Date of publishing: 24th
November 2006
Born in Toronto on April 9th, Matthew moved to Vancouver
at age twenty where he spent his first four years
establishing his career.
He is now a professional actor for thirteen years
and he split his time between Toronto and Vancouver.
You will recognize him for his role of Lieutenant
James Calley in Total Recall 2070, Cold Squad (the
show that inspired "Cold Case" and for which
he has been nominated for both a Gemini and Leo award),
Stargate SG-1 and Battlestar Galactica where he plays
the cylon "Aaron Doral".
Visit his website at: http://www.matthewbennett.ca
Gilles Nuytens: We
don't know much about you, can you speak about yourself,
who is the actor behind the cylon?
Matthew Bennett: Well, I’ve
been a professional actor for thirteen years and I
split my time between Toronto and Vancouver. I like
to ski and watch movies, and I like to walk around
and check things out. I like music, and I like to
travel.
Gilles Nuytens: What
were your motivations to become an actor?
Matthew Bennett: It seemed like a
good fit. I was eighteen when I made the decision.
I had considered other professions but I got a part
in a play and I enjoyed every aspect of it. I felt
focused. I thought it would be a great way to make
a living.
Gilles Nuytens: What
was your first motivation to audition for the role
of Aaron Doral in Galactica? was it an audition amongst
others or was it a role you were specifically interested
in?
Matthew Bennett: I had heard that
they were going to be shooting the Battlestar mini-series
well before the auditions. We had all heard about
it. It was a big show that was coming to town and
I had watched the original show as a kid.
When it came to the audition I didn’t actually
know I was auditioning for Doral. The scene I was
given to read when I showed up was the tour scene
that starts the show. It was a lot of dialogue, but
the director, Michael Rhymer, told me that he wanted
me in the show and so we worked in the audition room
to find it. It seemed to work. Michael likes actors
and for me that’s everything. He’s a guy
who has a lot of trust in what we do and so I wanted
to work with him.
Gilles Nuytens: What
do you enjoy the most about playing him, what is the
most interesting facet of this character?
Matthew Bennett: It’s definitely
Doral’s precision. His objectives are very clear,
very black and white, and that makes for an interesting
path as an actor.
 Gilles
Nuytens: What is
your overall opinion on Galactica and especially on
season 3, which is much more darker than the previous
seasons, it describe the reality of the world, human
feelings, emotions with such a realism, they definitively
go deeply in the psychology and character development,
it's not often that we see that on a sci-fi television
show!
Matthew Bennett: I think the show
has found a unique audience. I’ve had a lot
of people coming up to me on the street who are not
necessarily sci-fi fans. I’m talking to entire
families and people in a variety of age groups, it’s
a show that’s developed a wide fan base. I think
this show has opened up the genre to a whole new group
of viewers.
Gilles Nuytens: Is
it hard to give some nuance to the number of Aaron
you play in Galactica? I mean they are clones but
they also have their own personality.
Matthew Bennett: Does each copy of
a particular model have their own personality? I’ve
never talked to the producers about this and quite
frankly I’m still trying to figure it out. In
my mind you hit the whole point when you said “clones”.
Aren’t all of the Doral copies the same? Would
they not all respond in exactly the same way if they
were all put in the exact same situations?
I’ve taken the approached that he’s the
same character all the way through, one personality
in a lot of numbers.
Gilles Nuytens: It
isn't a secret that so many sci-fi productions are
shot in Vancouver, do you have a special interest
in sci-fi?
Matthew Bennett: I like the themes
that can be explored in science fiction very much.
I think the genre allows us to look at our lives and
explore the world we inhabit in a very interesting
perspective.
Gilles Nuytens: On
what project(s) are you working on for the moment?
Matthew Bennett: I’m working
on a movie that I’ve written and that I’ll
be directing in the spring. It’s a love story
about a luckless guy named Percy Crease who after
disappearing for three years comes back to his family’s
motel to steal his brother’s wife. It’s
a very exciting time for me right now.
 Gilles
Nuytens: You are
credited as "Malcolm LeBlanc" in an upcoming
TV movie called M.V.P., can you speak a bit about
this movie and the role you play on it?
Matthew Bennett: MVP is actually
a pilot for what may become a new Canadian TV series.
I describe it as a hockey show that’s not about
hockey. It focuses more on the lives of the players
and their families. The character I play (Malcolm
LeBlanc) is the team owner. He’s pretty out
there. He’s a shark who’s all about the
dollar. He’s pretty low on the moral scale.
Gilles Nuytens: You
played a leading role in Total Recall 2070, a really
great show, what do you keep in mind from your time
there?
Matthew Bennett: Total Recall was
my entrée into the world of science fiction
and it had a big effect on me. It was a show based
on the idea that there were five companies running
the world and that the machines that man had created
had developed a consciousness. It covered a lot of
issues that we struggle with today in society. I realized
then that it was a powerful genre that could have
an effect on a lot of people.
Gilles Nuytens: Tell
us a little about your experience in the role of "Cutter"
in Andromeda?
Matthew Bennett: It was a great experience
and a different character than I usually play. I got
to work with a director named Jorge Montessi who’s
a good friend, (and who also directed at least six
episodes of “Total Recall 2070”), and
I got to work with Kevin Sorbo who’s a fantastic
guy. A show like that is a lot of fun if you’re
ready to work and you don’t take yourself too
seriously. Plus my wife liked me in the leather pants.
Gilles Nuytens: What
draws you to a role in general?
Matthew Bennett: I try to look for
something different every time. If it’s a type
of character that I’ve played before then I
need to find something unique about the role that
I haven’t explored.
 Gilles
Nuytens: Do you
follow any fan-based review/comments on what you are
doing?
Matthew Bennett: No. I don’t
think that there are any venues where you can actually
get a true interpretation of what the ‘fans’
think of your what you’re doing.
I know that for every one person who’s writing
something on a board, there’s a hundred others
who aren’t. It’s hard to clear gage when
that’s the reality.
Gilles Nuytens: You
played 2 different characters in Stargate SG-1, "Ted"
in "Point of No Return" with Willie Garson
and then twice "Jarrod Kane" in season 8
and 9. Which of these characters did you enjoy the
most playing?
Matthew Bennett: Definitely Jared
Kane. I was fortunate no to have to wear anything
weird on my head and I was also fortunate with the
episodes. There was a lot to play with. I also got
to work with Michael Shanks who’s good for some
laughs. We had a good time on set.
Gilles Nuytens: Any
pranks/jokes you'd like to share about your time on
Galactica?
Matthew Bennett: How about my Aaron
Doral “Teal Vegas Suit”, that’s
kind of a joke isn’t it… or how about
my ‘pressed form hair’… that might
actually top the suit!
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