hard answer. The Australians are very good actors. There are good actors and poor actors, Australian, Canadian and British. There are just some excellent Australian actors right now. DCM: I understand you're quite an environmentalist. Do you do anything green at home to help the environment?
Simon Baker: A lot of the plants in my house are edibles. I drive a Prius. We wrap our Christmas presents in newspapers. We are a very conscious family.
DCM: Did you learn that here or at home?
Simon Baker: Home. In Australia we are pretty conscious of it and always have been. It surprises me the amount of rubbish each house in my neighborhood puts out each week, where in Australia you get a bin like this and then a bin for recycling. I think in general there is more consumption in America.
Simon Baker: Within the show, we embrace the debate and it gives us lots of room to play around. I think he say he was if he needed to get someone to believe it so that he could get to the truth for a case. DCM: How do your Australian fans differ from the US fans?
Simon Baker: The fans in America tend to shout out my name and clamor for autographs, while their counterparts in Australia are more subdued. Both groups are appreciated, though.
DCM: Why come back to TV after several movies, including The Devil Wears Prada, Something New and Land of the Dead?
Simon Baker: When you’Ve doing a weekly TV drama you have to adhere to a rigid schedule. I had to get used to that again. But it IS worth it if the work is that good.
DCM: What is your fitness regimen these days?
Simon Baker: My wife, Rebecca, got me a spinning bike for Christmas a few years ago, and I still use that when I have time. I keep it in my office.
DCM: What do you do when you are on it?
Simon Baker: I listen to podcasts. Elvis Mitchell, the Treatment. There are various medical podcasts and science podcasts I listen to. Not music. Not very often.
DCM: Is the U.S. your home now?
Simon Baker: Yes, it is my home and has been for many years. I work five days a week and I can't get away from it. I work long hours.
DCM: How do you like it?
Simon Baker: It is good. It is very good. I like living in America. I love living in Los Angeles. It has been great for me. It has really made my life interesting.
DCM: Have you thought of being a citizen?
Simon Baker: My wife and I talked about it, but like most things in my house, we procrastinate. Then I went to work.
DCM: You previously mentioned your Nana. Did she have a big influence in your life? Simon Baker: She used to say some interesting things that I remember. That old fashioned turn of phrases and expressions that I love to remember, and that take me back to my childhood.
DCM: Why do you think Australian TV and film actors are so popular in the U.S. in recent years ?Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe, Naomi Watts, Poppy Montgomery, Anthony LaPaglia, Emilie de Ravin, and more?
Simon Baker: It is a hard answer. The Australians are very good actors. There are good actors and poor actors, Australian, Canadian and British. There are just some excellent Australian actors right now. DCM: I understand you're quite an environmentalist. Do you do anything green at home to help the environment?
Simon Baker: A lot of the plants in my house are edibles. I drive a Prius. We wrap our Christmas presents in newspapers. We are a very conscious family.
DCM: Did you learn that here or at home?
Simon Baker: Home. In Australia we are pretty conscious of it and always have been. It surprises me the amount of rubbish each house in my neighborhood puts out each week, where in Australia you get a bin like this and then a bin for recycling. I think in general there is more consumption in America.
DCM: How are your children?
Simon Baker: Really well, thank you. One of our favorite family times is to head to the beach, throw a ball around and just head into the surf.
Source: Delware County Magazine Read more...
The Menalist Spoiler ! - Via Owain Yeoman [ Agent Wayne Rigsby ]
"The Mentalist" fans, brace yourselves: Red John is is coming back in a big way in the upcoming weeks.
Korbi TV caught up with Owain Yeoman on the red carpet at The Genesis Awards -- airing on Animal Planet, Saturday (April 24) at noon EDT/PDT-- and he filled us in.
"We've got some fantastic Red John stuff coming up," Yeoman says in the video below. "For the first time since the pilot, the whole Red John stuff really is not just teased, it's out there."
Make sure to check out the video because Yeoman talks about the return of Leslie Hope and discusses the Van Pelt-Rigsby relationship too. He seems to think that despite the apparent breakup last week, the duo might still be able to work and play together...
The Mentalist 2x20 Episode Synopsis + 2x21 [ Very Short ]
2x20
Jane and the CBI investigate the Visualize Self-Realization Center, a cult-like religious group that maybe connected to the murder of a major media corporation's CEO.
2x21
The murder of a math genius by a gun-totting clown is looked into by the CBI team and Patrick Jane.
Spoiler Alert - Season Finale with details from Simon
Super-sleuth Patrick Jane is set to finally get his revenge on serial killer, Red John, when The Mentalist's second season draws to a close. The man behind Jane, Australian actor Simon Baker, has revealed his alter ego comes face-to-face with Red John in the season finale!
"I dare say the season finale will feature Red John,"
Simon tells TV WEEK exclusively
. "It's definitely due."
Series creator Bruno Heller backed up Simon's Red John revelation.
"We will meet him in the last episode - but we can't say more than that,"
he said.
"It's just renewing the initial premise of the show, which can get loser over time; the reason Patrick Jane does what he does is because of Red John, so all the good he does comes from a bad place.
" Romance is also on the cards for widower Jane, with two new female characters join The Mentalist cast, California Bureau Of Investigation And Intelligence boss Madeleine Hightower (Aunjanue Ellis) and psychic Kristina Frye (Leslie Hope)
. "When we were shooting the pilot, Bruno asked me if I thought Jane would ever be with women again, and I said, 'I don't think he's a womaniser but he's absolutely a flirtatious character,' "
says the 40-year-old. "So, after two years, I think we have to play out this whole thing. It would be interesting to see this guy as a man now. I've suggested that maybe he tries to get back on the horse, or back into the saddle, so to speak, and try to break past being this kind of spinster."
Source: TV Week Read more...
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