Answers with James Tupper

Answer 1

What else can we expect from you this year?

I shot a movie earlier in the year, but I'm just doing Revenge now. I'm really excited and hopeful that there's a Season 5 because I still think there's lots of story to tell.

Answer 2

Speaking of...after your surprising resurrection in the final moments of Season 3, I literally had to pinch myself. I was in shock! I was like there's no way David Clarke could possibly be alive after all these years. Have you known from day one that David was coming back, or were you just as surprised as we were?

I always felt that he was going to return. I always felt that his return would be part of the story and they let me know really early on that it was a strong possibility. Of course, at the time they didn't know they were going to have a Season 4, but it was definitely written up there in the heavens somewhere. They always know how to surprise you. In fact right now they're doing something so freaking crazy...it's a whopper! I really wish I could tell you, but they would take revenge on me.

Answer 3

Well, then what was it that drew you to acting initially?

Every time I tried to get away from acting, every time I thought maybe I could try to take a job in a corporation or maybe I could take a job driving trucks, I was so sad--I felt like I lost something that was essential to me. I always had this hope, this weird hope that I could make a career for myself acting and that just kept me going. If I ever went away from it, I'd get so sad and I'd end up going back. And then of course there's lots you can to do feed yourself. You can take classes--I did an audition class once so I got better at auditioning, and I just kept going--I didn't quit. You can't fire yourself. You're the only one who can fire yourself from this job. No one can fire you from hoping. I hear people say "Follow your dream" all the time. I think people think what it means is leave the job you have today and go and do the other thing, but actually I interpret it as follow your dream every day. Every day do something that helps you get to where you want to go. Do something that is part of your dream and then you will become a new thing. That was my philosophy and that's what helped me get to where I am now.

Answer 4

True or False: You were a carpenter and worked on a locally owned coffee and tea farm in Mount Kenya prior to becoming an actor?

Yeah, that's true. I did do that when I was 20. I have no actors in my family and I went to drama school and I just decided this is what I want to do and so I worked, and worked, and worked for 20 years. I worked as a carpenter, as a busboy, I built sets for a while -- whatever job I could get. But all the time I was in theater at night, or shooting a commercial...and then I came up to Hollywood about 10 or 11 years ago and I finally got a break on "Men and Trees"--I did a show with Anne Heche, who is my current wife--and we fell in love on the show, but also from that I got some notoriety and just kept working. But still, to this day if you need something fixed in your house, I'm probably your guy!

Answer 5

When you're not coming back from the dead or seeking revenge, what do you like to do in your down time?

Oh, me? James Tupper? The regular guy? That's a really good question...it's really funny because my dad didn't understand this...he came to set one time and he was like, "Why are they shooting the same thing over and over again Jimmy?" and I was like, "Well Dad, every time the angle changes it's another shot and shooting an entire episode takes eight full days of work". So I've been working a lot! I had down time the other day and I got in my car from the studio and just drove around. I had to go learn lines for the next day so I ended up going to the Chateau Marmont or something and just sitting there and having a cup of coffee. How boring of an answer is that? I go and learn lines on my down time...I can't wait for the break. There's a fan-led conference in Paris and they asked me to come and be a part of it, so I think that's what I want to do when the break comes...I want to take my kids over and just relax for a couple of weeks. You want to come?

Answer 6

At this point in the season we can see Margaux has it out for Emily, but how far do you think she'll take it after Victoria's warning not to mess with her?

I think Margaux has grounds to try to take Emily down and she's going to try. I think the innovative thing with the show is the way they tell the story--in a normal story, a character would meet another character, and then they would go out on a date, and then at the end of the episode they'd be like maybe we should date again. In the Revenge world, they meet, in the second act they marry, and in the third act they divorce. I think that's innovative! I think the story is so great that everybody's always thrilled and there's always surprises at the end of each episode. I can't believe what they're doing in the next one...I really want to tell you!

Answer 7

So now with Malcolm and Victoria out of the picture, will David and Emily be able to live a normal life or is there more revenge brewing?

There's plenty of revenge brewing. I think Emily starts to have a relationship with somebody and I do my best to try to get her to turn back into Amanda and to let the whole Emily Thorne charade go. She's so deep into it that it's impossible for her to come back. There are so many crimes that were committed and stuff that happened in life, so it's really when you're in revenge...you're in. You're all in.

Answer 8

At the end of 'Abduction' Victoria lets David know that they need to go their separate ways. He needs to be with his daughter and she needs to mourn the loss of her son. Is David relieved or heartbroken at this point?

I think David lives in a lot of conflict because the anchors that kept him more to sanity the whole time he was incarcerated was his love for her. So to find out that she did it and it was such a betrayal, and then now she's gone and lost her whole family, so again there's reason to be empathetic towards her. I think it's part of the whole Revenge thing. I don't know if I'm ready to create an alliance yet...let's just say that. We might not marry right away.

Answer 9

I love the scene where you push him into the fire. How fun was that to shoot?

Yeah, that was a really fun scene to shoot! I felt like Tom Cruise. I felt like an action hero for a minute.

Answer 10

I think viewers thought if Emily ever had the chance to reunite with her father that the vengeance would stop and the Clarkes would live happily ever after, but that would have been too easy for "Revenge". Do you think they'll ever get back to the father-daughter relationship they once had?

I think that's a lot of what this season is about struggling with the conflict they have over Victoria, who was the love of my life and now I know that she betrayed me, even though she's apologizing and in many ways it's Connor Grayson's fault--so there's reasons to forgive her and there's reasons to hate her--and then with my daughter I do want to be that dad again--I want to re-enter at the point I left, and I can't--you can't get back those childhood years. So that's certainly what's driving this whole season.