Actor Joseph Fuqua.
I recently discovered several interviews I did a number of years ago that, for one reason or another, were never published. Rather than have them continue to gather "dust" in my computer, I thought I would share them with you. In this interview, actor Joseph Fuqua talks about his guest-starring role on The X-Files.
When it comes to being in the wrong place at the wrong time associate professor Jason Nichols is a master. In The X-Files episode Synchronythe scientist is arrested for causing an accident that kills an associate of his. He contends, however, that an old man frantically warned him and the victim prior to the event. This mystery person is in actuality a future version of Nichols himself who has travelled back in time to stop his younger self from making a scientific discovery which will cause the downfall of humankind. Luckily, time was on the side of actor Joseph Fuqua when it came to his being cast as the ill-fated scientific genius.
“I’d been in Los Angeles probably less than a month and just signed with a new manager,” he recalls. “My manager happened to know socially Howard Gordon, one of the writer/producers on The X-Files, and she called to ask about getting me into an audition. Out of courtesy for his friend he said, ‘OK, send him in and we’ll hope for the best.’ I prayed I wouldn’t end up embarrassing my manager, who really went out on a limb for me, but it all worked out and I got the job.
“The audition process varies according to the project,” adds Fuqua. “For The X-Files I was brought to one of these little bungalows on the 20th Century- Fox lot. There was a group of five people including the producers and, I believe, the writers, sitting on a couch with a chair in front of them. I was introduced and after I did all my ‘Hellos’ around the room I got ready to read.
“I was supposed to be playing a scientist, so I made sure to dress like one right down to the glasses, which I ended up wearing on the show because they liked how they looked,” explains Fuqua. “I always try to say as little as possible prior to my doing an audition. They’re looking to cast the genuine article on one or more levels. If the producers believe you look like a scientist when you first walk in, then the less you say the more likely they are to continue to think of you as a scientist. So I said, ‘Hello,’ and sat down. They asked me, ‘Do you have any questions?’ I said, ‘No,’ and then I went straight into reading the scene in which Jason is being interrogated by Mulder. The producers called the next day and said they loved me but were searching for an older actor who looked a little bit like me, so we had to wait and see. They asked me to come in the next day and read again so they could videotape me and send it up to the X-Files production office in Vancouver [British Columbia]. When I arrived at the studio, however, they said, ‘You know what? We’re just going to cast you.’ So I was very lucky in that it all happened relatively quickly.”
Jason Nichols, along with his girlfriend and fellow scientist Lisa Ianelli and a Japanese scientist, Doctor Yonechi, has been conducting research in cryobiology, studying the effects of freezing temperatures on biological systems. Unknown to Nichols or the others, part of their work will lead to Ianelli’s making a premature breakthrough in time travel which will create a world without history or hope.
“He’s an earnest, driven man who loves his work,” says Fuqua when describing his character. “Jason, and I’m speaking of the younger version, is vulnerable and very much a victim of circumstances. He is involved with someone who is also married to her work. She, however, is a little bit more passionate about what they are doing. He sort of goes along for the ride and that leads to his destruction.”
As is the case with many X-Files episodes, what audiences end up watching on their television screens is somewhat different from the script initially submitted to the show’s creator Chris Carter. According to Fuqua, Synchrony was no exception. “They were always sliding revised pages of the script under our hotel room doors with little notes saying, ‘Oh, we’re changing this and, yes, we’re changing that, too.’ For example, when I got to Vancouver they made a latex special effects mask from my face that the stunt man was supposed to wear at the climax of the story when the young Jason is burnt to death. They weren’t certain if the character was going to go up in flames or not but they had everything ready just in case.
“So the script changed three times,” he continues. “It was, ‘Oh, he’s going to die. No, he’s not going to die. Is it going to be the older Jason or the younger one who dies?’ Even with all these changes the cast and crew never got cranky. Everyone had a great outlook and I really respected their professionalism, especially David Duchovny [Mulder] with whom I had a lot of fun working. I remember the director James Charleston coming up to us right before we filmed the scene between Jason and Mulder in the car. He asked David, ‘Don’t you want to put your seat belt on?’ David said, ‘Mulder never wears a seat belt.’ I laughed and said, ‘Don’t you ever get mail about that?’ He told me, ‘You know, I haven’t yet. The wardrobe department will sometimes make a fuss if you wear a seat belt, so I never have.’ I found it interesting to see the level of attention David pays to his performance and to his character.
“That scene in the car was actually my favourite moment in the episode,” says Fuqua. “I had finished work on the show and returned to Los Angeles. Two weeks later my agent called to tell me the episode was running short, so they added this scene and I went back up to Vancouver to film it. We did it just under two weeks before the episode was going to air. For whatever reason, I’m really pleased with my work in that scene and feel like everything just came together perfectly. It was good to see David and the crew again, so it’s my favourite scene for lots of different reasons.”
