海角大神

When Stephen King first wrote the short story, 鈥淭he Colorado Kid,鈥� he probably never envisioned that it would inspire a modern day supernatural series. Syfy鈥檚 series HAVEN features not only a mysterious town with inhabitants that are stricken with abilities that border on the supernatural and super-freaky, it offers a complex look at a trio of heroes caught up in the story of how to solve the puzzle of what brought these troubles to the little town of Haven. During a recent press call, Eric Balfour shared what makes his character Duke Crocker tick and also provided a few key insights on the upcoming season of HAVEN.

How is the dynamic within the cast change, as the show has progressed?
ERIC: Last season, me and Lucas have had a history together 鈥� we worked on a show before and we have a really good rapport, and Emily and Lucas had worked before together 鈥� but we hadn鈥檛 all worked, the three of us together. So we really became friends last year. This season, we really have learned to look after each other and support each other. It really is a really tight bond. Most shows don鈥檛 have this small of cast. Most shows have seven or six regulars or even sometimes more. It鈥檚 really the three of us that are permanent fixtures on the show. So we really have become like this little unit and little family in a way. So I think the biggest difference from this season to last is just our camaraderie and our comfort level. I mean I love Emily and Lucas and there isn鈥檛 anything I wouldn鈥檛 do for them.

What do you enjoy most about working on HAVEN?
ERIC: I love playing Duke, I really do. I can鈥檛 tell you how much I appreciate the writers for writing this character because he鈥檚 so much fun to play. He has no boundaries. He can say what he wants. He can do what he wants. He doesn鈥檛 have to abide by anyone鈥檚 rules and I think that鈥檚 probably something I enjoy in my own life. So I just love playing Duke.

So if there鈥檚 more to learn about Duke, do you feel you鈥檝e got a handle on who he really is or is he still somewhat mysterious to you now going into the second season?

ERIC: It鈥檚 always interesting because the writers are always throwing new little twists at us about the characters that we didn鈥檛 know. I mean from an emotional standpoint, I feel like I definitely do understand Duke. I love this dude. I just think he鈥檚 awesome. So in that regard, yes. But there鈥檚 always 鈥� in every episode there鈥檚 always some little twist the writers are throwing at us and little hints that they鈥檙e giving us and we find out some new twist about the show. I鈥檓 never completely sure of exactly who Duke is, but I think at his core I really do understand who he is and I like him. He鈥檚 fun.

Since we see more of Reverend Ed when the show returns, can you talk about working with Stephen McHattie and what it鈥檚 like to play off of his intensity?
ERIC: Stephen McHattie is pretty fricking awesome. He鈥檚 an odd bird in some ways. He really is an artist. That I appreciate so much 鈥� that he takes what he does very seriously and he鈥檚 very good at it. But he doesn鈥檛 have sort the normal, linear conversations like the average Joe does, and that kind of makes him fun. But, at the same time, you鈥檙e always a little unsure of what Stephen McHattie thinks and you鈥檙e always kind of trying to figure him out. But I think that makes him really fun.

Can you kind of talk about the new character that鈥檚 kind of coming into your character鈥檚 life and about her 鈥� or are you not allowed to talk about that?
ERIC: Yes, I can talk about it. So Duke has this woman come into this life. And Duke 鈥� is sort of, I guess similar to me in that way that he 鈥� Duke is attracted to dangerous women. He is one of those guys who doesn鈥檛 like anything that comes easily. He likes the challenge and he likes a certain amount of danger and game and suspense. So this woman comes into his life and definitely starts to turn things upside down and really is a catalyst for a big part of where Duke is going this season and really in future seasons too.

Are we going to get more of the town鈥檚 past this season and more about what鈥檚 going on?
ERIC: Oh, yes. We鈥檙e going to find out a lot about this town and we鈥檙e going to find out a lot about how Duke is connected to this town and to the troubles.

Are we going to get see more about how what happened with Duke and Nathan?
ERIC: We are definitely going to start to see Duke and Nathan鈥檚 relationship evolve. But thus far, we haven鈥檛 spent a lot of time as we did last year examining their history. I think last season we had a lot of references to sort of what caused their rift and the possibilities of what they once were friends and no longer are. But this season we鈥檙e really sort of moving forward with their relationship and seeing what it鈥檚 evolving into.

Over the last year, you have done everything from TV to film. How you felt about doing those gigs and what was so unique about HAVEN that probably stands out for you?

