Even though he’s trained as a lawyer, Golden Globe-nominated actor Jason Isaacs has never played one in an acting career spanning nearly 35 years.
“I have a law degree,” said Isaacs, 58, the third of four sons, who earned his law degree at Bristol University in his native England. “It gave me an intellectual approach to things that’s not been helpful as an actor – it’s helpful as a director, a producer, or other aspects of the business – but acting is about, weirdly, suspending your brain and relying on something more animal and less tangible… If you focus too hard, you can’t do acting. You have to be free to allow things to flow into you. It sounds very pretentious, but I believe in it more and more.”
Still, Isaacs has played a starship captain, a pirate, a dark wizard, a drag queen, a cop, a military man, a scientist, a secret agent, not to mention Captain Hook, Superman, Lex Luthor, and Dracula. He has a reputation for playing antagonists, including Col. William Tavington in 2000’s The Patriot, which was set during the American Revolution starring Oscar winner Mel Gibson.
In Good Company
Currently, Isaacs portrays a doctor. On the CBS medical drama Good Sam, which is in its first season, Isaacs (who’s also a producer and will make his directorial debut with the April 20 episode, “Family/Business”) plays Dr. Rob “Griff” Griffith, one of the nation’s best heart surgeons and the chief of surgery at the fictional Lakeshore Sentinel Hospital in Detroit. Although Griff is a brilliant doctor, his people skills are awful.
His daughter, Dr. Samantha “Sam” Griffith (Sophia Bush, Chicago P.D.), is his opposite number. Sam is kind, caring, compassionate, decent, and has a charming bedside manner – the polar opposite of her father. She’s also a gifted surgeon in her own right, something Griff won’t acknowledge.
In the first episode, a random shooting at Lakeshore puts Griff in a coma for six months. The person who replaces him is none other than Sam. On the night Sam’s appointment to his previous position becomes official, Griff awakens. The first thing he wants to do is return to work. Then, he learns Sam is now the chief of surgery, which bothers him.
The only way Griff can perform surgery again is with the approval of his daughter, who’s now his boss. Griff isn’t accustomed to following orders, especially from Sam, undermining her at every turn, challenging her authority and medical expertise. This leads to them butting heads, scratching the surface of a complex father-daughter relationship.
“The old world order is crumbling in which a man like him sits on the throne,” said Isaacs. “I’m a man with two daughters (with Emma Hewitt, his wife of 21 years). My daughters… have long ago passed the stage where they think their father’s a moron – I’m not entirely sure they’re wrong in many aspects. It’s both the pleasure and the pain of watching them be able – maybe more able than me – to engage with the modern world. The story is something I could identify with…”
While Griff may not praise Sam, Isaacs certainly praises Bush.
“She’s extraordinary,” he said. “She takes the happiness of the company desperately seriously… she wants it to be fun and wants everyone to be heard there. She walks the walk. She prepares meticulously for the things I barely look at. She arrives with this medical knowledge and a daunting, intimidating level of understanding of what the medical jargon in the scene means… I’ve never seen anyone so busy and so organized and yet so ready to play. We dance a lot at work. It’s the only company I’ve been in where everybody sees each other on weekends as well. She’s the fairy godmother to all of us, even though she’s half my age.”
Isaacs enjoyed his first time out in the director’s chair.
“I loved being able to work that closely with the actors – they’re my contemporaries, they’re my friends – on the show,” said Isaacs. “I admire all of them. I know some of the things they’re great at and I know some of the areas they can be encouraged to do more… I knew the whole crew – I’ve worked with them for months, so they’ve been incredibly helpful and supportive. Plus, I’ve always been one of those people in scenes that many times over the years I’ve thought, ‘If I can only whisper this in that person’s ear, I think his performance might take off to a new level.’ And I got to try that, and they were all game to try it with me. I felt absolutely in my element. This is something I wished I’d done a long time ago and I intend to do some more.”
There’s Something About Harry
One of his more famous roles is Lucius Malfoy – a Death Eater, patriarch of an affluent magical family, and father of Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton, The Flash) – in the Harry Potter film franchise, based on the international best-selling novels by J.K. Rowling (who’s been the subject of controversy in recent months, something Isaacs did not comment on). Isaacs portrayed him six times, the final time in 2011’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2.
“Playing him was less interesting than what it’s been like for Lucius Malfoy since the film series finished in (2011),” said Isaacs, who has stated before in previous interviews that he believes after the fall of Voldemort, his character would become a whisper of his former shout, shunned by society, alienated by his family, and eventually drink himself to death.
