Callum Keith Rennie

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By Dex.



LIPTON: "As we continue our look into the phenomenom known as X-Project, tonight's guest holds the distinction of being returned to the show by the fanbase itself.

Beginning his career in Canada, he has appeared in 62 productions in the last 14 years. While first making notice for his intense protrayal of Billy Tallent in Bruce McDonald's Hard Core Logo, it was the television role of Det. Stanley Kowalski in Due South with fellow Canadian Paul Gross that would make the Canadian actor a sought after commodity in television.

He turned down the role of Alex Krycek on X-Files to focus on film work, appearing in Canadian and American productions like Memento, Suspicious River and H20. He continued to take small roles for television programs like Twitch City and Battlestar Star Galactica. It wasn't until late 2003 that he finally agreed to provide a new face to the second season of X-Project.

Ladies and gentlemen, introducing Callum Keith Rennie."

RENNIE: "Hey, afternoon."

LIPTON: "Callum, thank you for agreeing to take part. As we've mentioned, this series is an indepth look into the series X-Project, so we're going to concentrate on those events and experiences in specific."

RENNIE: "As long as I can smoke."

LIPTON: "Of course. Now, Callum, what first attracted you to the character of Remy LeBeau? What really pulled you in from the first script you read."

RENNIE: "The fact the guy was an asshole. I mean pretty purely an awful person. When I read the script, and then met with the producers, the idea was that you had this transformative elements going on. A street kid, half strung out and really pretty much a con man. Inside, he's got this whole life of memories as a psychopath that he doesn't know about, but it keeps seeping out. It's rare to find a role with that kind of upfront nastiness in a primary character."

LIPTON: "And were you concerned that the audience might not connect with him?"

RENNIE: "Not especially. I mean, as an actor, all you can do is do the best with the character that you can, and the audience will connect with him if you do your job right, even if it's only to hate him. My biggest concern was that no one would have a clue what the hell I was saying."

LIPTON: "How hard is the Cajun accent to maintain?"

RENNIE: "I went to visit some friends in Calgary, and they convinced me to do it for an hour at the bar. I couldn't get a drink because they either couldn't understand me, or thought I was from Trois-Riveres. Seriously, it's difficult to keep straight, especially bouncing between the production of the show, and movie productions with French-Canadian actors."

LIPTON: "Not surprisingly, your start in the show was tied in with Gary Oldman's departure. Do you feel the critics unfairly expected you to fill his shoes?"

RENNIE: "I don't think so. Gary's a tremendous actor, but he had only signed for a season, and the story fairly clearly showed that was the intention. I don't think I, or any of the others that came in for second season really were singled out."

LIPTON: "Let's talk about your now famous departure."

RENNIE: "That again. Look, it's been blown way out of proportion. One of the new production companies that got involved at the start of the second season had a different style in the writing of the show. There were some arguments, especially in trying to decide who to focus on, and the original direction for my character ended up creating a gridlock in the process. Finally, they cut my part."

LIPTON: "What were your thoughts at the time?"

RENNIE: "Some anger. The way that the entire thread was just dropped became a big point of contention. Johnny and I, that's the late John Spencer, had a much more adversarial relationship intended, which would have been excellent to play out. Unfortunately, his commitment to 'The West Wing' and some health troubles meant we couldn't revisit that when I returned."

LIPTON: "Right, just before season three."

RENNIE: "That's right."

LIPTON: "What had changed with the character?"

RENNIE: "A lot. The writers pushed through a shortened version of the original storyline, which meant that near the end of the season, Remy got his memories back. A lot of the original ideas got scrapped, and we went in looking for a new dynamic. It was a very difficult shift as an actor, coming back and trying to reconnect with the rest of the cast, knowing that what you work out as elements between characters is about to shift in a month."

LIPTON: "And so it did. With the new adult Remy LeBeau, there were a number of close relationships set up, mostly notably between Brock Lesner and Clive Owen."

RENNIE: "Talk about different people. Clive is an actor's actor. Very focused, very prepared... also the only one on set who smokes as much as I do. Brock, on the other hand, was a pro wrestler. He brings a very physical aspect to the character of Marko because that's how he's used to expressing emotion."

LIPTON: "What about the criticism he received in his first season?"

RENNIE: "He wasn't brought in to be an emotional heavyweight. I think he matches the range of the character well, and has grown into the role very well. Plus, he's also about ten feet taller than me, so I'm not going to criticize him on television.

[laughter]

LIPTON: "Early on, they paired you with Clive, and then Drew Fuller and Rachel Weisz. How would you describe that group?"

RENNIE: "Three actors and a television star."

LIPTON: "Very critical."

RENNIE: "It wasn't a good fit. We were supposed to carry a sort of shadowy level into the show as a contrast, and Drew never really fit the bill. The writers never could get a good handle on his character."

LIPTON: "During season two, there was the plotline 'Remy's Eleven'. Can you talk about that?"

RENNIE: "Seventeen days of filming in Las Vegas with a bunch of teenagers? Gerard and I hid out at this bar Dustin knew most of the time. Carrie, Carrie-Anne Moss, came in about halfway through during a filming break for The Matrix and kept us sane."

LIPTON: "You worked with her in Canada."

RENNIE: "Bunch of times."

