Adam Bryant sat down with Daniel Dae Kim to discuss the developments in Hawaii Five-0′s first episode of the season, and the repercussions that will follow. If you haven’t watched it yet, you might want to stop reading now.
[WARNING: The following story reveals major plot details from the Season 3 premiere of Hawaii Five-0. Read at your own risk.]
Last season’s finale of Hawaii Five-0 presented Daniel Dae Kim’s Chin Ho Kelly with an impossible choice: save his wife Malia or save his drowning cousin and team member, Kono (Grace Park).
Although Chin rushed to the aid of Malia (guest star Reiko Aylesworth), Monday’s Season 3 premiere revealed that he also dispatched Kono’s Yakuza-affiliated boyfriend Adam (Ian Anthony Dale) to help her avoid a watery grave. Unfortunately for Chin, his quick thinking could not save Malia, who died despite the paramedics’ best attempts to revive her.
Hungry for revenge, Chin set his sights on Frank Delano (guest star William Baldwin), the ex-cop that masterminded Chin Ho’s Sophie’s choice in the first place. After a massive gun battle, Chin was faced with the opportunity to arrest Delano for stealing a truckload of meth, but he shot him at point-blank range instead.
So, how will Malia’s death affect Chin Ho this season? And is Chin’s cold-blooded vengeance a sign of even darker days to come? We chatted with Kim to find out:
Going back to the choice Chin Ho made in the finale, do you think there was a moment where he thought seriously about trying to save Kono instead of Malia?
Daniel Dae Kim: I actually had to do a lot of thinking about what I would do and what the character’s priorities were. I think many people, if faced with that same choice, would choose their spouses over a cousin. But the relationship between Chin and Kono has been so much more developed than the one between Chin and Malia. So, from an audience perspective, it would be a choice that might not be so obvious. I think they might have preferred Chin to save Kono only because of the investment they have in her character
I heard many fans asking, “Is Kono going to be angry with Chin for not saving her?” Were you glad to learn that he did send Adam to the rescue at least?
Kim: It would be an interesting dynamic if Kono and Chin started to kind of be at odds as a result of the choice that he made. It might be a nice change of pace for them to have a little bit of resentment toward one another. But he did have a plan to try and save Kono. It was a big step for him to reach out to someone that he doesn’t respect, but who he knows cares about Kono almost as much as he does. Chin really did try to do the best he could for both people. He wouldn’t just abandon Kono.
Sadly, even though Chin rushed to Malia, she didn’t make it. What was your reaction when you saw the script? Kim: It’s not very often in a crime procedural you get to do a lot of deep character work. To me, the strongest elements of Hawaii Five-0 are when you are able to develop an investment in the characters because you know their personal stakes. I think it makes for more riveting drama. I was happy to have the opportunity. And the consequences and the ramifications of his choice are going to stick with him for a while.
Chin obviously sought vengeance against Delano. Were you surprised that he actually pulled the trigger and killed him?
Kim: It’s great stuff for an actor. They say drama is conflict. He already has enough conflict about the choice he had to make. But now, once he crosses that line between an officer of the law and a vigilante, it raises a whole different set of questions as far as how he feels about his own character.
It’s pretty cold-blooded. Do you think Chin is acting on raw emotion at that point, or is there a darker side to him we just haven’t seen before?
Kim: I actually do think it’s about something deeper. It’s not just about the choice he was forced to make because of Delano. It speaks to a lot of his own issues about being called a dirty cop and his own history of having to take the blame for something he never did. It becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy — he does become a dirty cop.
Clearly, Chin doesn’t feel better after he kills Delano. How much will all of this pain eat away at him this season?
Kim: His journey is to become whole again. But how far off the path has he gotten? Is it possible for redemption? We’re not going to see a happy-go-lucky Chin the way that we did in Season 2. I think the last scene where he comes home and sees the chicken in the oven and breaks down is not just about Malia. It’s about the man that he’s become, the choice that he’s made and who he is now.
Do you think there will be legal ramifications for Chin killing Delano later this season?
Kim: That’s a really good question. We were in a parking lot, and there were witnesses. He pretty much admits to McGarrett that he did something that was not by the book. So, that may come into play.
How much will Steve and the team be there for Chin during his struggle?
Kim: One of the biggest themes of this series is family. In almost any episode you watch there’s a reinforcement of that. We’ll see how strong that bond really is. I think part of what Chin’s been doing in the series is just trying to rebuild a family. I think that’s why the Five-0 team means so much to him. Hopefully he hasn’t jeopardized that by the choices he made.
Kono obviously forgave Chin for choosing Malia. But is Kono now a living reminder of what Chin lost?
