Revealed to have some extraordinary abilities of his own, Linderman's conquer-and-destroy attitude completely contradicts his powers of rejuvenation. McDowell was the perfect choice to play him, as he is a walking contradiction himself. With a posh English accent and fondness for sarcasm, you'd never peg him as a bad guy—but watch his piercing blue eyes turn from sweet to spine-chilling, with a very calm and reserved evil, and you'll see why that's exactly what he's most known for.
McDowell dished about Linderman (whose head was blasted to a bloody pulp in this week's episode), revealed a bit of his own villainous side and admitted that when he watches the show from the comfort of his own home, he has absolutely no clue what's going on.
How did it feel to come in to play Mr. Linderman, someone whose presence has been so built up to?
It made my job actually much easier. Of course they'd all been talking about this character and Adrian [Pasdar, who plays Nathan Petrelli] told me that he'd had phone calls with [Linderman], nobody on the other line of course, and they didn't even know who was going to play the part at the time. I have had my fair share of villains—this is one of the really good ones.
Were you following the show before you got the call to be Linderman?
To be honest, no…I don't watch that much TV. But when it was coming up, of course I tuned in. They sent me the pilot, which was really wonderful. My son said, "Dad, this is one of the great shows on television—what rock have you been hiding under?" [Laughs] The young guys—they know what's what.
Linderman is overseeing this big plot that will devastate New York City, but his power is to heal and bring things back to life…what's up?
The man is a hero. He's wonderful with children, wonderful with pets…what more can I say about him? He's the life and soul of a party, tells a good joke. He's a delightful man, the kind of person that would be a very fine uncle to your children. [Laughs] Having said that, there is a side to him that's a little bit dark. He feels that the world is in such a state, that the human race is so decadent and out of control, that the answer is starting again. It's obviously a strange way of going about things; Linderman must have had quite an unhappy childhood.
So do you think he's evil or just misunderstood?
I never really get into that sort of definition of characters. The fact is, Linderman is such a fabulous part for an actor that really I had to do no acting at all. It was so well written…the show is really well written. Although, I must say, as a viewer, it's beautiful and you're always on edge of your seat, but I haven't got a clue what's going on! [Laughs] Its so compelling, its sort of déjà vu, like drugs or something. It's an amazing show and they do such a great job—I can say that because I've been on the inside now.
Hardly any acting at all, huh? So there's a little villain inside of you?
Any part that you play, there's always a little bit of you…the truth is, of course one has a bit of a devil. They pay me to have fun with it, so I do. I don't only play the heavies; I suppose I'm primarily known for that. I enjoy it very much—the word "relish" comes to mind, in terms of this part particularly. These wonderful scenes with Adrian…we have such a ball together! We had a great time and it was a pleasure.
You were speaking in past tense—does that mean Linderman is really dead?
[Silence.]
OK, so that you can actually answer the question: Do you know how many more episodes they have you doing?
If I told you how many I'm doing, then it'd probably give it away, so I better not say anything about that. [Laughs] Suffice to say that I'm doing a few of these and doing other work too, so I'll go in and out, I suppose, as needed.
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