LIPTON: "On to season three, there were a lot of small elements for you, but the major sweeps week hit, 'Thermopylae', you didn't have a role."

RENNIE: "That was intentional. If Remy is involved, he has to be heading towards the X-Men, and the feeling was that the character worked better outside."

LIPTON: "You had a very different hit with 'Buy Now, Pay Later'."

RENNIE: [laughter] "Noah Taylor and I still talk about him playing five years younger, and both of us stuck in makeup covering up tattoos so we can do a coffee scene."

LIPTON: "Were you surprised when he got the Emmy nod and you didn't?"

RENNIE: "Not really. I mean, both Rachel and I got a lot of questions when 'Thermopylae' basically earned six nominations, and when Gerry and Lee Emery won. It was a great piece of television, and the right time for the story. Charlie was a lot more personal, slower, and I think the kind of thing that stays with you, as opposed to blows you out of your seat."

LIPTON: "I want to jump ahead to the end of season three. The big fight with Clive's Pete Wisdom, the jump with Lorna and Amanda's fall. Remy is a catalyst for the beginning of the end of the final plot line. How much input did you have?"

RENNIE: "Very little. The idea was that as Remy becomes more human, he contrasts the people who he looked to in order to learn how to be while they fall. Gerry and I ended up playing the opposite angles that meet in the end. Originally the script called for Remy to die, but the producers decided it would detract from the finale."

LIPTON: "So season three was supposed to be the last?"

RENNIE: "Not really. There were always difficulties writing the character in the context of the mansion. We had all this great chemistry between me and Alicia, and Carrie, and Brock. The problem was that he didn't fit any of the normal molds, and unlike Hugh's Wolverine, he didn't have the same control issues to overcome. So we discussed a lot of scenarios, my contract had an option for season four, and we decided to leave off the decision for an extra month or two at the end of the year to see what could be generated."

LIPTON: "In season four, we get X-Force. How did that come about?"

RENNIE: "Clive had been intending to leave the series at the end of season three. He'd developed the character to where he was comfortable with it, had some movie options. Rachel had been increasingly busy as well, and still hadn't signed on for another year. There were a lot of things up in the air. There were spin off talks and finally a reshuffle in production and on the writing team came up with the idea of the new 'secret' X-Men. Darker, a lot weirder. The scripts were so good, we just couldn't say no."

LIPTON: "Remy starts off as this archetypal loner, and very quickly develops a whole series of relationships. Is that how you see the character?"

RENNIE: "I blame the ratings. Let's be honest. At first it's a great excuse for half nude shots of Alicia, Christina and Billie. Fortunately, other than a couple of scenes with Amy--"

LIPTON: "Playing Madelyn Bartlet."

RENNIE: "Yeah. I didn't have to delve into the soap opera elements. Suddenly, halfway through season three, Remy's got to have a love connection."

LIPTON: "You don't sound happy about the decision."

RENNIE: "I got the pop star, the model, and finally Halle Barry. Can I get an actor to do scenes with?"

[laughter]

RENNIE: "Billie's a nice kid, but dumb as a stump. Sienna isn't much better, and during this time, the whole thing with Jude was going on. So I'm trying to focus on a scene while she's screaming into her cellphone. Now, locations shots with Halle. You ever do a location shot with an Oscar winner? Twenty-two assistants, a break every nine seconds-"

LIPTON: "Both were very popular to the viewers."

RENNIE: "So's American Idol."

LIPTON: "Unfortunately. In season four, they've now revealed your ex-wife, played by Angelina Jolie. There's an entire Guild war Gambit is caught up in, X-Force is hitting it's stride, and you got a chance to work with Chris Cooper and Gary Oldman again in guest spots. What can we look forward to?"

RENNIE: "I can't give a lot of details, but New Orleans is going to feature heavily. Near the end of the season."

LIPTON: "We only have a few minutes left, so I'll finish with some quick shots. Who's your favourite guest star?"

RENNIE: "Dustin Hoffman, hands down."

LIPTON: "Best kisser?"

RENNIE: "Amy Brenneman."

LIPTON: "Your favourite character on the show?"

RENNIE: "Sofia. What a great bitch. Poor Leonor apologized to me after our first scene together. She thought I was mad at her. We go out with Clive and Rachel, and people ask them if we're going to make a scene."

LIPTON: "Who we should watch?"

RENNIE: "Nora Zehetner. If you saw Brick, as long as the writers give her some leeway, you know she's going to be great. Christine Anu as well. Carrie worked with her on the Matrix films. Good actress, gets better every show."

LIPTON: "Finally, what's it like working with a Mountie in a show again?"

[laughter/applause]

RENNIE: "Paul sent a stuffed husky to Ryan's trailer the first month of shooting. I don't think he got the joke."

[laughter]

LIPTON: "That's all our time for tonight. Callum, thank you."

RENNIE: "Pleasure to be here."

LIPTON: "Tomorrow night, we will have a young woman that reinvented herself almost as much as the characters she plays. From club kid to pop star to sci-fi idol with her roles as Rose in the BBC's Doctor Who and as Amanda Sefton in X-Project, we get an look into the mind of Billie Piper on the next Inside the Actors Studio. I'm James Lipton. Good night."