Kim: Yes. And I think there are going to be other times where Kono is in jeopardy. What feelings will Chin have when those situations arise? Is he going to be gun shy about it? Any time she’s put into a
situation where her life could be in jeopardy, I think it should resonate.
All of this sounds like a lot for one man to carry.
Kim: He’s got to try and find a new start in a way. He thought he had his life complete and it’s no longer complete. So, he’s got to make himself whole or embark on a different path and just try to find peace.
Mahalo to Mrs. Little, for sharing a couple of “ET Canada” clips with her friends to the south. We see so much about the men on the show, that it’s really great to learn a little more about the talented Grace Park.
Ah, some more insight into Hawaii Five-0′s third season from executive producer, Peter Lenkov! Be sure to tune in to see resolution of last spring’s cliffhangers and to enjoy new carguments between our bromantic duo. It certainly sounds like the Five-0 show runner has a few surprises in store for us.
“Hawaii Five-0″ ended last season on a cliffhanger — a couple of them, in fact — and fans tuning into Monday’s (Sept. 24) Season 3 premiere won’t have to wait long at all to see how they play out.
“It’s got to” pick up where it left off, executive producer and showrunner Peter Lenkov tells Zap2it. “I always saw that episode as a two-parter, because of all those threads and everything that needs to be answered.”
Lenkov also talked with us about the casting of Christine Lahti as McGarrett’s (Alex O’Loughlin) mother, Doris, the resolution to last season’s other cliffhanger involving Chin Ho (Daniel Dae Kim) and some of what we can expect in Season 3 of “Five-0.”
Zap2it: Why did you want Christine Lahti for the role of McGarrett’s mom? Peter Lenkov: An actress at some point is going to have to convey all this emotion, this regret, feel like she made this sacrifice to abandon her family to protect them. It needs an amazing actress to pull that off. It’s just words on paper unless it’s somebody who can really convey all those emotional levels. She’s just such a great actress. For me, to land somebody like that, even get her interested, is a big coup. That was the goal, just to get somebody who’s going to play a lot of layers. There is comedy in the show, so she can do that. But it’s really about playing the drama scenes — playing the emotion, the regret. Just playing a mother who’s got a lot to answer for. And also, play somebody strong enough that it’s believable when she pulls a gun and that she had this past, that she could have been somebody who was in the spy game years ago. I think Christine Lahti has all that.
How early last season did you hit on the idea of Steve’s mom as Shelburne? That was always the case. We knew that always, writing it. But the hardest thing was trying to hide the ball for so long, because you do it over 22 episodes, 23 episodes, and after a while the audience is going to start to figure out. There was a time when the audience started making those guesses, thinking it was either dad or mom. I was like, “Oh my God, really? We’re only on episode 17.” We knew it, but it was about how could we cleverly try to hide it. That’s where Terry O’Quinn sort of took the bullet, saying he was Shelburne.
Can you talk about where Doris has been and … What she’s been doing for 20 years? A lot of that is something we’re going to explain over the course of the season. But what she tells McGarrett is she’s been hiding, she’s been on the run. She’s been moving from safe house to safe house, that Wo Fat’s been looking for her. But we’re going to discover there’s a lot more to what she was doing the last 20 years.
What is Chin Ho’s emotional state after his Sophie’s choice at the end of last season? I think he’s going to be out for blood. We were joking around, calling him “Man on Fire.” You try to drown his cousin, you shoot his wife, he’s going to be upset.
How are you expanding Michelle Borth‘s role now that she’s a regular? It’s funny — I think most people thought she was going to be a member of Five-0. She’s a regular on the show, but she’s not a team member. … She answers the phone in episode 5 [and says] “Lt. Rollins, assistant to Steve McGarrett, how can I help you?,” because he seems to be tapping her for favors a lot. In the first few episodes, she really goes above and beyond [in] helping them. In the first episode, she’s brought to a safe house to protect Doris while McGarrett and the rest of the team sort of deal with the A-story. Then in the second episode she’s involved in a big way. She gets to exercise her action chops. You’ll see a lot of sides to Catherine you haven’t seen before.
But she’s somebody who is very self-aware — I don’t know if you ever watched “Magnum” when you were a kid, but Magnum would always ask favors of people. He always owed people. The best way to liken this is to that — she’s much more than a girlfriend. She’s somebody [McGarrett] can lean on, somebody she can go to if he needs help. She’s a confidant — she’s become sort of like a girl Friday who can kick some ass.
