We continue our chat with Melissa O’Neil (TWO), Melanie Liburd (Nyx), and Roger Cross (SIX). In this second half, we pose some fun and interesting fan-submitted questions including a hilarious exchange about running in leather. We occasionally get serious, discussing the complex moral issues that have arisen after the crew’s betrayal. But mostly we kept it light, learning things like what the cast do in their spare time between takes, what other character they’d like to play, who would actually go into space, and what they all might be doing were they not actors.
Reminder: This is the 2nd part of a 2-part interview. For the first part, click on over to Dark Matter Interview: TWO, SIX, & Nyx! – Part 1, then come back for the rest!.
(Editor’s Note: Questions come from multiple reporters representing multiple outlets. Some questions and answers were moderately edited and/or paraphrased for length and readability.)
Melissa, you came to Dark Matter as a science fiction novice and now you’ve had a year of being a science fiction icon. Can you describe the experience of being introduced to sci-fi?
TWO (Melissa O’Neil) ready for action. (Image courtesy Syfy)
O’Neil: Oh my. I think it’s been incredible. And I think what I love the most about sci-fi fans is that they are really hooked on the details and the storytelling aspect of everything. People are genuinely interested in the world that we’ve created and it’s really fun to talk to them about it.
It almost feels like we’re talking at work, like I’m talking to another co-worker, because they are just as invested and interested in the details and the nuances as we are. And I don’t think that any other kind of genre has that kind of attention to detail. So I think that’s kind of my favorite part of sci-fi and the fandom.
How is TWO going to handle keeping who and what she is a secret in prison?
O’Neil: I imagine that that kind of information is actually classified to a certain degree. That information hasn’t been declassified by (Dwarf Star Technologies) because they are trying to get a hold of Rebecca, which is Portia Lin, which is TWO. That’s their prototype and their property. And like any large corporation, when they have a prototype that hasn’t gone well and is deemed by them to be unsuccessful, you obviously don’t want that parading around being the hallmark for your company.
I imagine that if TWO ever stirred the pot enough to cause (Dwarf Star Technologies) enough of a headache, they would release that information to the Galactic Authority. Then she kind of wouldn’t have anywhere to go and there would be a price on her head. I think that the GA only knows Rebecca as Portia Lin. There is no Rebecca, there is no TWO. They only know Portia Lin who has been this person, this mercenary that’s committed all of these crimes.
Melanie, can you tell us about the fighting skills Nyx will bring?
Liburd: Nyx likes the bo staff and she loves the sword and she loves guns. So that’s been a very enjoyable process and really challenging actually as well. But yes, as well as lots of training in the mess with other members of the crew she also goes out and gets busy with the staff.
SIX is an authority figure – He works for the GA, he’s a cop and yet he starts out in the first two episodes with this idea that he’s one of the good guys. But he’s beginning to see that it is not black and white. Could you elaborate a little bit on this and the conflict SIX faces?
Cross: He is trying to do the right thing. He’s trying to be the authority figure that he discovered that he is. He is a cop, he swore an oath to uphold the law and protect people. And so it’s kind of like what is the higher calling to uphold, this law that’s set out by a bunch of hypocrites that are doing it to control people and make themselves more powerful and wealthy, or do I uphold the greater law of taking care of people and doing the right thing? And maybe this group, as bad as they may be, they are not as bad as these other guys and they may be able to do some good out there and help instead.
Maybe he ends up doing things that people don’t expect to help this group because he feels it’s a higher calling and a true calling of his heart, if you will. Because he is the guy that always wants to do the right thing and that’s a problem sometimes. You can’t please everyone and what’s right for one could be wrong for another, so he struggles with that.
Hey, I’ve got some questions from the fans that I’d to run by you, and this for all of you guys. I’m going to start with this one from (@CraigRMacD) on Twitter because I think it’s a good question and it’s funny – How do you guys run with so much leather on?
Nyx (Melanie Liburd) is an expert fighter & prison veteran. (Image courtesy Syfy)f
O’Neil: I saw that one! (The answer is) very carefully so that we don’t have to do (ADR) later because of all the squeaking. Actually, running with those holsters is such a pain in the butt because especially when you have the double hostlers they start to revolve. So all of a sudden, you’ve got your guns on your inner thighs and you’re like we cannot roll, like please don’t roll the next scene because I need to fix my gun belt. It’s annoying.
Cross: I see the ladies do it with style and class. How’s that?
Liburd: It’s the gun, sometimes the guns are really heavy. I mean sometimes if we’re doing stunts in the scene we have those lighter … the rubber guns. They are nice and light to run with.
Cross: They’re all heavy all the time.
O’Neil: Sorry, OK. But remember in the first season when I have to jump and do that like weird cat stand-pose thing? They didn’t have the rubber guns made at that point, so I had like eight pounds on either side of my hip. Between every single jump, that scene took forever to shoot because every single jump my pants would fall halfway down.
