Lee Adama and Jamie Bamber are two entirely different people. When the Battlestar Galactica star arrived at BuddyTV’s booth at the Emerald City ComiCon in Seattle yesterday, I didn’t recognize him. I was expecting Jamie Bamber, and the man who arrived was a not-so-tall funky British hipster. This is probably the greatest compliment an actor can get, that he does such a great job at playing a role that people don’t recognize the real him.
But it was him, and the 5’9” Bamber sat down to talk to BuddyTV about the final season of Battelstar Galactica and beyond. Bamber spoke about what fans can expect in the final four episodes before the big mid-season cliffhanger, his post-BSG plans, and some of his favorite scenes and episodes from the series.
Continue reading for the full transcript of the interview, or listen to the mp3 audio file, complete with the ambient hustle and bustle of the Emerald City ComiCon.
Hi, this is John from BuddyTV, and I’m here at Emerald City ComiCon with Jamie Bamber, one of the stars of Battlestar Galactica.
Hi John, how are you doing?
I’m doing great. How are you?
I’m really good. I’m having a great day.
Excellent. Now you’re still currently filming the final season, right? How far along are you in the last episodes?
I think at the moment we’re shooting episode 18, and I’ve got one scene or something in episode 18, so I’m on a bit of down time. We have another four episodes after that.
OK, so there’s 12 more episodes after this first 10?
No. “Razor” counts as two, and then 10 and 10. “Razor,” 10 and 10, so we’re in the last four.
So you’re gearing up towards the finale. Are you already starting to think about the end of it?
Yes, very much. We’ve all had casual conversations with Ron, and he’s sort of casually told us all what the ending will be. We’re just waiting to see the actual script.
This season there’s been a big change for the character, because obviously you went from the military and now you’re in the political sphere. How has that change been for you as an actor?
It’s been really exciting. It’s great to try something different. The character’s journey has always been to push himself, and to explore different avenues of what he can contribute to this fleet. Finally, this year he’s on a different ship, he’s got a lot more to do with the president than he has with his dad, and it’s been great. I’ve enjoyed it.
Now you’re acting with a different sphere of actors, so do you miss acting with the rest of the cast?
No, I sort of did everything that you can do in a uniform on the show, and I don’t miss it. There’s a danger, I suppose. Some people say, “Oh, you’re not in it as much as you used to be,” and I suppose that’s true, but I’m really enjoying the stuff that I do get to do. I think it’s really a valid journey for the character.
I’m certain you can’t tell us all the answers to the questions that we want to know…
No, I can’t. I really can’t.
Fans certainly wouldn’t want to know ahead of time, but can you give us a preview? There are only four episodes left in this first half before you go on hiatus.
They’re a hell of a four episodes. The four episodes that you’ve got left I think really have some of the best, most exciting stuff that we’ve done. I can promise you a great, great cliffhanger.
Is there any word on when it’s coming back? Is it still the end of ’08 or beginning of ’09?
I don’t think the network has really decided. Obviously they’re going to play out these next four, then you’re going to have 10 episodes left. I think the two possible airings for those 10 will be in the fall or January ’’09.
In these last four, can you at least tell us if we will get answers? Do we discover the final Cylon, do we get to Earth?
In the mid-season climax?
The four before the cliffhanger.
You’ll discover enough to keep you hooked.
With it ending, have you started to think about life after Battlestar Galactica?
Oh yeah, I’ve been thinking about that for ages. I’m reading scripts and I’m looking at other projects, and I’m desperately trying to find some interesting work. It’s hard. We’ve been spoiled on Battlestar. I think TV will be a very hard media to stay in without having this great quality of writing and storytelling that we do have. I don’t know what I’m doing next.
So you’re looking at movies and TV, maybe both?
Movies and TV are pretty well what I’m looking at. I would love to do movies for a while, but I haven’t ruled out doing a pilot. I’ve tested for a couple of pilots and nothing has worked out for me so far, but I’ve read some decent stuff. I wouldn’t rule out going back on a TV show. We’ll see.
Looking back, do you have any favorite moments or favorite scenes that you’ve done from Battlestar?
Yeah, lots. Lots. I loved doing the boxing sequence at the end of season 1, that was tremendous fun. The courtroom scene at the end of season 3 was a highlight. The cliffhanger of season 4, the mid-season cliffhanger, is one of my favorites for my character. There are so many. [“The Hand of God”] from season 1, flying that sort of Death Star maneuver, being Luke Skywalker for the day, that was kind of fun.
[Note: In that final answer, Bamber accidentally confused the season 2 episode “The Captain’s Hand” with the similarly-named season 1 episode “The Hand of God.”]
-Interview conducted by John Kubicek
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
John watches nearly every show on TV, but he specializes in sci-fi/fantasy like The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural and True Blood. However, he can also be found writing about everything from Survivor and Glee to One Tree Hill and Smallville.