How do you balance the ongoing plot threads with your weekly crime stories? As writers it’s fun to do a procedural where you get to go home with the characters. Most of these types of shows are very light on character and very heavy on plot. I think for our audience, they really want to get to know our characters. They really want to spend more time with the characters and probably less on the plot. We just figure out a way to balance it out. The best thing is, we know at the beginning of the year where we’re going to go. So we know how to parcel out these little character stories. They somehow all get neatly put into this script that fits into 42 minutes. Usually we’re long and we put those extra scenes on the DVD, but we’re very character-heavy, especially this year. There’s so much to do because of McGarrett’s mother now, because of Michelle coming in. So there’s not only more characters to service, but also more relationships to service.
Do you earn the right to go home with the characters more after a couple of successful seasons? Our engine is still a crime procedural show. We try really hard to tell a compelling case every week. But the network has a lot of faith in us that we’ll be able to do those stories as well as service our characters. And I think for actors, to keep them interested especially going into the later years — even though we’re still in our infancy — they want their characters to evolve. So we’re trying to keep them motivated, keep them engaged, by giving them really interesting stuff to do.
What are some of the stories you’ve got lined up for Season 3?
Ed Asner‘s coming back — we’re going to wrap up his story. He got away with murder last year, amongst other things, so we’re going to wrap up that story. There’s a really fun episode where McGarrett and Danny [Scott Caan] are just out fishing — they end up getting boat-jacked and in a dinghy for two acts. It’s like taking a car-gument to another level, putting that on the ocean.
I’d be curious just to see how Steve gets Danny to go fishing. That’s part of the story. They get involved in a crime out there on the water. That’s a fun story. We’re exploring — Kono [Grace Park] had relationship with Adam [Ian Anthony Dale] last year. So now that Adam’s in our world, how is Adam going to play and affect Five-0. Some of the stuff we’re excited about is plot, but some of it is character. … Kamekona [Taylor Wily] is expanding his brand. He’s going into the tourism business, learning to fly a helicopter so he can do charter tours of the island. So you can imagine that’s funny. We’re going to see Max [Masi Oka] in a relationship with a woman he’s had a crush on for a long time.
We owe a big thanks to Ernest Sanada for allowing us to post his photos from Sunday’s Hawaii Five-0 premiere event, “Sunset on the Beach.” Ernest knows just what the we like, so there are plenty of shots of star Alex O’Loughlin to enjoy!
Although the crowds weren’t as big as in the past two years, last night’s Sunset on the Beach was enjoyed by those in attendance. The date for the event was set rather late and occurred on a Sunday, reducing the number of fans who could attend. Sadly, Scott Caan was unable to be there after the passing of his mother last week, and Grace Park also missed the function. Nonetheless the crowd, stars, and producers who were in attendance seemed to enjoy the festivities. Alex O’Loughlin, in particular seemed to be more comfortable than ever before, proclaiming that CBS should produce Hawaii Five-0 Sunset on the Beach every year, even after the show is off the air. Hopefully, that won’t be for many years to come, but in the meantime, let’s let CBS know how grateful we are that fans of the show had the opportunity to enjoy Five-0 up close and personal.
Now, some news directly from Honolulu! Mike Gordon (aka @crankydad on twitter) was out of town, but Nancy Arcayna stepped up in his absence.
Peter Lenkov and Roberto Orci, executive producers of “Hawaii Five-0,” are always trying to outdo what they did during the previous season, so Lenkov promised “lots of surprises, lots of twists and turns” during the show’s third season while on the red carpet at “Sunset on the Beach” on Sunday, Sept. 23.
Roberto Orci and Peter Lenkov
Nina Tassler, president of CBS Entertainment, joined executive producers Lenkov and Orci on behalf of the network.About 8,000 fans — a mixture of tourists and residents — gathered in Waikiki for the screening, with many waiting to get a glimpse of their favorite actors or possibly an autograph or photos. Among the stars walking the red carpet were Alex O’Loughlin (Steve McGarrett), Daniel Dae Kim (Chin Ho Kelly), Masi Oka (Dr. Max Bergman) and Michelle Borth (Catherine Rollins).
Avid fan Beth Arritt was there to see them all. “I’ve been waiting here since 6:45 a.m.,” she said. “I flew 5,000 miles from D.C. to get here. We were planning on coming later this month, but we changed the trip just for this.” Last year, Arritt made the long trip and only stayed for the weekend. She collected autographs on her DVD cover and and was all gaga over the photo she took with Alex O’Loughlin as he greeted his fans in the crowd. “It’s awesome; just so much fun. It was definitely worth the trip,” she said, beaming.
Peter Lenkov, Alex O’Loughlin and Tannya Joaquin
Claira Parsons traveled from Australia to attend the premiere. “We love Alex. We love the show. Hawaii is such a beautiful place, it’s amazing. It was definitely worth it,” she said. The crowd went wild as each star’s name was announced upon arrived on the red carpet.
