Starburst Special | # 49 ::.::.:..

Scott Bakula

That's Captain Archer, to you....

 

How do you feel taking the lead in a major Science Fiction series again?

I like Science Fiction, and I've found some great jobs doing this kind of work. Great acting jobs too, not just any old jobs, but jobs where I got to flex my acting muscles and work real hard. But I think, in terms of scope, Enterprise is going to be a very different challenge to Quantum Leap. This is no easy going, laid-back guy I'm playing now!

In what way?

Well, Archer is much more emotional and much more in other people's space and stuff. He's a real in -your- face kind of a guy, and that's very interesting to play.

Do you still look back fondly on your time on Quantum Leap?

Oh, very much so. I'm still proud of that show. Whenever somebody says they saw an episode, I go "What episode? Tell me about it!" It's great to have done something that, eight years later, I hear about and I'm still proud of. I think we did a lot of good work. We didn't get a home run every episode, but we did a lot of good ones and it's still got a great following around the world.

So how long do you think it's going to be before someone tries to have you say "Oh boy!" on Enterprise?

I hope never! I've said that enough for a lifetime!

How did you feel about the way QL ended?

Well, we thought we were going to go another year, and we weren't really ready to stop. When we finished shooting we weren't even sure we were going to be cancelled. We were kind of left in this nebulous state and it was frustrating. Don [Bellisario, Quantum Leap's creator] didn't know how to write the last episode, so he wrote this hybrid thing which confused everybody!

Voyager came in for a lot of criticism from fans.

How will you feel if Enterprise gets a similarly rough ride?

I really don't think we'll have a problem there! I think our going back to the beginning of the whole mythology is the real key. Everything we do is fresh, and the writers and producers can be a lot braver and bolder, I think. If the next version had been set after Voyager, it might have been a challenge to keep it up - to come up with new ideas.

But going back to the beginning and having the sense of it being the pioneers, the guys with 'the Right Stuff' , the first guys to go out there to explore that last frontier. .. I think that's going to excite people.

How well have the regular cast bonded?

Oh, everyone's very comfortable! But this is all new to most of them: the big TV show, all the media attention. We've only just seen our first footage from the series ourselves, and everyone is very keyed-up and excited.

So there's a lot of energy on set?

Oh yes! Everyone has great energy and a great love for the show and they're bringing it to the studio every day, They're thrilled to be here - we're all thrilled to be doing this. It's fun, they're a good group and there's kind of a neat chemistry.

How many episodes of have you shot so far?

Three hours worth. We're finishing our third full hour tomorrow.

How long does it take to get an episode in the can?

Well, the second hour took eight days. They're manic about getting it done. We're still finding out a lot of stuff, and seeing how the work will be paced.

You were in almost every scene in QL, but here you're part of an ensemble cast - does that lead to more relaxing days?

I've already had more days off in the pilot of this than in the entire time I was shooting Quantum Leap!

You must be thrilled!

Well it lets me know that I might have a life! And I get to tuck my kids into bed once in a while.

Happy days, then?

I'm thrilled. And I hope everyone out there will love Enterprise as much as the cast do!