ERIC: Well, as far as HAVEN is concerned, I just loved that this show took place in this very quirky, macabre, funny world. And I love the character. I love that HAVEN, while it has all this mystery and it has all this danger, it also has this very small town warmth and it has this sense of family 鈥� and it鈥檚 strange. I鈥檓 always pushing the producers and the writers to actually perpetuate that even more 鈥� because I think one of the most interesting things about this show is how sort of odd everyone is in this town. I mean when you think about the characters, Vince and Dave who run the newspaper, I love those guys. They鈥檙e just funny and weird and goofy. And I鈥檓 hoping to really, as the show goes on and we move into further seasons, that we really, really keep pushing that boundary even further.

How was it guest starring on NO ORDINARY FAMILY and how was it different from your HAVEN experience?
ERIC: Obviously, the biggest difference is that HAVEN and the crew and show have become like my family. I mean, we really are lucky. We have an amazing crew and we have a lot of fun together. It鈥檚 always interesting to go to another show, as a guest, and to sort of be an outsider. But it was a lot of fun. I mean hanging out with Michael Chiklis was really cool. And it was actually cool because the couple of weeks that I was there, he was right in the middle of releasing a song that he had produced and sang. So it was really fun watching the dude from THE SHIELD 鈥� this sort of tough guy 鈥� actually really being like giddy and like a little kid. He was so excited about this song. So it was really fun to hang out with him. And he was a really cool dude. And I got to hang out with Lucy Lawless, who is just awesome.

Do you know if there鈥檚 going to be an answer as to why there are 鈥渢roubles鈥� in HAVEN or why they come back?
ERIC: I do know for a fact that Sam Ernst and Jim Dunn, the creators of the show, definitely 100% know exactly what鈥檚 going on in this town. So some day, I know they will [tell us], but I think it鈥檚 probably not going to happen for like Season 5 or 6. They鈥檙e going to prolong it as long as they can. But they definitely, definitely, definitely have an answer. They know exactly what鈥檚 going.

Do you have a guess?
ERIC: Do I have a guess? I鈥檝e always imagined, in my mind, that what鈥檚 going on in HAVEN is in some ways, it鈥檚 almost like global warming. As things shift in the universe of HAVEN and the world shifts and humanity shifts, things change. And while at one time, HAVEN, this town, was exactly 鈥� as its name ensues 鈥� was a safe HAVEN for people that had these supernatural curses or troubles or afflictions. So as nature changes, something happened in the energy of this town that created this Molotov cocktail of supernatural occurrences. And I always felt that it was much more evolutionary versus being one single action.

You鈥檙e playing this ambiguous character in HAVEN, and you don鈥檛 exactly know what鈥檚 going on with him from week to week. How do you get in the mindset to play this part?
ERIC: What it usually entails is a lot of phone calls and emails back and forth from the writers. Because this show is so intricate in its dynamics, you鈥檙e always having to ask questions and to get questions answered. There鈥檚 two different schools of thought. Some people like to keep the actors guessing because they want their responses to be honest. For me, as an actor, I like to know what鈥檚 coming ahead, because I feel like it is my job to paint a palette, and to know that if I鈥檓 going from A to B, there鈥檚 certain hills and valleys that I鈥檒l want to hit along the way. So I like to know the answers. So a lot of the time it鈥檚 me reading the next week鈥檚 script and then sending like two-page emails to the writers with a thousand questions and they just go, 鈥極h, man. Balfour is emailing us again. What are we going to do?鈥� But they鈥檙e always really cool about it. And they always take the time to answer our questions and talk us through things. I鈥檝e got to hand it to them. They鈥檙e amazing in that way that really appreciate and respect how much we have breathed life into these characters. So they really do value our opinions about what our characters do. It鈥檚 really neat. It鈥檚 cool.

Other than the fact that you鈥檙e both attracted to dangerous women, what characteristics do you see in yourself, that your character Duke has?
ERIC: I think the most obvious answer for me is that we both have an aversion to authority. Neither one of us likes rules very much. I think that would be the most obvious thing to me when I think about how me and Duke are similar. It鈥檚 interesting. There鈥檚 a lot of similarities. I think Duke is innately more confident than I am in some ways, which has actually been really kind of a blessing for me in my own life. Playing Duke, I have to get outside of myself and really have strong belief in who I am as Duke because that鈥檚 what makes Duke really kind of awesome is that he has a confidence and a charisma that I鈥檝e sort of learned a little bit from playing him in my own life. He walks through the world believing that he can do anything and that the rules don鈥檛 apply to him in that. Anytime somebody said you can鈥檛 do something, that鈥檚 just a challenge for him to do it. It鈥檚 a lesson that I鈥檝e sort of taken in my own life.