Daniel Dae Kim flashing the shaka
A couple from Northern Ireland, Lynn and John Williams, attended all three premieres and arrived at the beach at 9 a.m. Sunday to claim their spot. “We really like seeing the local people on the show. We met one of the extras on the beach,” said Lynn Williams, who explained how Hawaii holds a special place in their hearts. “I’m originally from New Jersey and my husband is from Ireland. We met in Hawaii 16 years ago.” Lynn said Scott Caan is her favorite, because his character is from New Jersey and it reminds her of home. Caan and Grace Park, however, didn’t make it to the event.
Mary Enriquez of the Long Legs O’Loughlin fan club traveled to the premiere from Ireland. O’Loughlin signed a photo she’d brought for her friend Elsie, who lost her husband after 41 years of marriage. Enriquez explained her friend was in the doldrums and watching “Hawaii Five-0″ lifts her spirits.
“She loves Alex and loves Hawaii,” she said. “He signed ‘to Elsie, with all my love, Alex O’Loughlin’ and this will make her world.” Enriquez also makes a “Hawaii Five-0″ scrapbook for each season. “I’ve already started on number four,” she said.
Masi Oka walks the red carpet
AS FAR AS juicy gossip goes, we did find out from Lenkov and Orci that Masi Oka’s character will get a love interest this year — but the role has yet to be cast. “They’re always teasing me,” Oka said. “We don’t know who it will be.” Oka talked about going to his favorite restaurant, Alan Wong’s, and how much he enjoys being in Hawaii. “It’s great to be back and working again,” he said. According to Oka, his character, Dr. Max Bergman, starts the season with a cane. He’s in recovery after getting shot last season.
The show also gives local actors work. About six to 10 locals are cast in each episode, said Orci. “We’ve found great talent and it’s good for the show,” he said. “In one episode, 150 extras are used in one scene.”
Alex with CBS president Nina Tassler, and Daniel Dae Kim
Nina Tassler, president of CBS Entertainment and an O’Loughlin fan herself, made her way down the red carpet. It was her first time attending “Sunset on the Beach” and she was blown away by the devoted fan base. “It’s one thing to have a vibrant audience, but for people to make a trip here just to see the show is real devotion,” she said. “The fan base is beyond anything we’ve seen before. These people are planning their vacation around this event.”
Michelle Borth who plays Catherine Rollins
When “Hawaii Five-0″ was first introduced by Lenkov, she said, “It wasn’t a remake, it was a reboot. And, they are respectful of the show’s history.” Tassler expects more “Sunset on the Beach” premieres in the future.“We hope to be doing this for many years to come,” she said.
Michelle Borth talked about the camaraderie among cast members.“We all get along, we really gel,” she said. Borth jokingly commented on her intimate kissing scenes with O’Loughlin. “He hates when I smoke cigarettes, and I hate when he eats tuna fish sandwiches, so we do it to mess with each other,” she said. “We laugh a lot … it makes things less awkward.” She said viewers can expect to see more intimate action between her and O’Loughlin during the season. “He is the lucky one,” she said. She is accustomed to getting asked how he feels.
Borth said she never had to physically train like she has to for “Hawaii Five-0.” Having never dabbled in martial arts or action scenes before, Borth said she now trains with Grace Park three to four days a week to prepare for fighting scenes.
“I’ve always wanted to be a superhero, so it’s a lot of fun for me to be a badass,” she said. “I was lucky enough to glance at a clip at a fight seen that I did. With the editing and music, I was blown away. It’s so rad.”
She’s also been hitting the waves and enjoying Hawaii’s surf. Borth seemed overjoyed to have become a series regular.
A view of the beach in Waikiki after sunset.
O’Loughlin claimed he doesn’t have much time between work and family. He beamed when talking about becoming a dad again, and is looking forward to an upcoming trip to the neighbor islands for filming. “I love all of the islands,” he said. “The Big Island is my favorite. It’s so diverse. If we drive up to Waimea, it reminds me of my home in Australia.”
When asked about Borth’s fighting scenes, O’Loughlin commented, “She’s badass. I’m kind of afraid if they write any sex scenes in because she’s so good at karate and stuff. Because I need to stay on the show. “She’s a great friend and actor and a great spirit to have on the show,” he added.
Alex O’Loughlin
O’Loughlin said he loves that fans travel far and wide to attend “Sunset on the Beach” and appreciates CBS for their continued dedication to the show’s characters. “There’s a lot of issues that the characters need to deal with on a personal and emotional level,” he said. “They keep filling us with great back stories. It really fuels me as an actor and a person. I’m really excited for season three.”
Daniel Dae Kim said he dealt with some heavy emotional scenes during the season two finale and was happy for the summer break. “After shooting the season the way we did, it was nice to get away,” he said. “We’d shot 24 episodes at that time, so it was kind of a nice breath of fresh air to enjoy the summer.” When asked if the island was going to claim another wife, he said, “We’ll see if he is unlucky in love a second time.”
