Jeff Fahey is many things: an actor, a dancer trained at the Joffrey Ballet, a humanitarian, and (of course) the Lawnmower Man. You can add one more to that list: Jeff Fahey is a damn good liar! Last time we checked in with him, Fahey swore up and down that his Movieline-beloved character Frank Lapidus had been killed off Lost in an ambiguous submarine explosion, so you can imagine our surprise when he popped up in the series finale to fly most of the main cast off the island, once and for all.
Fahey's been out of the country since then, but now that he's back, he called up Movieline to apologize for his ruse, discuss the finale, and exclusively announce two bits of good news: an ambassadorship and a part in a new Gary Oldman film.
How are you, Jeff?
Good, brother. How you doin'?
Not so bad. So we haven't talked since you misled me about your fate on Lost...
Now you understand. What could I say in that interview, Kyle? [Laughs] I will say this: it was written in that script that you see me floating after the [submarine] explosion, and we never shot it.
Because they wanted to keep it ambiguous?
Yeah, they played it from every angle. I was hip to their jazz and I just rolled with it. I think when we did our interview, we had already shot the finale, so I knew the outcome. I apologize!
At least you survived. I mean, had Lapidus actually died in that episode, he deserved a Viking funeral at the very least.
[Laughs] I know.
I hear you just booked a new movie?
Yeah, in about a week or so, I start shooting a film called Guns, Girls, and Gambling, which is a fantastic little piece. It's with Gary Oldman, Christian Slater, and Dane Cook. They're in negotiations with some other big people that are very interesting.
That's a pretty eclectic cast.
It's a fantastic, fast-paced romp. It'll be quite a bit of fun.
Who do you play?
I'm the Cowboy.
That seems like a part that you could probably nail, Jeff.
[Laughs] Exactly. I can tell you this: it's not on an island. I was in the mix already for the role, but we hadn't done my deal, since I was out of the country.
Where were you?
I just got back from the Western Sahara -- I've been working in Afghanistan and there with the refugees and other things. From there, I stopped in D.C., because I was just appointed the global ambassador for the U.S. Committee on Refugees and Immigrants.
Wow, congratulations.
Oh, God bless ya. Thank you, man. That's what I've been doing for the first two seasons on Lost -- I was going back and forth to Afghanistan. This last season, I was going back and forth to the Western Sahara, dealing with the refugees there.
And where are you now?
Right now, I'm in Austin for the premiere of Predators. Then, I'll go off to Utah and do this movie, and then I'll come back to Austin for the premiere of Machete on September 3.
You've been gone for a while. Did you get a chance to watch the Lost finale? What did you think of it?
I haven't seen it yet.
How have you not seen it yet? You have to watch it!
I know, everybody's telling me to watch it.
I guess you were in the only place on the globe that wasn't completely consumed with the Lost finale.
[Laughs] Exactly. Well trust me, with the refugees, the last thing on their minds is watching television, but I'm gonna get a copy and watch it soon. I hear about it from a lot of people. How can you ever make anybody happy at the end of that?
You'll have to let me know what you think. I actually really liked it.
Well, good!