Fuqua and the rest of the cast and crew were at the mercy of the unpredictable Vancouver winter when filming this episode. At one point, an overnight shoot came to an abrupt halt when it started to snow. The actor was impressed with how James Charleston kept everyone’s spirits up during these down times. “He was great,” enthuses the actor. “He’d be out there under the tents messing around with the crew and telling stories while we all waited for the snow to stop. He wasn’t the type of person who sat around in his director’s chair watching the little monitor and making all the decisions. James was always there on the set with a smile on his face and it was obvious people respected him.”
Although he had ample opportunity to work with Duchovny, the actor never appeared on-screen with his X-Files costar Gillian Anderson (Scully). “I had one scene with Gillian in the original script but they changed it at the last minute, so we met only in passing. She is very beautiful and charming as well as a loving mother. She has a beautiful daughter who was with her on the set, which added to the sense of family that already existed.
“The X-Files truly is a class operation,” adds Fuqua. “There was an atmosphere of complete non-tension which is unusual because sometimes on a hit show there’s this weird sort of energy that reverberates throughout the set. Not here, though. Everything from the exquisite housing we were put in, the unbelievable food, the camaraderie, was too good to be true. All of this makes a big difference when you’re working, particularly when it comes to how everyone gets along and treats each other.”
The youngest of ten children, Fuqua was always trying to get noticed while he was growing up. He took drama classes at school and went on to do an internship to gain his Equity card. He spent some time working on stage in New York City and even understudied for two Broadway shows. Fuqua eventually decided that he really wanted to learn how to act as well as to have some academic credentials behind him, so he enrolled in the Yale School of Drama.
“David Duchovny went to graduate school at Yale for English, so we talked about that for a bit,” recalls the actor. “One of the first plays he ever did was for the Yale Cabaret, which is this sort of fun playground for actors and anyone at Yale to get together and perform. I truly came to understand why I wanted to act while at Yale. This may sound really lame,” laughs the actor, “but I learned that I wanted to be an artist and concentrate on honing my craft. Most of the time we [actors] start out in the profession wanting to be seen and noticed but most of us eventually come to realize why we were drawn to such a job. For me, I want to learn as much as possible so I’ll be able to hold my own in any situation.
“I remember during my last scene in Synchrony James Charleston said, ‘OK, scream like you’re on fire.’ I thought, ‘Oh, no, they didn’t teach me this in drama school,’ but when the director says, ‘Jump,’ you ask, ‘How high?’ and throw yourself into the work. I had no frame of reference, so I had to wing it but that’s what helps make this job fun and exciting. It’s great to finally be getting the chance to do so many different things because that’s the only way to gain the experience which allows you to move on to bigger challenges.”
Fuqua’s first appearance in front of the camera was as Confederate General Jeb Stuart in the feature film Gettysburg. He was called in at the last minute to play a scene opposite Martin Sheen. “I spent almost the whole night on a train from New York City down to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania,” he recalls. “I got there at four, was in makeup at five being outfitted with a beard and my costume, and on the set by ten o’clock in the morning. They said, ‘Here are your lines,’ and, ‘OK, stand here and then walk in there.’
“My father and grandfather were generals in real life. Here I was making believe I was one in a small farmhouse opposite Martin Sheen, who was playing General Robert E. Lee. I was shaking and absolutely terrified. Martin saw this and took me to his trailer while they were busy setting up the shot. He said, ‘Everything is going to be fine. When you come in, hand me your hat and I’ll put it on the table. Lose the map case and the gun; you don’t need them. Just have the sword.’ Martin is a very generous man and he really helped me streamline my performance. Everything turned out OK and everyone seemed to be pleased with the job I did.”
From Civil War battlefields to high-tech laboratories Fuqua has appeared in a variety of roles in film and television as well as on stage. In 1996 he played Louis in the critically acclaimed drama Angels in America Parts l and ll at the Dallas Theatre Center and Iago in Shakespeare’s Othello at the Dallas Shakespeare Theater. His most recent film work has been in the independent movie David’s Searching while on television he has guest-starred on The Pretender, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Brooklyn South. While he may not yet be headlining major motion pictures or starring in his own television series, Fuqua is proud of his acting achievements and looks forward to what the future holds for him.
“You have to remember that being a success is all about doing what you want to do and I have been blessed in this regard. I’ve made my living as an actor,” he says. “I’m a supporting player and, while I’ve had leading roles, I have to be honest about who I am. I’m the friend of the guy, not the guy. I love being the friend, however, because I’m still part of the ensemble and the collaborative process.
“I was nominated for an award for my work as Iago, but the actor who played Othello won,” he jokes. “I thought, ‘OK, I have to be cool about this because the play is called Othello, not Iago.’ The important thing is I had the chance to perform as well. I’ve got lots of schoolmates and friends who haven’t had such opportunities. It doesn’t mean I’m better than they are; it’s just I’m more fortunate right now. Who knows what the future will bring? But I’m in this for the long haul. Hopefully you’ll see me again in something bigger, but if not, look for the friend of the guy,” says Fuqua happily.
Steve Eramo
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