Last week's pivotal episode of Lost brought with it many casualties, and though Jin, Sun, and Sayid all got their due, we at Movieline would like to sing a ballad for Frank Lapidus. Over the last three seasons of Lost, Jeff Fahey has managed to make his errant pilot character one of the show's most-liked with little more than a pocketful of one-liners in his arsenal. He may never have gotten his own flashback episode, but damn if we didn't love him all the same.
Last week was a big one for Fahey, between that nutso Lost episode and the trailer for Machete, where he reprises his Grindhouse role for director Robert Rodriguez. I called him up yesterday to chat about both.
So, the question everyone wants to know, because the answer isn't completely clear: Did Lapidus actually die in the last episode of Lost? I mean, we didn't actually see him die...
[Laughs] Well, he went down with the submarine. Yeah, he's dead.
No! I'm bummed. I'm still in denial.
I am too! But I have to tell you, Kyle, it was a great ride. It's interesting because within about 90 days, we had the finale of Lost and the premiere of [the Machete trailer], and those were two of my favorite groups of people to work with. You know, I've been around for a little bit, and working with Robert and Elizabeth [Avellan] down at Troublemaker [Studios], and the three seasons I spent on Lost...it's been an actor's dream, I have to tell you.
I think Lapidus was a fan favorite.
It just was one of those roles made in heaven. When they called me and I had my first meeting with [executive producers Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof], they were so generous and so giving and clear and relaxed about the character and the project. And then when I stepped in and actually went to Hawaii, the cast and crew and directors and production, they couldn't have been more nice. A lot of times when you walk into something that's been going a long time and that's so strongly established, you feel like the odd man out, but this was a situation where you walked in and you were greeted as a family member. That made it so easy, and I think you can see that with the way everybody worked together over the years. People ask me, how does it feel to work on something that's so successful and established worldwide? All I can say is that when you hang around the stable long enough, sometimes you get lucky enough to ride a thoroughbred.
You hadn't seen the show at all before you started on it. Did it make much sense to you?
It's interesting, because one of the things about working on Lost is that they don't really explain a lot to anyone. You kind of roll with it from script to script. I have to say that it was so well-written that it allows you to explore the unknown, and then as you see the show itself, it works. A lot of times, you don't want to know everything. The very thing that would make you feel uncomfortable on other jobs -- not knowing the arc of the character or the story -- on something like Lost, the unknowing actually helps out sometimes.
We haven't seen a sideways universe version of Lapidus. Will we?
No, it's over.
There's no more Lapidus at all?
Sorry, Kyle. He's done.
I need to take a moment, Jeff.
I know. His ride is over. The dream is over for Frank Lapidus.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but you basically wore two outfits your entire time on the show.
Oh Kyle, don't remind me of that. I loved the job, but I wasn't sorry to see the day when I didn't have to wear that shirt anymore.
Carlton Cuse once said about you, "He has the most intense eyes of any guy out there, and I say that as a non-gay man." Would you like to return the compliment?
Tell him I love him, too. And I'm straight.
So what was the actual shoot like for Machete, compared to shooting the trailer for it a few years ago?
Well, that's the wild thing! I mean, my God. When we finished shooting Grindhouse, of course Robert had talked to me about the trailer, and he said, "Let's put this little thing together." So on my last day of shooting Grindhouse, I just went to the trailer and changed into a new wardrobe, and he said, "Say a few lines here." We shot the one scene in the office, and then went outside and shot another little exterior, and then when [Grindhouse] was released, there was this wild trailer, which was very cool. And now, a couple years later, we've made a full-length feature of it, which is mind-blowing.
Machete is being directed not just by Robert Rodriguez, but by Ethan Manquis. How does that partnership work?
It was very easy and very cool working with Ethan and Robert at the same time. He gave Ethan a lot of leeway. And of course, Robert wrote the screenplay, and one of the wonderful things about Robert is that he writes something and then he allows you to bring all the jazz to the table. When you think of how it could possible be working with two directors, nah. It was very smooth. Very easy to deal with, and Ethan and Robert have known each other for years. They're like family, and it was like coming back home after Grindhouse.
What do you think it is about you that makes you so appropriate for his Grindhouse aesthetic?
You know, you'd have to ask Robert that. What I get from it when people ask me how he got a cast like this together, is that Robert hires people that he likes and that he's been a fan of through the years. Here, he saw an opportunity to put a bunch of those wild characters together, the characters being the actors. In an answer to that question, then, I would just say that he works with people who he digs.
You traveled the world after high school, and you have a career that often keeps you from settling down too long. Do you like it that way?
I've got a great life, Kyle. It's been a wonderful adventure, and I'm still out there on it. I've been very fortunate to travel the world, and I still travel. It's one of the great things about this job, is that it does take you to a lot of wonderful and different places. It's a whole adventure, and it's a privilege to have a job like this. It's so difficult for so many of the people out there that I feel fortunate to be one of the working actors.
I wanted to ask you a few questions about your personal life, which I found really compelling. I was surprised to learn that you danced with the Joffrey ballet for three years. Have you ever gotten a chance to use those skills for a role?
No, but everything is applied, you know? Everything you learn in life. Yes, I did study dance for a while, and it was part of the whole journey. I'm still out there exploring. I prefer to say that I studied dance, just as I'm still studying acting. Every job is a new study. I hope it goes another 50 years.
You've also been doing a lot of humanitarian work lately. You were heavily involved with an orphanage in Kabul before you began your role on Lost.
Recently this past year, I've been working a lot in the western Sahara, with the refugees in the camps in Algeria. I just go off for a while to these other places, and then I come back and work for a while and continue to another area. I actually just got back from the western Sahara a few days ago, and I'll be heading back in about three weeks.
How did you get involved with the Sahara, if I may ask?
Oh, I've been involved out there for years. I work with the U.S. Committee of Refugees and Immigrants, and I've been working with them for quite a while. It all was an extension of traveling over the years, Kyle. I end up in different areas and become involved, whether it's with the refugees or the schools. I prefer to look at it as part of the big adventure as opposed to being labeled a humanitarian. Of course, I know we have to identify people as such, and I think it's wonderful, but I just get involved in things. How's that?