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It’s been evident from the recent interviews we’ve seen, that Hawaii Five-0 star Alex O’Loughlin is in a good place this year. After a difficult 2011, in which the actor had to take time off for a prescription medication problem after a stunt injury, it sounds like the handsome Aussie has learned some important lessons, and is more than ready for the next chapter in his life.
Mahalo to Mike Gordon (@crankydad on Twitter) for a wonderful interview on Star Advertiser.com
The most striking thing about actor Alex O’Loughlin, as he drops into a plush chair on the set of “Hawaii Five-0,” is the serenity on his face. He is healthy and happy. A whole man. O’Loughlin, the star of “Five-0,” has been hard at work since July on the third season of the popular CBS television drama, which debuts tonight with a special Sunset on the Beach screening in Waikiki and Monday for the rest of the country. But the real work took place long before the cameras started rolling on the new season.
Courtesy CBS
In March an aura of calm seemed a distant, unlikely prospect after O’Loughlin required a hiatus from the show so he could receive help getting off the prescription pain medication prescribed for a nagging shoulder injury. The actor says that leaving, even briefly, was difficult because he loves “Five-0″ and is lucky to be a part of it. The experience changed the 36-year-old Australian, who delighted fans in August with news that he and his girlfriend, model/surfer Malia Jones, are expecting a baby. It’s the second child for both, who have offspring from previous relationships. O’Loughlin’s smile is broad and his laughter a rolling acknowledgement when he notes his “new status.” ”It’s a wonderful stage,” he says. “I’m having the best time of my life.” That much is obvious.
During a conversation in the make-believe office of his character, Navy SEAL-turned-lawman Steve McGarrett, the actor talked about new plot twists in the show, an “epiphany” regarding his role as a key member of the “Five-0″ cast, and the joys of raising a family in Hawaii.
QUESTION: How much input do you have when it comes to the story arc of “Five-0″?
ANSWER: I’m less involved in the creative side of things as far as story line and stuff like that. I pitch things to (executive producer) Peter (Lenkov) for week-to-week stuff … but really I kind of leave it up to those guys. If something that I am passionate about comes up, I give it to them, but I am certainly not going to take credit for any sort of big story points. From week to week I get the scripts, and I am as surprised as you guys are when you see the show.
It’s terrific when the new script comes out. I am always eager to read it and see what’s happening and see what sort of new information is going to come up and what I am going to get to play with.
Q: That story line left everyone surprised at the end of the Season 2 finale.
A: Yeah. His mother has shown up again, and for the last 20 years he’s thought she was dead. Not only that, but essentially the brutal killing of his father was directly related to his mother faking her own death, because his father was in active pursuit after all those years, constantly, for her killers. The whole family has been looking for answers. …
It’s just a whole nother level of confusion and mistrust and questions. And also regret and resentment toward his mom. I think he definitely has mixed feelings toward her.
Q: Well, he was certainly surprised in the final moments of Season 2.
A: Absolutely. And how do you process that information? Of course in the first episode we explain what happened to her and why she did what she did. And of course it was well-intentioned, but it’s still family.
Family is such a tricky thing for all of us. I don’t know one person who doesn’t have some sort of something with their parents or siblings or something. You can chose your friends but you can’t chose your family … and as the story progresses, what becomes really clear quite quickly is Steve’s mistrust of his mother, and that’s a really difficult place to be, to not trust the one you should trust more than anyone.
Q: When “Hawaii Five-0″ first started shooting episodes in 2010, you said it was a stunt-filled, physical show that made a lot of demands on your body. In Season 2, that took a toll on your shoulder and prompted a brief hiatus for you. Are you approaching the demands of your role any differently this season in order to remain healthy?
Courtesy CBS
A: Everyone knows how rough it got for me. Look, that stuff happens to professional athletes all the time. I’m not claiming to be a professional athlete, but I am very athletic and I do a lot of physical stuff, a lot of stunts. I came back into Season 3, and I realized that … I am having a baby and I have my 15-year-old at home as well who lives with me and I have a lot of responsibilities. But more than that, I have a responsibility to myself, and that’s something that I think I neglected a little bit. Not in a careless way, but this is the first show that I have had that has succeeded. I think I felt like it was really on my shoulders, and I had some sort of Superman complex — I’m going to be all right; you can’t hurt me. But you can. I’m just like everyone else. Bang me around enough, eventually something’s going to break.
It’s actually really peaceful in my life now with this epiphany that I’ve had. And I still get into it and do some action stuff. I love all that stuff, but I don’t take the risks I was taking before. And it is not just so I don’t get hurt; it’s honestly because I don’t want to.
