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David Duchovny Talks About Engaging in Californication
David Duchovny opens up to TV Guide about his risky new role on Showtime's Californication (Mondays at 10 pm/ET), the next X-Files movie and being lucky in love. TV Guide: What attracted you to such a darkly comic series like Californication? David Duchovny: It was more of an adult-style, '70s-movie-type comedy rather than what you see in movies today. It was adults acting badly, but like bad adults rather than bad children. It's so much fun to be able to play a guy who really doesn't care what anybody thinks about him. TV Guide: What's the key to your character, Hank Moody? Duchovny: This is a writer who's not writing anymore. He's come to Hollywood to watch his novel get turned into a crappy movie and in the pr
TV Guide: What attracted you to such a darkly comic series like Californication?
David Duchovny: It was more of an adult-style,'70s-movie-type comedy rather than what you see in movies today. It was adults acting badly, but like bad adults rather than bad children. It's so much fun to be able to play a guy who really doesn't care what anybody thinks about him.
TV Guide: What's the key to your character, Hank Moody?
Duchovny: This is a writer who's not writing anymore. He'scome to Hollywood to watch his novel get turnedinto a crappy movie and in the process has losthis family, and he's just drinking and driving himselfto the grave. The only thing that's keepinghim going is the fact that he thinks he should bewith his family, and he's trying to figure out howto get them back. It's not a dark show — it's the lighter side of self-destruction.
TV Guide: When your wife, Téa Leoni, read the script, she didn't think Hank was a character the audience could relate to. Why did you think he could be?
Duchovny: She just thought, "How are you going to pull thisoff?" That's what was always interesting to me.How do you make him funny? And how do youmake him somebody that you're actually goingto root for? So that was the big trick.
TV Guide: So what are his redeeming qualities?
Duchovny: He bathes every day. I think anybody is redeemable if you understand their motivation. And by motivation, [I mean] usually it's pain.
TV Guide: Plus, he's a good parent. He wouldn't let his daughter get away with the same stuff he does, right?
Duchovny: I like that about him. He's hypocritical andhe knows it. Rather than [having] family valuesrammed down our throats and then [see people keeping]dirty little secrets, this guy is the opposite ofthat — his dirty little secret is that his family valuesare actually intact.
TV Guide: Is it true you didn't want to do another TV series?
Duchovny: Yeah, I wasn't thinking of it. But whenever Ithought of TV, I just thought of network schedules.So when I started to think of doing a characterlike this in a workable, livable 11-week burst, itseemed kind of like doing a movie.
TV Guide: Speaking of which, have you seen an X-Files 2 movie script?
Duchovny: I haven't seen it. I'm a little behindthere, but it's in the air. It's nearby.
TV Guide: Has creator Chris Carter said what it's about?
Duchovny: I have vague ideas, but they're sovague that I wouldn't be able to say anything that would make any sense. And I could be wrong.
TV Guide: Is Mulder a character you like revisiting?
Duchovny: Sure. I always wanted it to be a movie franchise. I never wanted to kill the character and leave the character behind, but I was tired of the grind of a television show. I thought it was a natural for movies.
TV Guide: You've been married for 10 years. Is there a secret to a happy marriage?
Duchovny: It's all in thefirst date. I think the statistics for arrangedmarriages are the same as for marriagesof choice: Only half survive. That tells me that marriagessurvive if the people are suited for oneanother. So, as far as Téa and I are concerned, wechose well. But I can't take credit for it, because itcertainly was just a hunch. It wasn't because I'm sosmart or sensitive.
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