HEROES
As Heroes: Season One - Part One comes to DVD, we put the best of your questions to Adrian Pasdar, who plays Nathan Petrelli in the hit series…
What did you think when you first heard the concept of the series?
I thought it was a very interesting concept that hadn’t been done before, combining fantasy with a sense of reality and the pressures of the world that people live in. If that could be done I thought it would be an interesting moderately successful show. We didn’t have any idea it would become this big, though we all thought it would be successful. It was an interesting approach – on TV there’s not much that’s new. You’re either a doctor or a lawyer or a policeman and that’s it. It was a new approach and that was the main thing that drew all of us to it.
How did you feel when you got the part?
Generally when you get something there’s never enough time to reflect about how good the opportunity might be. You jump in so quickly and start working. That was the case with this one. It was exciting and I was very happy to be working with the people I was working with.
Would you like to be able to fly like your character on the series?
Yes, sure. When I first started getting that question I thought ‘oh god’ but then when people like Barbara Walters were asking me that question I realised that it was something that people wanted to know. It came to be the big question. I keep trying to come up with a clever answer and the only thing I can come up with is yes, I would like to be able to fly.
If you could have any special power, what would it be?
It would be the power to come up with a better answer than that.
If you could play any other part in the show, who would you like to be?
I’m very happy with what I’m doing. Everybody is so well suited to their roles – we’ve become such a good family. Hayden Panettiere (who plays Claire Benet in the show) just turned 18 – she had a birthday party and we were all there. It was like a family celebration as opposed to being at the birthday of a cast member.
Did you expect Heroes to be such a success, especially in countries outside the US?
We thought it was going to be moderately successful. We had no idea it would take on a life of its own.
Why do you think shows like Heroes and Lost have become so popular?
I think it combines a sense of reality with fantasy. It reflects the world that we live in – there may be some bad things around the corner. It also combines that with hope and fantastic elements. Ultimately that’s what the show’s about – hope. We’re all hoping for a better tomorrow.
How does it feel to be in such a popular show? Has it changed your life or can you still go to the supermarket?
It’s exactly what you’d think it will be like – you get recognised a lot more. People come up to you. I was late for a flight recently at the baggage counter and someone came up to me wanting to talk about the show and you don’t want to be rude in that situation. It’s made me more recognisable. Everything else is the same – my family life is the same. It’s very enjoyable.
In the series your character is trying to keep his superpowers secret so that it doesn’t affect his chances of a political career. If you had a superpower in real life would you also try to keep it a secret?
Yes, I think everybody would if they really thought about it because you’d be perceived as a freak. You’d be put in a lab somewhere and the government would monitor you. A lot of people would want to see you celebrate that power and use it but if you had a power you’d want to keep it really quiet.
What would you like to see happen to your character in the second series?
I think the writers’ collective imagination is a bit broader than mine could ever be so I never bother trying to think about what I’d like to happen. I concentrate on what they want to happen. They’re not doing anything that I wouldn’t want them to do.
Are we going to find out more about your background in the show? Do you parents have special powers?
The second series is entitled Generations. I’m the middle generation with my mother and daughter so I have that going on. The second season goes more to explaining the hows and why.
Are you going to stay with heroes?
I will ride it out as long as it lasts. The star of the show is the series itsself and not the individuals. My gut feeling is that it will roll over to a new cast by season three or season four. Obviously it’s a huge hit and that’s what you are looking for – great work tied with a great hit.
Heroes: Season One - Part One is released on DVD on 1 October