Q: How important is your fitness routine to your health?
A: I do all sorts of training. … I bike. I run. But I go through phases where I use weights more. Lately, for the last six months, my primary focus has been jiujitsu. It seems to be a terrific sort of all-arounder for me. I do other bits and pieces here and there, but I do that about two or three times a week. It’s great for tendon strength, which is one of my big problems: the tendinitis in the shoulder and stuff like that.
But it’s like you were saying: I’m not 25, I’m 36, but I’m going to be 50, God willing, at some stage, and I want to still be in the game. I want to be active with my kids. I’m an active guy. I can’t just sit around. (Exercise is) a real important part of the balance in my life. I don’t want to get to a stage at a young age — and I consider 50 a young age — where I can’t do what I want to do. I’m playing it smart.
Q: At a panel discussion in February 2011, you told the audience that Hawaii had become your home, that your heart was here now and that you wanted to raise your family in the islands. It would seem to be as good as it gets right now.
Courtesy CBS
A: Family is my first priority. I hate to tell the producers of this show that, but that’s my first priority. … The show is my second priority. The show is extremely important, and you see how much I put into the show, so you can only imagine how much I put into my family. Every spare minute I get, I am at home. I’m with the kids, I am with Malia.
I’ve lived a lot of life, I think, for my age, and I’ve done a lot of the stuff that I’ve wanted to do, and there is plenty more for me that I am going to do. But at this stage the contentment that I get from just hanging out with the kids and at home, and my house is so beautiful. I bought this fixer-upper that was built in ’52 and things are forever falling apart and not working. I forever have little things to do. I work on it myself and get help working on it as well. I can do some things. That’s the stuff that I really get off on. I love it more than anything.
So I don’t feel like I am missing out on not going to clubs. That stuff went away for me a long time ago. But sometimes, like any parent will tell you, you can get fed up, and I wish, ‘Geez, I just wish I had a second to myself to just be selfish.’ But the great thing about parenting is you don’t have to think about yourself anymore because you are so busy thinking about some small people.
Q: Children grow up too fast, though, and then you have an empty nest.
A: I think I have a really fantastic balance being the lead of a big show and being a family man. I balance it really, really well. But is there more that I would like to do on the family side? Of course there is. But it’s funny about what you’re saying. Sometimes I look around the house and say, ‘Geez, who has drawn on the wall? Why can’t you guys put your toys away? What is happening here? Who spilled something on the couch and didn’t tell anyone?’ But then I picture myself in 20 years’ time and the kids are all gone and there are no toys and it’s quiet and I’m like, I don’t know, man, that’s what gets me through the mania of those moments.
Q: Is it true you pushed hard over the summer for a third Sunset on the Beach premiere?
A: Yes, it’s true. I don’t want to take credit for Sunset on the Beach, and I don’t know if anyone was listening to me pushing. But when I heard they were not sure, I was disconcerted but also concerned and a little annoyed. And they may have been planning to do it all along. I’m sure they probably were. But it is so important, man. It’s so important for the people of Hawaii. It is not about me walking down a red carpet and cameras. It’s about people who want to come and rejoice in a show that has come back and is doing really well for the islands.
It’s about the people; it’s not about us. That’s why I pushed for that.
Even though I’ve never set foot in Hawaii, this Sunday, September 23rd, I will watch my third Hawaii Five-0 Sunset on the Beach premiere in Honolulu. How can that be, you may ask? Being a generous sort, I’ll tell you. I’ll be using that modern-day miracle known as the Worldwide Internet Webs. Or some such technical thing that I don’t understand. Luckily for those of us who are stuck in less tropical locations, there will be live streaming of the event from a few sources, and we don’t need to be particularly tech-savvy in order to enjoy them.
While I’m watching from the comfort of my home, Officer 808 should be battling the hot sun, sand in his shoes, and throngs of crazed fans. Check back often for reports.
Hawaii News Now website:Hawaiinewsnow.com Livestream LINK Scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. Hawaii time If the Blessing was any indicator, you will not be able to watch the this feed from your phone. Of course, it can’t hurt to try. NOTE: Please make sure you have the required software on your computer in advance, or you’ll find yourself unable to watch the festivities. You’ll need Adobe Flash and Silverlight. Both downloads are available from the HNN link. Also, when the station cuts away for a commercial break, the feed will go black. Don’t worry, that’s normal. If it seems that the feed has been gone awfully long, just “refresh.” Video should be available in the next few days.
Aloha Bruce Ustream LINK. In previous years, Bruce’s livefeed has been of better quality than that of Hawaii News Now, although he doesn’t have the red carpet access, and therefore no star interviews. I’ve found myself switching between HNN and Bruce’s feeds. You should sign up for a Ustream account prior to the event: Ustream LINK. Bruce’s broadcast will begin at 11 a.m. Hawaii time.
