How Actors Deal with Being Perceived as Evil: The Answer is "Thank You"

What do people say when they see an actor on the street who is the villain on their favorite soap opera? Or is a filthy rapist or murderer on their favorite detective drama?

"Oh that guy is evil. That woman is a [fill in your favorite word here]" You get the idea. The actor could be the nicest person in the world, but they have convinced their audience that they are bad.

I once met Paul McCrane (Dr. Romano from "ER"). I saw him and thought "oh, there's the Ass". NICEST man you could ever meet. Really. But how many people saw him and thought, "Oh, there's the Ass"? Seriously. And how did he handle something like that? I can't ask him, but I asked other actors who have played some real meanies! Here is what they had to say.

Jim Beaver (Supernatural, Deadwood) has been possessed by demons, killer of our favorite characters on other shows, etc. There were times when his character carried over into life and it seemed unfavorable. However,

"If I'm playing a bad guy and someone calls me mean or evil, then I figure I'm doing my job. If I'm playing a good guy or someone with more complicated motives, and someone calls me mean or evil, then I figure *they're* not doing their job!" He states honestly. He doesn't take it to heart, in fact "It's always a compliment to be recognized for achieving the qualities you set out to achieve in a character -- even if those qualities are 'mean' or 'evil'"

What constitutes evil in a character? How bad does someone have to be to be perceived in this way?" Jim has an opinion on that, as well.

"Of course, no one in his right mind sets out to play "evil," because that's not what people think about themselves. No one says, "I'm an evil guy, so I'll go do bad things today." Evil is a name for a perception we usually have of others, rarely ourselves."

When asked, Jade Carter (JAG, NCIS, 24, Inside Private Lives) had a positive response to the thought of being recognized for his portrayal of someone really mean.

"[It feels] fantastic - it means I've done my job well. Sometimes it's hard for fans to separate my characters from my own persona, but I just remind myself that it's those very same fans whose unbridled enthusiasm keeps food on my table and allows me to continue to do what I love. I gently remind them that I'm actually a nice guy - and if that still doesn't work, I shoot them." Jade is indeed the nicest guy you will ever meet. No wonder it would be a compliment to an actor to be perceived as anything else.

Tucker Smallwood (Star Trek: Enterprise, Space: Above and Beyond) looks at all characters, good or evil, from a professional point of view.

"One thought: Character is character. We must always find the humanity in any character we assume, no matter what others say or feel about them."
The idea that an audience would relate a person to the character is a strange concept.

" I learned this from Stella