Exclusive interview with Timothy Omundson

January 20, 2014 | Psych-os love him as Carlton Lassiter on USA's fan favorite "Psych" but soon we'll meet him as a very special character facing the world of "Supernatural": Timothy Omundson guest stars in this week's episode and why he was looking forward to that he explains in our interview. Of course we also asked him about his work on "Psych" and "Deadwood" and some more things.

Note: © myFanbase 2014 - The interview is exclusive to myFanbase and may not be published on other websites or the like. You may share the first two questions (up to 180 words) if you link back to this site. Translations other than English and German may be posted with full credit including the link to this site.
Foto: Timothy Omundson
Timothy Omundson

1. "Good things come to those who wait" you tweeted on being cast on "Supernatural". Misha Collins once tweeted "Supernatural has third grader interests: magical guns, cool cars, monsters with superpowers" - Was working on the show everything you expected?

I have been connected to SUPERNATURAL in one way or another for a long time. At the request of Richard Speight, Jr., who I've known since college, I've crashed several of their conventions over the years. And some of my very good friends are Fan Favorites (Jim Beaver, Richard Speight Jr. & Kurt Fuller) so they filled me in on what to expect. Both SPN and PSYCH shoot in Vancouver and we share some of the same crew...Teamsters will always tell you if someone is a dick (Be Nice To Teamsters). I worked with the director, John Badham on several episodes of PSYCH and I couldn't wait to work with him again.

What I didn't expect was how great Jensen [Ackles] would be to work with. I had heard that he and Jared [Padalecki] were great people, but it goes beyond that. I was so impressed with this guy and the way he works. I have spent the last 8 years on a show and I know what a grind a TV schedule can be on it's leads. But he was just great! Welcoming, generious, funny, energetic. I would jump at the chance to work with him again.

2. Rumor has it you play Cain, of Cain and Abel. Was the role especially written for you and can you tease just the vaguest hints in what kind of situations we're gonna see you in?

Let me first say that Robbie Thompson wrote me a hell of a role. We had worked together on JERICHO & HUMAN TARGET" and had been talking for years about getting me on SPN if the right part came up. Finally, the timing was right and he wrote this epic role of Cain. Robbie and I have a very similar taste in movies and pop culture, we speak the same language in many ways. Cain is a Badass, pure and simple. The Original Badass. He has a deep, internal strength that I loved playing. Plus, he kicks some demon ass in a pretty wicked way.

3. You've been playing Carlton Lassiter on "Psych" for more than six years in tons of quirky, fun and compelling episodes. What is your favorite episode and why?

I can't possibly try to name my favorite episode. It's impossible. I have a top 20, maybe, but even those shift. We are a tight group of actors and writers. We've spent the last 8 years working and laughing together. We grew up together, creatively. We know each other's strengths and weaknesses. I think the later episodes tend to be my favorite episodes. The ones that reflect that intimate knowledge of what makes each of us tick. It has been the most amazing ride that will always be with me.

4. How much are Carlton Lassiter and you alike? How much of him is in you and of you in him?

I always need to start a character from what about him is in me. In terms of Lassiter, I think it started with his/my ego, strong sense of right and wrong and what is just vs unjust. I LOVE where we have gotten to take him over the years. I can't believe the journey he has had. In many ways, he is unrecognizable from that cop who first arrested Sean Spencer, yet, at his core, he is the same guy. He has been a gift to play.

5. In December we got to see a "Psych" musical episode. What can we look forward to, is the whole cast gonna be singing and dancing?

Well, it's already aired and is out there in the ether, so many already know that they saw some surprisingly great singing and some badass man on man tangoing!

6. "Psych" has some amazing homage episodes like for "Clue" and "Twin Peaks". What film or series would you personally love to pay homage to in an episode?

"STAR WARS". I don't have any idea how we would do it, but it would be AWESOME!!!!

7. What was it like to have the "Twin Peaks" cast almost completely reunited on your set for "Dual Spires"?

That was a really lovely thing to be a part of. The last time many of those actors saw each other was on the set of "Twin Peaks" so to get to watch them come together and reconnect was a very special thing. It made me flash forward to a show bring my PSYCH family back together one day.

8. What would be your perfect ending for "Psych"?

'And they all lived happily forever after...'

Foto: Copyright: Paramount Pictures
© Paramount Pictures

9. On "Deadwood", Brom Garret's journey towards the inevitable was painful to watch yet it brought important progress for his wife Alma. It was not a long character arc but it had great impact. Is playing such a character especially rewarding?

Ahhhh, Brom. Poor, dead Brom. He and that show will forever have a very special place in my heart. I just felt like I knew who that guy was and how to play him. I don't know why, some roles just sing to you. I loved playing that period. Loved it. Everyday, I was surrounded by some of the most amazing actors in the business. I was a kid in a candy store.

10. Jim Beaver wrote a comment to TV critic Sepinwall's "Deadwood" reviews: "One of my more fun moments of synchronicity was having a Western-style gunfight with Tim Omundson on 'Psych'. The idea of Alma's two husbands squaring off at each other gave me great pleasure." Do you remember that, too? And did you have more such fun moments of synchronicity on the different shows you've been working on?

I remember it very well. I love Jim. He is a gentleman, the likes of which you do not meet everyday and it was such a treat to get to play with (and shoot) him on our show. For me, the greatest joy of the business of acting is getting to work with your friends. There is nothing better and I have been lucky enough to do it time and again. The longer I do this, the more friends I collect along the way, the more chances I have to work with them again. It's a lovely, ever expanding circle. I share most of my scenes on SPN with Mark Sheppard. He and I worked on an episode of "24" together years and years ago and remained friends. He very graciously acted as my On Set Ambassador and took very good care of me.

11. You played the part of Simon in "The Booth At The End", a series that centered around the question "How far would you go to get what you want?". Can you tell us a little bit about your experience on the show?

That was a very fun project and I think Xander Berkeley was wonderful in it. I met the director, Jessica Landaw on an episode of JUDGING AMY. Years later she called and asked if I would do "Booth" and said that I would be working with another old friend, Xander. He and I had done a play, that was produced by James Roday, a few years earlier. (That play was also where I first met Kurt Fuller.) I loved the simplicity of our scenes together. In 'Booth', my character fathers a baby with Xander's real life wife, actress Sarah Clarke. Our kids now all go to school together. Life is funny that way.

12. Would you tell us three things that are currently on your bucket list?

I don't really have a bucket list. This line of work has already provided me with so many adventures and amazing experiences. But, if I think about it, I would like to camp under the Northern Lights. I saw them faintly once from a plane. But I'd like to see the sky really lit up by them.

13. Do you like traveling? Have you ever been to Germany? What did you see or what would you like to see?

I love travel and, yes, I was lucky enough to visit Germany for a month when I was 13. My dad had a friend who worked for the US Army in Heidelberg. We used his house as a home base and traveled all though Germany and Austria. It was probably one of the most formative months of my life. At the time, I had barely been out of Washington State so to get to go to Europe and stay for so long...it was amazing. "Guten Tag, mein Name ist Tim. Ich bin ein Schauspieler. Ich Deutsch studiert für zwei Jahre in der Schule." And that is about the extent of my high school German.

14. Since myFanbase is an online magazine about U.S. television shows, what are your favorite shows?

My favorite shows at the moment are MAD MEN, JUSTIFIED, HOUSE OF CARDS. I'm one of the few people on the planet who hasn't watched BREAKING BAD. I plan to, but hopefully I will continue to be too busy.

Thank you, Tim, we wish you all the best for your future!

Nicole Oebel & Melanie Wolff - myFanbase

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