TC - I’m not familiar with this DJ, but he’ll be streaming live from the Red Carpet onIsland 98.5, and also utilizing Ustream. Scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. but may start earlier.
Sunset on the Beach schedule. (All times are approximate.)
In order to calculate the times in your part of the world, Mizzoh of AOLRocks has provided this handy event table for our convenience:
4:30 PM - Live Entertainment
5:00 PM -The Stars walk the Red Carpet
Scheduled to Appear:
Alex O’Loughlin
Scott Caan
Daniel Dae Kim
Grace Park
Masi Oka
Michelle Borth
Taylor Wily
Dennis Chun
Teilor Grubbs
Executive Producer, Peter Lenkov
among others….
6:30 PM - The Red Carpet Ends
***Times above are approximate and subject to change***
7:00 PM The on-stage program begins:
The Honolulu Boy Choir
Aidan James
Halau Hula `Olana
Kenny Endo Taiko Drums
Mayors Program with Emcee Billy V.
Prayer by Blaine Kia Ohana
Proclamations by the City & State
Remarks from CBS Entertainment President, Nina Tassler
Remarks from Executive Producers, Peter Lenkov and Roberto Orci
Introduction of attending cast with remarks by Alex O’Loughlin
Premiere of Hawaii Five-0 Season Three, Episode One (301) will be shown to those in at the venue. At this point the live streams will end. We ask that anyone who is lucky enough to attend, not share any video or photos from the episode, thereby spoiling any surprises for the rest of the world.
This has been a great week for Hawaii Five-0 fans and we have another interview, this time from IGN, with the cast in this week leading up to the Season 3 premiere. We get a few more tidbits of information, plus a glimpse of the more playful side of Grace Park.
Hawaii Five-0 ended its second season in a big way, with every character’s life in turmoil, either physically or mentally. With Season 3 set to debut this Monday, I recently visited the Oahu set of the series, and the first big example of this turmoil was standing in front of me, doing a a scene with Alex O’Loughlin as Steve McGarrett – Christine Lahti, playing Steve’s mom, Doris. This of course is oh-so notable because Doris was believed to be dead until the Season 2 finale.
Team Five-0
“We deal with that immediately,” O’Loughlin told me. “He sits down with his mom and says, ‘All right, please explain.’ There’s a lot that goes along with that, too. One would think after 20 years you’d be thrilled to know that your mother’s still alive, but there’s a lot more that needs to be processed before that luxury. Basically, the devastation that’s gone in the household and the family and his life is largely due to the decisions that she made. The murder of his father was the direct result of the constant pursuit of her killers and what happened to her. So that immediately drops Steve into a place of pretty deep resentment and confusion.”
When last we saw Chin Ho (Daniel Dae Kim), he was given a horrible decision to make, with his wife, Mailia (Reiko Aylesworth) and his cousin, Kono (Grace Park) both in deadly scenarios in separate locations thanks to William Baldwin’s villainous Frank Delano – and Chin chose to go to his wife. The Season 3 premiere will find Chin facing even more crucial decisions and put through the wringer emotionally.
Said Daniel Dae Kim, “I think it’s really interesting stuff for an actor to play because we are in what essentially is a crime procedural. It’s a crime of the week, we all know the format, it’s all over the television. Generally, as an audience, you know what to expect. As an actor, when you get material like this that’s of a very personal nature and speaks to their character’s history and future, it’s very, very rare. So I appreciate it a great deal. It’s the kind of material that makes me feel like an actor, so it’s been really fun to play. It’s been great for Chin Ho to kind of reveal those sides of himself. That’s the one great thing about television: character can reveal itself week to week as opposed to over the course of two hours in a film. So yeah, I really appreciate the opportunity to get material like that, and I’m looking forward to seeing what the ramifications of it are.”
Going forward this season, Chin will have to deal all of his recent actions. Said Kim, “He’s had to make some choices that he might not be proud of, in more than one way. You’ll see residual effects of it in subsequent episodes. I like the fact that it’s not just a ‘one-episode and done’ thing. It affects him physically, psychologically, as the season progresses.”
Danny ‘Danno’ Williams (Scott Caan) may have had the least jaw-dropping plotline occurring in the season finale, but it certainly was still one of vast importance to his character – as his ex-wife and her husband are threatening to take Danny’s daughter away from Hawaii, leading to his decision to fight her legally.
