Exclusive: An Interview with Continuum’s Victor Webster

Continuum has been a very pleasant surprise for me this year. Since the first teasers aired on Showcase, I’ve been hooked. Of course, time flies when you’re having fun, and the season finale airs tonight. If you weren’t already excited enough, I have an interview with star Victor Webster (Carlos) to share as you wait for 9pm to roll around!

First off, I have to ask about your thoughts on how far Continuum has come since it was first announced, particularly the fan reception and record-breaking debut numbers.

When we get it, it’s words on a page and we all do our parts, these little cogs in a machine. To see it all come together, you just hope that the audience loves it as much as you love making it and as proud of it as you feel and when they embrace it the way they do, it really just goes to show that all of your hard work has paid off and it just makes everything worth it.

Carlos has undoubtedly had an influence on Keira and her mindset. She arrived in 2012 with a very black and white view on things, and he’s helped her to see that there are so many sides to every story.

One of the interesting this is she comes from a future where everything is technologically based, it’s all black and white, it’s either this way or that way, there’s little thinking outside of the box because they’ve been trained to think that way and rely on their technology. When you come into a world like 2012 and everything is based on instinct and investigation and using your gut, that’s totally new for her. So I think a lot of the influence that Carlos has on her, I don’t think he notices so much because a lot of it plays out in her having to decide that that is the right way. Keira is very smart, so she learns very quickly and when she sees that this stuff works and she can’t necessarily rely on her technology so much now, she has to adapt and change. I think Carlos sees that a little bit, but the audience sees that a lot more than Carlos does.

Carlos is definitely a flawed character …

Whatchu talkin’ bout, Willis?

He does have flaws, but I think they just make him more endearing. What would you say is your favourite aspect of the character?

I really like that he doesn’t take himself too seriously. He knows that he’s not perfect. He tries his best and is very hard-working but he knows he’s not perfect so he has an opportunity to make fun of himself sometimes, and he does.

Carlos really took a beating in last week’s episode. I know you can’t give anything away from the season finale …

I take travellers cheques and money orders if you want to find anything out …

And where do I send that? Let me get that address from you! Perhaps you can answer this question for us – will the season finale immediately follow the events of the last episode, or will we have jumped ahead in time at all?

I definitely think you see a little bit of that, but we jump ahead a little bit in time. Not much, though.

I really enjoyed the scene in that episode when Keira thinks Carlos might not make it and confides in him, telling him her secret. We don’t know if he actually heard any of that or if he’ll remember it at all. Is that something that you’re looking forward to seeing how it will be played out in a second season?

I think there are a lot of things that Carlos has noticed and heard and used his gut to find that could potentially play out in the second season. He’s not really given the permission to investigate because he’s being told what to do, where to go, who his partner is, that she has the ultimate authority to be autonomous and pretty much do anything that she wants. So that kind of a strong cover for her character makes it really difficult for Carlos to investigate, one because it’s fabricated so well but in the nature of the fabrication it gives her the ability to do whatever she wants to do whenever she wants. It’s difficult for Carlos because what can you do in that situation?

I think eventually, he’s going to get sick of not knowing, and he’s going to have to either investigate on his own or enlist the help of somebody else, so it should be interested to see how that plays out.

I love how this show has really put things into perspective and put a face on the “other side” so to say and seeing what their motivations are.

It all depends how you look at it. Are Liber8 terrorists or are they freedom fighters? Are they going to extreme methods to change the world for a much greater cause, for the betterment of humanity? It’s such an interesting perspective to be in the mind of somebody like that doing maybe the wrong things but for the right reasons.

It really puts a face on the stories you hear in the news and in some cases only hear one side of the story. There couldn’t have been a better time for Continuum to be on the air.

It’s so relevant right now, isn’t it?

It’s relevant, and I think it has fuelled discussion and put the issues into an entertaining format for those who feel bogged down by the headlines. By watching a show like this, they may revisit what’s going on in the world and see it from a different perspective. The show operates on so many different levels and it’s a treat when something like this comes along.

Do you have much opportunity to interact with fans, and are you looking forward to perhaps seeing some of them in person at a convention or fan event?

I get a lot of interaction via my Twitter account (@webstervictor), so I know kind of what fans are thinking and what they’re feeling. It’s just so great to be a part of something that’s been embraced by so many people, and they really love it. We love making the show, being a part of it and making these customers come to life and just to see that the audience has embraced it so graciously and they’re loving it so much, it really makes it all worth it.

As far as conventions, definitely. When those things come around, I think as a show and individually, we will be going out and meeting people. There’s nothing better than coming face to face with somebody that just loves the show you’re on, that makes it so worth it for me.

I know a lot of my friends outside of Canada, particularly south of the border, are waiting for Continuum to land on one of their networks, or are going to … umm … extreme lengths to find ways to watch it.

(Laughs) Imagine that!

There are so many Canadian series that are serious competitors on a worldwide scale, and people from all over the world are going to great lengths just to watch. What are your thoughts on this?

The nature of the show – being a sci-fi, character driven procedural drama – the sci-fi fans are so hungry for great material and they embrace it and they love it, they’re so smart and so appreciative, and myself being one of those people, I love the sci-fi genre, I love to live in a world of imagination where anything is possible and anything can happen. It’s so gratifying to see people, like when I talk to people on Twitter who are in Africa and the UK and all these different places that are getting the show somehow – mysterious question mark – and are really enjoying it, it’s a testament to Simon Barry who created the show and everybody involved, what a good job they’re doing to be able to go out and create this global presence.

I really can’t wait for the season finale.

There are some great twists and turns in that one.

I’m also waiting for that press release to arrive that says Season 2 is official.

You and me both!

So until – and I’m going to say WHEN a Season 2 of Continuum starts …

I like the way you think …

Is there anything else we can check you out in to help with the Continuum withdrawal?

Yeah, I have three things coming up. White Collar on September 11th. It’s a departure from their usual format, so this particular episode is kind of a standalone show for them. It’s a little bit different and fun for the two main characters.

That is exciting. I love White Collar and I know our readers do as well.

It’s such a great, smart, interesting show. Matt Bomer and Tim DeKay do such a great job with their characters and that relationship. Renny Harlin directed this particular episode, and I think they picked the perfect director for this type of departure.

I’m marking my calendar for that one. You mentioned a couple of other projects as well?

Yes, a movie called Puppy Love. It’s a romantic comedy for Hallmark, which is something that’s different for me. I usually play the killer or the bad guy or a cop or a sword-wielding barbarian, so a romantic comedy is a fun challenge for me. That’s with Candace Cameron Bure. It’s one that grandparents, moms and grandkids can all sit down and watch something together. That’s out in September as well. And I just finished a movie called Bloodline that’s a psychological horror thriller vampire movie. That should come out next year.

Be sure to check out Victor’s upcoming projects, and don’t forget to tune it at 9pm tonight for Continuum‘s Season 1 finale!

Photo Courtesy of Showcase