Nicholas Lea on KTVU's Mornings On 2

March 6, 1998

[Closeup of Nick]

Nick was interviewed on a local San Francisco talk show in connection with the first X-FILES Expo.


Brian (the interviewer): Well, we're here at the X-FILES Expo. Next to me, the actor who plays Agent Krycek, Nick Lea is here. We did a viewer poll to find out whether or not you think Krycek is good or evil. [Nick smiles.] Find out how the results came out when Mornings On 2 continues. Stay with us.

[Clip of Krycek and Marita from "Patient X" - the scene in Kazakhstan.]

Brian: It's 8:47. Welcome back to Mornings On 2. We're here at Mare Island, at the X-FILES Expo, taking place this weekend. That was my next guest, Nick Lea, who plays Agent Krycek on THE X-FILES. That was from last Sunday's episode and he's here with us now. [To Nick] If you'll look at the studio audience.

Nick: [looking at audience, off to the right]: Good morning!

Brian: You're freezing. Man, it's cold in this hangar.

Nick: Cold and tired.

Brian: Let me tell you, we ran a little poll before you showed up with our viewers to find out whether or not they think Krycek is good or evil. Here we go, let's poll the viewers we have here. A round of applause, how many of you think he's evil? [Almost everyone claps, and some yell things.] Okay, gorgeous, that's gorgeous but evil. I get a lot of that. How many of you think he's good? [Mostly silence.] Okay, so most of them...most of them say evil. You want to know how our poll came out? Well over a hundred faxes....

Nick: All right.

Brian: All of them but one says that Agent Krycek is evil. The one...the one that didn't say he's evil said that Krycek is a fallen angel. A fallen angel. Now you said you had your own theory.

Nick: I like the idea of that. Somebody told me when I was in England that they thought I was maybe the anti-hero. Or the, uh, sort of the dark side....Mulder's...Mulder's dark side, which I thought was interesting. And then I think it was good for my ego as well, but... I've always seen the guy as a survivalist and he's always willing to do whatever it takes in order to stay alive and stay afloat. I don't think....

Brian: So he does what he's got to do.

Nick: Yeah! And even on the show last weekend, I don't - I don't think that....I mean, I tried to bring some... I mean, it was so cold and so hard when I read it, you know that he had me sewing up this boy's face and ears, and I said, I said that I've got to bring some humanity to this thing or it just going to...he's just going to be a hateful person. I tried to do that, I don't know whether it happened or not.

Brian: Well, does it bother you, that he's evil, or you don't think he's evil?

Nick: No, as I was saying before to somebody, it's...it's kind of a not...it's not a good idea to make that choice as an actor anyway. To see your character as being evil. You know, you want to see your character as being good, because then it will, it sort of fills out the corners, you know. A little bit.

Brian: Well, Krycek's been through an awful lot. Now, you lost an arm. Which arm did you lose?

[Nick says good-by]

Nick: That one. [Nick holds up left hand.]

Brian: Lost an arm, let's see, you've been in an explosion, you been in a silo with alien goo... [Nick grins]

Nick: I get beat up every episode.

Brian: Are you doing your own stunts?

Nick: Yes.

Brian: You are!?

Nick: Well, the one hanging form the building, that was fun because what they originally....like I was cabled in by one arm. And the idea was I was supposed to stand on a platform and then they would only shoot me down to the knees so no one would see my feet. Well, that's not really very interesting. I mean, you want to see the person hanging, you want to see the perspectives and you want to see the feet dangling. So they took away the platform and hung me from 17 floors by one arm. And that was...and I was...

Brian: Exhilarated? [laughs]

Nick: To say the least!

Brian: Oh, we're just about out of time, one last question before we....

Nick: What?!

Brian: It goes so fast, doesn't it?

Nick: Didn't Mitch have more time that I did?

Brian: Oh...Mitch? Mitch? Mitch is still hanging out here as a matter of fact.

Nick: Age before beauty, I guess. [Smiles] That was a joke.

Brian: You live in Canada....

Nick: Part of the time, yeah.

Brian: Is the show going to move to Los Angeles?

Nick: I don't think anyone knows the truth to that one.

Brian: But it's out there.

Nick: It is out there.

Brian: All right, well, good to have you here. Nick Lea will be here by the way at the X-FILES Expo this weekend at Mare Island here in Vallejo, Saturday from 11 to 8:30, Sunday from noon to 7.

Nick: And if you're a fan - oh, sorry.

Brian: 1-888-EXPOTIX

Nick: And if you're a fan of the show, you really should come here, because it's pretty astounding what they've got going here. And if you really are a fan of the show, this is the place to be.

Brian: They've got everything, so come down here and meet him! We'll be back with more on Mornings On 2 after this. [To Nick] Let me shake the hand that's not there. [Nick offers his right hand, then his left.]

[Fade out on the same Krycek-Marita scene, with XF music, freeze on Krycek about to spit at Marita's feet]

[Nick says good-by]


(By the way, Mitch did not get more time than Nick. They got about the same amount of time, Nick perhaps a bit more!)



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