Interview with "Virtuality"'s Jose Pablo Cantillo

AE: The uncomfortable part being...
JPC: The uncomfortable part meaning looking at another man and saying these words and having to see their reaction. When I first read it and we got there, Val and I, part of it comes down to analyzing anything like a basic human interaction, and I knew we were off and running. When I say that discomfort, honoring the circumstance plus the character, who is very scientific and smart and just happens to be in love with another male.

That's how I played it, and the discomfort coming from the fact that it's a big honor and there's a lot of attention on this being the first openly gay character in space. I'd say he's uncomfortable, the character himself is uncomfortable, because all eyes are on them, they're questioning their objectives. Did they have ulterior motives to even be on the ship itself? Was it just to boost ratings?

AE: What was that process like figuring out to play these characters, what their dynamic was between them?
DC: Gene and I became very chummy by going to movies. We're in Vancouver, staying at the same hotel, we worked out together. Like I said, we'd go watch a funny movie or an action/thriller, whatever it was, and we'd be walking down the street and we talked about art, music, our real life backstories, why are we even acting.

When we'd get in these big discussions, I'd try to find things on purpose that we could debate, that we could disagree on. Then we just started going over our lines. It was just a slow process until we come to, the idea is that we wouldn't even have to act.

AE: What sort of direction did you get from director Peter Berg and the writers Ronald D. Moore and Michael Taylor?
JPC: It was more technical stuff, notes, because these were very specific shots. As far as the couple, they were just very encouraging and I think they were very excited about what we brought to it.

There were a couple times in the audition process when Peter Berg had us both come in together and asked us things about status, which character had greater status. Which character do you think would be the one to turn over in bed so they didn’t go to bed angry? Those kinds of things to get us thinking in terms more romantic.

Jose at a screening of Virtuality

AE: Obviously gay marriage is a very hot topic right now. Did playing Val make you realize anything new about the issue or make you think differently?
JPC: I think it just personalized the whole thing. I was definitely for it going in, and then it definitely took it to a more emotional level, because these two characters do love each other, and this tragic circumstance that they're facing. Saying they've been together how many years and they're going to be together for another ten years, and now one of them is forced to question the intentions of the other character because of these rules with only married couples going on the ship, they would now have to force themselves into a box.

It comes back to the idea here in the United States, it's a democracy, they have certain basic civil rights. Violating them makes them second class citizens. It just personalized it for me.

AE: Obviously there's been a lot of discussion about the fate of the show and what airing on a Friday night in June means. I know you had a previous series on which you were a regular so I'm curious how frustrating is it as an actor to come so close to such another prominent role only to have it look like it won't go to series?
JPC: It's exhausting. I don't think you ever get used to it. If it means something to you, you hold your breath and hope for the best. I just go about it as this is something I would love to do, and I hope it goes on. If it doesn't you're in dismay and quite hurt from it.

In some ways, you even mourn the loss of a character just as you'd mourn a real person. Even when it's something successful that I've done that does air, a film or whatever, if I wrap that character, I really miss waking up and going to work as that character.

I think Manny is a religious person, even though he's very scientific, and I think Manny's lighting candles right now. [laughs]

The Virtuality 2-hour pilot airs on FOX Friday, June 26 at 8:00pm.