So what have you learned about yourself from working on HAVEN?
ERIC: I would say that鈥檚 a really good question 鈥� a really good question. I think one of the things that I鈥檝e learned about myself is that in playing the character Duke I realize how many insecurities I have myself, because Duke is so confident and because Duke carries himself with such gallantry and sort of grandiose behavior. It really made me look at my own life and my own insecurities in how, in some ways, I don鈥檛 live that way. It鈥檚 really forced me to look at my own life and look at my insecurities and look at the things that I carry around as baggage really, that in some ways holds me back. So that鈥檚 been one of the biggest things I鈥檝e learned about myself. And honestly, that is really the thing that most profoundly stands out to me.

It appears that there is a rivalry between Duke and Nathan as they have the same attraction for the same woman. Why do you think Audrey should pick Duke over Nathan?
ERIC: If I was being really honest, I don鈥檛 know that I would tell the character Audrey to pick Duke. I think in some ways that Duke is Duke 鈥� because he is a loner in a way. He does walk to his own drumbeat and I don鈥檛 know that he is capable of really ever being domesticated. I think it would be a lot of fun to see Audrey try to settle him down, but at the end of the day, I don鈥檛 know if Duke is capable of it. I think Duke is one of those guys who probably will one day get on his boat and sail around the world and kind of sail into the sunset on his own. And he鈥檒l just disappear one day and you鈥檒l never know what happened to him.

What are your expectations for your character for Season 2?
ERIC: You know, I think what I was really hoping for this season was to really see Duke evolve. . . I think this season I was really looking forward to Duke being faced with tough questions, where he really had to choose a side finally. Because last season he was able to sort of dance around and play both sides of the fence. It鈥檚 such a perfect transition for him to have to make these decisions because it鈥檚 exactly what he doesn鈥檛 want to do. He鈥檚 always 鈥� he鈥檚 (painted) himself to be self-serving and to only look out for himself. So I think this season we鈥檙e going to really get to see Duke have to choose a side 鈥� and it鈥檚 going to be really tough for him.

You film in what must be probably the most beautiful landscape that any sort of science fiction, sort of fantasy show films in. What are some of the pros and cons of filming in a seaside town?
ERIC: Well, the pros of filming where we film are, without a doubt, the visual landscape of the place. We could never recreate this world on a soundstage or in Los Angeles or almost anywhere. It is vital to the visceral energy of the show. I mean, this town is a character in the show and the landscape is a character in the show. So, in that regard, we couldn鈥檛 do the show with these towns that we shoot in Nova Scotia. The downside is that it鈥檚 only summer about four days out of the year 鈥� that鈥檚 a little bit of an exaggeration. But I mean, literally in June, we redubbed the month of June, Jun-uary, because it pretty much rained the entire time. So it鈥檚 a challenge. I mean it gets cold and it gets rainy and it鈥檚 unpredictable. But we deal with that because it is so beautiful when the sun does come out 鈥� and even when it doesn鈥檛 it definitely has this really neat (macabre) soggy sort of other worldly feel.

What can you tell us about when it was like working with Jason Priestley, who I understand is coming on the show this season?
ERIC: Priestley has got to be the sweetest dude I鈥檝e ever met. Really. When he was younger he was on one of the most successful shows in the history of television, you know? And he is so not jaded and so excited to come to work. What was my favorite thing was when he directed an episode recently. Because it鈥檚 just really fun getting directed by other actors who have a sensitivity for what we do. And he鈥檚 just a really, really sweet, fun guy.

Can you talk about some of the like stunts that you do on the show?
ERIC: This season we鈥檝e actually been getting to do a lot more. There鈥檚 been a lot of gunplay this season, which has been really fun. We just finished an episode a couple of weeks ago, where I was getting to fire this like big 12-gauge shotgun with these massive rounds. And it was fun. It鈥檚 running around, badass with sawed-off shotgun 鈥� just really cool.

What鈥檚 been the favorite scene you鈥檝e filmed this season?
ERIC: My favorite scene I filmed this season? I think my favorite scene this season, honestly has been really the scenes between me and Lucas and Emily. At the beginning of the season there was so much going on individually in each of our character鈥檚 lives, that we were sort separated a little bit. And so as the season went on, I started (missing) them. So as the season went on we really got to get back to the three of us being together and the camaraderie and sort of the shorthand that we have with each other. And that鈥檚 my favorite stuff so far this season. It鈥檚 just playing Emily and Lucas. I really have a good time with them.

