Posted by SH
Despite being killed off in the pilot, John Scott has remained a strong presence on Fringe. His memories now take up residence in his old flame Olivia’s consciousness, and while they sometimes lead her to clues that help her solve Pattern-related cases, they also threaten her sanity. She sees him standing in front of her, assuring her that he’s real. Olivia’s conflicted feelings over John — whose allegiances were murky at the time of his death — have been one of the driving dramatic forces in the creepy cop show.
Tonight’s episode, “The Transformation,” has been billed as one that answers many of the questions regarding John. Mark Valley (Boston Legal, Keen Eddie), who portrays the mysterious agent, answered some questions recently as to where his character might be headed, and what it’s like to play him.
On what questions get answered in “The Transformation” and other upcoming episodes: “They do answer some questions that have been lingering in my mind, like who he’s been working for exactly, and he sort of confirms the verity or the truth of his feelings toward Olivia.”
On whether we’ll see John Scott in the flesh again instead of just Olivia’s mind: “I think you’ll probably see both, but I can’t really confirm what condition he’s going to be in in either of those situations.”
On what it’s like playing a character when you don’t know what side he’s on: “I think that whether he’s good or bad, there’s a degree of guilt that he carries around with him. … When you watch it, you’ll have to make up your own mind about that. I just look at him as a regular person. He’s done some things and he did them because he believed in them and there is sort of a tragic situation that comes out of it.
On working with Anna Torv (Olivia Dunham): “She’s just a fantastic actor, and I really like working with her, because she has such a solid idea of what’s going on in a scene and what her objective is and what she’s going to do. … As a person, she’s just delightful.”
On his most memorable moment working on Fringe: “In the pilot I was covered in an inch of goo and prosthetic muscle and veins running all over me. … I was walking down the hallway and somebody saw me and freaked out, and I realized just how grotesque I looked.”