“The books – and then the films – have meant much to so many people,” he said. “They’ve really provided a place of light for some people in very dark times. It’s a chance for them to recount the power of stories that brought solace and comfort and hope and gave it to people without those things… (They) occupy an entirely different place because for so many people they’ve been a genuine lifeline. The notion that there is a space for everyone in the world… people who feel excluded, abandoned, and alone – there will be a place that welcomes them, there will be a community for them… It’s been the gift that’s kept on giving. Most of the jobs I do, I enjoy them and forget about them. I don’t really care how many people watch them or their financial success. With the Potters, the lake is not still; the ripples continue forever.”
To Boldly Go
On the first season of Star Trek: Discovery – for which he earned an Empire Award for Best Actor in a TV Series – Isaacs portrayed Capt. Gabriel Lorca, captain of the titular starship in the 55-year-old science-fiction franchise created by the late Gene Roddenberry. Discovery is the seventh TV series in the franchise and recently concluded its fourth season.
A brilliant military tactician, Lorca was more enigmatic and certainly darker than any other Trek captains such as William Shatner’s James T. Kirk or Patrick Stewart’s Jean-Luc Picard.
In a twist, it was revealed that Lorca was the Lorca of a different universe, specifically the Mirror Universe, which is occupied by evil versions of Trek characters. At one point, the Mirror Universe’s Lorca replaced the Lorca indigenous to the main reality and died in the episode “What’s Past is Prologue.”
However, Isaacs argued that Lorca isn’t evil.
“He wasn’t evil. That’s a Darwinian universe where only the strong survive. Do you find lions to be evil when they eat other wild beasts at the watering hole?” said Isaacs. “By the way, there was a man in the White House who thoroughly believed in that as a protocol – that the strong should dominate the weak because they can.”
While the fate of the mainstream Lorca is unclear, he is believed to be dead. However, that hasn’t been confirmed. If Isaacs has the chance to play Lorca – any Lorca – again, he would “absolutely” do it.
“My door is wide open,” he said. “Funny enough… I’m gonna work with (a Trek producer) again. I’m not allowed to say what it is, but I will be badgering that person every day to get me back into a skintight, sausage uniform.”
Discovery actor Doug Jones (alias Capt. Saru) enjoyed working with Isaacs.
“Jason is one of the most curious actors I’ve ever worked with, always trying to uncover a hidden gem in a scene whether scripted or not,” said Jones. “Every day with him on (Discovery) was a thrill ride we all just buckled in for. He is among the most gifted, assertive actors I’ve ever had the pleasure of watching, both in person and on screen.”
Isaacs is amazed by Trek’s loyal and vocal fanbase.
“It certainly provides a community for many people, that’s for sure. I had an extraordinary experience – I went on Star Trek: The Cruise (where fans spend a week on a cruise ship with Trek actors), which every fiber in my body told me not to do.”
However, actor/director Jonathan Frakes (alias Cmdr. William T. Riker on Star Trek: The Next Generation) convinced him otherwise.
“(Frakes) told me I absolutely had to do it and had given me no choice whatsoever because his children were raised on these (cruises), and I would love it. And he was right!” recalled Isaacs. “It was an amazingly eclectic bunch of people. They were the most diverse, inclusive, and generous community I had ever come across. We had ‘Trek’s Got Talent’ one night. It was by popular vote and the popular vote was for the most heavily disabled person who really had tremendous difficulty doing anything on stage and was cheered to the rafters by everyone on that boat. It was one of the most beautiful moments I had ever seen. Trekkers are a remarkable community.”
Hooked on Peter Pan
Another captain Isaacs has played is one of classic literature’s most famous: Capt. James Hook in 2003’s Peter Pan, directed by P.J. Hogan (My Best Friend’s Wedding). In this adaptation of J.M. Barrie’s 1904 play and 1911 novel of the same name, Isaacs also played George Darling. It is a tradition in Peter Pan stage adaptations that the actor who plays Hook also plays this role. George is the father of Wendy (Rachel Hurd-Wood, Solomon Kane), the young girl who falls for Peter (Jeremy Sumpter, Friday Night Lights).
“P.J. Hogan’s a genius… and no one’s ever told J.M. Barrie’s story before,” said Isaacs. “There’s been these versions of his story where they’ve taken the wrong aspect of it.”
According to Isaacs, Peter’s a figment of Wendy’s imagination. The story is about Wendy. Upon hitting puberty, she’s told, “Your childhood’s over. It’s time to be a woman,” per Isaacs.