We鈥檙e starting to figure out a little bit of Emily鈥檚 past with the cliff of Season 1, how Duke sort of figures into that storyline of Emily鈥檚 past. My guess is you鈥檙e going to play some type of significant role in that, yes?
ERIC: Yes, as we鈥檙e learning that, you know, obviously, Audrey Parker鈥檚 character, or Lucy or whatever. I can鈥檛 even keep it straight at this point. But as we are learning how she is connected to HAVEN, we鈥檙e going to find out that Duke has a really strong significant role to play in what is happening in this town. And actually how, not only Duke, but his entire family is connected to HAVEN and its struggles.

Can you say what was the biggest challenge for you in this new season?
ERIC: I think the biggest challenge this season was because what I love about Duke is his humor and his sort of spontaneity and his wit. And that鈥檚, in some ways, the levity that he brings to the show. But because there are some really drastic things going on for Duke this season and some really heavy things happening, it was really challenging to be truthful and honest in the moments that those things are happening with the character, not lose what makes him fun and not lose that sense of play that he has. Because as life gets dramatic it鈥檚 hard to laugh it off. But that鈥檚, in some ways what really makes Duke, Duke. I think like a lot of my favorite movie (anti-heroes), he has the ability to laugh in the face of danger. When you think about like Han Solo or Bruce Willis in Die Hard, Indiana Jones, what makes them great is the ability to crack a joke when they鈥檙e facing their doom.

Since the show is dealing with supernatural elements, I鈥檓 wondering what鈥檚 your personal opinions on that?
ERIC: Well, there are a lot of things that we don鈥檛 have proof of in this world. There are a lot of things we don鈥檛 answers to. We don鈥檛 know for sure if aliens exist or we don鈥檛 know if ghosts exist or if there鈥檚 an afterlife. All these questions, we don鈥檛 know the answers to. And I don鈥檛 profess to say that I have a definitive answer either, but I guess I would say it sure does make life more interesting to believe that these things exist. In some ways, whether or not they do, I sure would like to believe that there are crazy little alien men running around on another planet and that ghosts really do exist. And that there are people out there that have super powers and can do things with their mind and we see evidence of it all the time, but obviously we don鈥檛 have definitive proof. But I sure just think it makes like more interesting to believe that those things do exist.

Have you ever been approached by any (irate) Stephen King fans about HAVEN?
ERIC: No, I haven鈥檛. I think for the most part the Stephen King fans have been very supportive of the show. I don鈥檛 think we were never dishonest, that we said that HAVEN was like a direct copy of a Stephen King novel. HAVEN has always the novella that HAVEN was based off of was always the jumping off point. And we were always really straightforward about that. I mean obviously, if you鈥檝e ever read it, it鈥檚 very short and very simple and there鈥檚 not a lot to base an entire series on. So it was always the jumping off point. And I think because we were honest about that, that the Stephen King fans didn鈥檛 really have any argument to that or angst.

Having starred in HAVEN and the film Skyline, have you always been drawn to the sci-fi genre?
ERIC: No, not at all. I wouldn鈥檛 say that I鈥檓 not a fan of science fiction. It鈥檚 not innately in my lifeblood like other people. I鈥檝e been fortunate this last year or so to get to work on some really fun science fiction projects. But I鈥檓 a fan of a lot of different genres. And it was, honestly, as much I鈥檇 love to say, with some calculated move and decision. I鈥檓 always just happy to be working. So it was a certain amount of just serendipity and coincidence that created that course of events. But there are sci-fi projects that I love. When you think about Blade Runner or Aliens, or even things that cross into sort of fantasy and horror. There鈥檚 all kinds of projects that I always love, but I not would say that I am innately a science fiction buff.

Do you have a preference for any TV shows from when you were a kid to when you are now, whether it鈥檚 HAVEN-like or whatever, a really cool sci-fi fantasy or horror show, that you really like?
ERIC: Growing up, one of my favorite sci-fi shows, hands down, was the original BATTLESTAR GALACTICA. That was one of my favorite shows. And then the other one was BUCK ROGERS.

Can you tell us how the difference between 鈥� because you got a sci-fi and a horror and a cult following and then I鈥檓 sure you鈥檝e got your normal fans that are more mainstream work 鈥� what鈥檚 the difference, like between the two?
ERIC: The sci-fi fans are way more awesome and crazy and enthusiastic!

To learn more about Duke Crocker and the secrets he is hiding, be sure to tune in when HAVEN returns for its surprising and tantalizing second season on July 15th at 10 p.m. on Syfy (Monday July 18th on Showcase in Canada).

Tiffany Vogt blogs at .

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