Daniel Dae Kim and Scott Caan in Hawaii Five-0
Regarding this turn of events, Caan said, “It’s obviously something fun to play with and something I like to do. The more character stuff they give me, the better. The more stuff they give me with my daughter or my family members, the better. The deeper I can dig and the more honest I can be, the more fun I can have. Ultimately, doing procedural stuff is more the job of this. But when you get the other stuff, it’s when you kind of light up and have more fun and play around a little bit more. I obviously enjoy that stuff the most. Anything that pokes me or upsets me or gets me going is good for drama.”
As for Kono, well… That’s a tricky one. Last we saw her, she was bound and gagged on a boat and pushed overboard, sinking to her doom. But it’s not a secret that Grace Park is still a member of the Hawaii Five-0 cast this season, so it’s also not really a secret that Kono is going to make it out of the lethal scenario… you know, most likely.
When I noted to Park that, since she was sitting in front of me on the set, I assumed Kono was either alive or a zombie, she grinned and ran through the possibilities for how she might be appearing in Season 3. “Yeah, Zombie Kono! She comes back in flashbacks. I play the evil twin. That kind of thing. No one’s ever done it before. Groundbreaking!”
I asked if this evil twin might sport the classic go-to evil twin goatee and Park replied, “Yeah, evil fraternal twin boy. We’re gonna take it back to the masculine.” [Since much of my conversation with Park hinged on what occurs in the premiere, look for a separate interview with her later next week, after the premiere has aired].
Grace Park in Hawaii Five-0
Hawaii Five-0: Season 3 will also have a new series regular this year – Michelle Borth, who has had a recurring role as McGarrett’s love interest, Navy lieutenant Catherine Rollins. Said O’Loughlin, “Michelle is now a part of our full-time cast, which is terrific. From the beginning, McGarrett hasn’t had a steady girl, and you know, Michelle’s been in and out. But she’s the obvious one that he has love for and a potential future with. So that’s going to open up a side of McGarrett that we haven’t really seen. Hopefully, we’ll tap into a softness and an accessibility that we haven’t seen that much of with this military sort of guy.”
When I asked what it was like working with the acclaimed Lahti, who’s won everything from an Emmy to an Oscar (the latter for directing a short film!), O’Loughlin laughed and exclaimed, “Jesus, she’s like a general, she’s so heavily decorated!”
He added that his TV mom is “Amazing. I love Christine very much. The first scene we ever did together, immediately after we met, was where they’re reunited at the beginning of [episode] 301. It’s a heavy scene, and we really had to be connected as people and as actors. So that was a wonderful way to start our friendship, and she’s a terrific person to have around. She’s very, very funny. She has a great sense of humor. She’s deeply humble and a lovely woman.”
Lahti recalled being pitched the character by Hawaii Five-0 executive producer Peter Lenkov and how she had to work to get Lenkov to give her any details about the mysterious character. Recalled Lahti, “He said she was a CIA operative, an assassin, who had to fake her own death to protect her family 20 years ago. That’s basically it, so I filled in a lot of the blanks. But then he told me a few other things because I insisted. He answered some questions about the first episode. So I know some things that even Alex doesn’t know. Clearly, I’m not going to tell you about it, but you’ll find out. Stay tuned!”
Michelle Borth, Alex O’Loughlin and Christine Lahti in Hawaii Five-0
When I asked Lahti, best known for roles in dramas like Chicago Hope, what it was like to enter the action-filled world of Hawaii Five-0, she described it as “Totally fun. You know, I’ve always hated guns, and I deplore violence. I’m really an advocate for gun control, and here I am, holding a gun and shooting. It’s really fun, though. Her CIA training and her life as a CIA operative was so long ago — and I don’t really know how much she’s involved — but there must be something because she’s pretty handy with a gun!”
As for portraying the mother/son dynamic with O’Loughlin, Lahti remarked, “it’s really complex, which was what was really appealing about the role to me. She has no regret — she did what she had to do to protect her family — but is filled with guilt. Think of all the pain she’s caused to her kids and her husband, and ultimately the murder of her husband. There’s so much love and so much loss and humor — she’s also really funny. One of the most appealing things about taking this job was for her humor. She’s really funny. In addition to everything else, she was that. It’s been a great ride.”
Lahti has initially signed on for four episodes, and isn’t sure if she’ll be doing more beyond that. In the meantime, she noted, “There was a lot of build-up for this character, for two years, so I felt like there was a lot of responsibility for me to live up to that. That’s a good challenge.”
Just in case you’ve forgotten any important plot points from last season, CBS has issued a new video recap to prepare you for Monday. Please pay close attention – there will be a quiz afterward.
Peter Lenkov and Roberto Orci, executive producers of “Hawaii Five-0,” are always trying to outdo what they did during the previous season, so Lenkov promised “lots of surprises, lots of twists and turns” during the show’s third season while on the red carpet at “Sunset on the Beach” on Sunday, Sept. 23.
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