It was awful. I don’t why I’m sharing all of this stuff, OK. Just ruining the mystique like it’s awful. Good question Twitter!
I’ve got a question from fellow Three If By Space writer and Twitter user (@katiegkelsey). She wants to know if you could play any other character on the show which one would it be?
Cross: Oh, this is a good one; we’ve gotten this one a fair bit.
O’Neil: I like FIVE.
Cross: You like FIVE? Ooh …
O’Neil: Yes, I’d like to try my hand at being FIVE. It’s fun. She gets like cool little quips; she gets to do the young girl thing. She gets to run the gamut of the emotional spectrum. She gets to really play all of those things. And I don’t think every character gets to explore the entire spectrum the way she does, so this time around I’ll say Five.
Cross: You know all of them would be fun. I mean I like the Android stuff because she has to play emotional things with no emotions, which is easier said than done, but still allow it to be intriguing and not just flat. So that’s a challenge in itself. I also love FOUR because he doesn’t say much, but he gets some bad ass fight scenes. And so it’s kind of like when I say something I mean it and then I’ll kick your ass if you don’t back me up.
And so I kind of like that, too. And THREE gets to be crazy and TWO gets to have her super power and Nyx gets all these things. I’d love to play everyone for like a day or two.
Liburd: I was going to say Android and then just thought how much Zoie has to remember and I don’t know how she does it, she’s amazing. But then I was going to say THREE because he gets to eat in almost every scene and everyone loves to eat.
Another Twitter user (@ceresis64) would like to know what you do when you have a break between filming scenes. How do you spend that spare time?
SIX (Roger Cross): the man behind the betrayal. Can he redeem himself? (Image courtesy Syfy)
O’Neil: We behave poorly.
Cross: We sleep. We sing.
O’Neil: Yes, I’ve got some serious behind the scenes footage of Roger and Alex dancing, like getting down. We listen to music, we watch videos. Sometimes, Alex has these virtual reality goggles like he’s got his ocular something.
Cross: Oh, that is so much fun!
O’Neil: Sometimes we have girl talk.
Cross: Sometimes we play Doom and all kinds of stuff.
O’Neil: Getting tea. Ridiculous things. If you’re Anthony, you’re being very fancy on your cell phone. It depends on the day.
Cross: Yes, it’s playing. Do I give them some credit? Yes, and playing some Candy Crush.
O’Neil: Oh my God. Yes, Roger’s actually always playing Candy Crush.
Liburd: We did a bar routine.
O’Neil: Oh yes, we’ll do ballet bars sometimes.
Liburd: Ballet bar for the bum!
Cross: There you go.
O’Neil: Or we’ll lurk around the video village and ask writers if we can say this or that instead.
Cross: That’s true, always trying to change it. We basically act most of the times, though.
I have a question that I asked everyone in the first interview and I’d like to ask you guys again. We live in a time where this is possible. So if you were given the opportunity would you actually go into space?
Cross: Actually, I’m going to wait. I’m going to wait for them to try it out a little bit longer.
O’Neil: Oh yes. Did you see the Canadian Space Association is recruiting astronauts right now?
Liburd: I was going to say if I knew it was safe, absolutely.
Cross: Yes. I’m going to let the other people do the test and then after they’ve perfected it, then I’ll go.
O’Neil: I’m into it. I think it would be really cool. I like hiking, I like getting up to really high elevations so I can see a view. And the few times I’ve gone sky diving, I really liked the view and it would be really cool just to see the veins of our world by getting up really, really high.
I think what you need is like the more you zoom out you actually see systems on the planet that when you zoom in and look at your bodies, they actually look the same. And I think it’d be really neat to get that kind of a view not from pictures, but seeing it yourself, I think that’d be neat. I’m nerding out so the answer is yes.
Cross: No, I get it. I fly airplanes and I love it when I’m up there and sometimes when you’re looking and it’s like you take it all in and stuff like that. But I mean I think space travel is still not perfected yet so I’m going to wait.
Liburd: But then if someone gave you the opportunity it would mean it was kind of safe. I would absolutely take it. Say, if it was safe. I mean, it would be magical up there.
Cross: It would be amazing, yes. I want to fly up there.
Liburd: And we get to go in a rocket!
O’Neil: Also, your legs get really skinny when you spend time in space!
I have just one last question. If you guys couldn’t be an actor what might you be doing instead?
Cross: Flying an airplane.
Liburd: That’s a very great question. I still want to try so many different things. Probably something creative; I love art, I love to paint.
Cross: A fashion photographer would be fun.
Liburd: Help people, yes. Like a doctor, that would be great. I mean, to be able to save someone’s life, that would be amazing.
O’Neil: I would start with pursuing becoming a teacher and then I would probably get stuck in university just learning and learning. Then, I’d probably end up picking a topic which would probably be psychology or anthropology. I’m really interested in that and then I would get stuck there in school. I like learning.
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