“I have two daughters who are young women,” he said. “I remember so vividly – and they’re still going through it – when the world wants to treat (most of them like) women and they still feel like little girls. It’s a story about that. (Wendy’s) a kid who’s told ‘Get ready to have a family’ … She still has a room with her brothers and plays pirates with them at night. She dreams of a world in which that won’t be true.”
Isaacs continued: “I find that to be incredibly poignant; there’s a reason why it’s still around for a century after it was written. P.J. wanted to tell that story. I thought it was timeless. He made an absolute classic. It’s ironic that it was a box office failure, but it’s been such a triumph over the years – so many people have found it and loved it and that’s because he’s a remarkable filmmaker.”
A Tortuous Process
Isaacs has no preference what medium he performs in – it doesn’t matter if it’s movies, TV, or the stage. To him, they’re the same thing.
“It’s just theater. Can I imagine being someone else? Can I get to a state of flow where I’m just in the space with the other actors and living that life imaginatively?” said Isaacs. “The camera’s the same for TV and movies. Whether I’m seen on the big screen or little screen or on someone’s phone… my job is just to be someone in those situations. Can I make truthful for myself? And if I can, hopefully it’ll be truthful for someone else.”
He continued: “Most things are being streamed nowadays. For most movies, even the ones that are successful, for every pair of eyeballs that sees them at the cinema, there’s gonna be 1,000 pairs of eyes that sees them at home. That’s just the unfortunate reality. The end result is not really my job. I don’t even think about if things will be successful or not. I just think whether I would be interested in living that life and with those people.”
When asked how he chooses his roles, Isaacs confessed he doesn’t know.
“There’s no answer. Normally whatever is gonna f**k up my life the most next. That’s a terrible idea. It’s a torturous process. Initially, I say no to everything, then I phone my agent, ‘Did that thing go? I was thinking about it while I was driving.’ I do lots of first-time directors’ films, most of which you’ve never heard of or didn’t come out. I don’t think about the implications… It’s mostly a sense that I would be bitter if someone else did it; it’s that negative. It’s not that I want to do it, I’m always fearful and wondering about what I’m gonna do. The process of creativity is all born out of fear for me – how can I not fail terribly?”
He continued: “Mostly, if there’s one overriding factor, I couldn’t bear to watch anyone else do it. I’m not even sure that’s true. I’m just making some sh*t up for you. The fact is I have no idea. It’s an arbitrary process and it changes every time. It’s just the thing I’m drawn to… I think it’ll be fun, and I fancy walking in that person’s shoes. Sometimes, it’s because I fancy the research. I didn’t get to hang out with many pirates or wizards, but I’ve certainly shadowed politicians, priests, drug dealers, heart surgeons, and policemen… If I was broke, often I’m sure I’d be drawn to the things with the biggest paychecks. Thankfully, I’ve not been broke for a while.”
Always the Next One
Other notable roles include Armageddon, Black Hawk Down, Green Zone, and the short-lived TV series Awake. Isaacs has also done his share of voiceover work for animation. This includes Lex Luthor in Justice League: Gods and Monsters, Superman in Superman: Red Son, Dracula in two Monster Family movies, King Arthur in Scooby-Doo! The Sword and the Scoob, the Grand Inquisitor in Star Wars: Rebels, Ra’s al Ghul in Batman: Under the Red Hood, among others.
With a body of work spanning more than three decades, Isaacs revealed his favorite role.
“Always the next one,” he said. “I figure looking back is madness. It’s true in relationships, it’s true in work, it’s true in everything – harkening back to what was. My greatest joys lay ahead; they have to.”
Isaacs has recently wrapped production on Good Sam. He’s unsure if it will return for a second season.
“Not a clue,” he said. “Somebody in a much nicer suit than I possess will be making that decision.”
Will Good Sam’s season finale serve as a series finale if CBS doesn’t renew it?
“They never do,” said Isaacs. “You have to know you weren’t coming back to write an episode that ties up every storyline or have the coach driving off the cliff. Since we don’t know if we’re coming back or not, they haven’t written an end like that… I’ve never shot a finale that we knew was a finale.”
Isaacs’ other upcoming roles include the films Operation Mincemeat, Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris, Mind-set, Spinning Gold, Agent Game, and several more he couldn’t talk about because of signing NDAs.
“You’ll be sick of me,” said Jason Isaacs. “There’ll be a bunch of others in the next few months. I apologize in advance for flooding the market with my horrible anecdotes.”
