Scott Patterson on The Event and The Possibility of a Gilmore Girls Movie

When Gilmore Girls went off the air in 2007, Scott Patterson hung up the iconic flannel shirt and backwards baseball cap that defined his character Luke Danes and tried out a few other television roles that didn't stick: The father of a teenager on Aliens in America, a sheriff in a Lifetime movie and an ex-convict on the new 90210. Things have changed though for the Philadelphia-born actor with his juicy network job on NBC's The Event. As Michael Buchanan, a pilot dragged into a government conspiracy after his daughter goes missing, Patterson has not only found a role that lets him explore his full range of emotion on-screen for the first time, but also a stable home, as yesterday's full-season pick-up can attest.

Recently, the actor phoned Movieline to discuss his reinvigorated career, his transition from minor league baseball player to major league network star and his petrified frog collection at the Louvre. (You read that last part right.)

So when will viewers find out exactly what The Event is?

I don't know. I think [producers] are thinking the end of season two. Maybe the end of season one.

How did you find out about the project?

Like everyone else did. My manager called and said, "I'm sending you a script. Read it and let me know your thoughts." I read it and I called her and said, "Oh my God. This is big, big, big stuff. Do you really think we have a shot at this?" She said, "I do because Jeffrey Reiner [the director] called you in specifically for this role and he wants you to read." So I went in and read for the producers. The next day I read for the network. And then the next day I had the job to my great shock.

How did Jeffrey Reiner know you?

A year prior I read for Trauma and he had been there and he said that he brought me in based on that reading a year and a half ago.

That's flattering.

Yeah, I know. He told me at the time, "If they don't bring you in for Trauma, I might bring you in for another project." I thought that that was B.S. but in this case it wasn't. He remembered me and he championed me for this role.

Do you remember that original audition for Trauma?

I do and I was disappointed when I didn't get [the part] because I thought I did a particularly good job. I guess I'm just Jeffrey's kind of actor though and he is my kind of director. It's just one of those things. Like when I met [Gilmore Girls creator] Amy Sherman-Palladino, we just clicked. We understood each other. The same thing happened with Jeffrey. You can feel it in the room.

A chemistry.

Right, it's a mysterious thing. You just sort of feel a person. You get it.

What's been the most exciting part of working on The Event so far?

Just having a job. I am quite serious about that. But getting to work with the level of actors that I am working with on a daily basis, that's the exciting part. You know, they build these massive sets that are big budget-esque. It's kind of amazing what they are doing. It's not like being on a TV show. It's like being on a big budget film. It really is. You walk onto these sets and say, "How can this be television?" They are really swinging for the fences on this one.

You sound pretty excited about this project. Do you think this show has reinvigorated your passion for acting?

You know, I have been around this business and I have never seen anything like this. It's definitely reinvigorated my career. The scenes they are giving me to play are a high degree of difficulty. They are highly involved and emotional and just red meat that you really want. This is the best time of my professional life.

Your part seems especially emotionally grueling from an actor's perspective. How do you stay ratcheted up during those high-intensity scenes take after take?

Well with this show, you are working with really gifted and experienced actors and really gifted and experienced directors who know how to respect your space. They know when you need to go in the zone. They create an atmosphere in which you can go into your zone and not be disturbed. And then when the work is going on, they keep the set under control so that you can continue to deliver that kind of emotional stuff that needs to be delivered.

It's kind of a scary thing to get ratcheted up that way and then there is a delay and then the camera breaks or lighting needs to be adjusted. It's a little scary to get into such a state and then have to hold it but that is the job. That is always going to happen. It doesn't make it any less frightening. Really, what you want to do is to deliver take after take. I can do it for a couple of scenes and then I am emotionally exhausted. I always tell my directors, "Look, I have about two or three takes in me and that's about it."

For a viewer it can be frustrating watching a project that has all of the elements of a big blockbuster film -- the suspense, the action, the mystery -- but having to wait three or four months to get to the bottom of it. Why do you think viewers are willing to tag along for the ride in spite of this season or two-long tease?

I think the beauty of this show is that there is mystery but it primarily concentrates on its characters and how they relate to each other. The loss of love, trying to get loved ones back -- basic themes that anyone can relate to. For example, my character Michael Buchanan has his family ripped away from him and he is thrust into this global conspiracy. Anyone will be able to relate to what his emotional life would be given the circumstances of what he has been through -- having two daughters kidnapped and a wife potentially no longer with us because people broke into his house because they want something from him. They want to make him do something. Anybody in the audience is going to watch this pilot and say, "What on earth has happened to this man?" That is what makes it relatable. Put yourself in this guy's shoes. What would you do if you were in this situation? What would you do in Jason Ritter's shoes? What would you do if you were president?

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