Motif Interviews Dean Cain

One of the attendees at this year’s Comic Con is Dean Cain, probably best known for playing Clark Kent opposite Terry Hatcher’s Lois Lane in the 90’s hit TV show “Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman.”

Before he donned the cape, he was a defensive back on the Princeton Tigers football team (he went on to the Buffalo Bills before suffering a career-ending knee injury). As an alcohol-inept freshman in college, I managed to spill beer all over that then-senior star football player. He not only didn’t kill me, he was gracious and good humored about the mishap. So it was a pleasure to reach out to him and have a short interview about the Man of Steel, Supergirl and the upcoming RI Comic Con.

Mike Ryan (Motif): You get credited with reintroducing Superman as a much more human character. How did you feel about playing such an iconic character?

Dean Cain: It was an amazing break for a young actor. I didn’t feel any particular weight from having to carry the legacy. Because the character was there on paper and I felt like I could really identify with him. It was a natural fit. Clark Kent is who he was, and Superman was what he could do. That’s the character I played. Superman really was the secret identity – if anything I found it more challenging to be Superman than to be Clark Kent. But it was a fantastic role and something that I’m always happy to be associated with. I’m a single dad, and I did change my career to be a dad first and an actor second. But I certainly haven’t had trouble finding work since… So it’s not at all like George Reeves for me.
… I saw a Mad Magazine piece where they drew caricatures of all the people to play Superman, and when they drew my character he had a pink skirt on and a spatula, I think. I thought it was hilarious. In this business if you take yourself too seriously, it’s ridiculous. You have to be able to laugh at yourself – if you don’t, everyone else will.

MR: What were the highlights and lowlights of “Lois and Clark” for you?

DC: Playing such a great icon was a definite highlight. I’ve heard from fans who were kids then, telling me that, “On Sundays I could stay up late to watch the show if I was good.” And they remember that, which is amazing and such an affirmation of all the time and effort we put in. The negative is the amount of work that goes into producing a show like that. It is all day, every day. There is no free time.

MR: You’re playing Supergirl’s [adoptive] father Jeremiah Danvers now, too.

DC: It’s weird going from being the guy to being the dad. It’s a fantastic show with a great story; she’s a great character and Melissa Benoist is going to be a super star. It has the same tone that “Lois and Clark” had. There’s romance, there’s humor, it doesn’t take itself too seriously, but it’s still got an amazing story. (“Supergirl” premieres October 26 on CBS.)

MR: Are you thrown by the C.G.I. that enabled her to do a lot of super stuff you couldn’t do in the ’90s?

DC: I’m jealous. I’m jealous because she gets to do a lot of wonderful, wonderful stuff that we could not do, and she looks really cool. But I’m also just grateful to be a part of it. I love to be a part of the ongoing Superman lore.

MR: Are you still in touch with Teri Hatcher?

DC: She’s working on raising her kid, I’ve been working on raising my kid. So I don’t see her much in person. But I do believe she was the greatest Lois Lane to ever play the character, and I’d love to see her do it again. Not an epilogue, but some sort of ending to the series, because we never did get to finish that. Maybe a movie or something – that’d be great fun… See how I just kinda threw that in there?

MR: You’ve done a lot of shows and tours to support the troops. How did you get interested in that cause?

DC: I think it’s because of my grandfather – the one who lived in Providence. He was a commander the Navy. My uncle was Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force. And I just was always sort of fascinated by their service. It was the way I first pictured America. It’s kind of akin to playing Superman. I do believe in the American way and I do believe in justice – truth, justice and the American way. And I believe in freedom and in fighting for the oppressed. And that’s what our soldiers do … it comes from a place of morality and really trying to do good. In my mind, that’s the purpose of the military.

MR: What else are you working on now?

DC: People ask me, “What do you want to be?” An actor, a director, a writer and I like all of them. So I’m constantly doing all those things. I have four shows happening right now as an actor or host, including “Masters of Illusion” on CW … and “Lady Dynamite,” that’s coming out on Netflix, which is a lot of fun. And a new show, which I can’t talk about yet. If it comes together I’ll play the leading role.

MR: Can you tell us the genre or anything about the character?

DC: I would play a fire chief, which will be great fun. Police officers and firemen are all heroes to me.

MR: Have you been to Rhode Island before?

DC: Once. I’m excited to go back because my grandfather on my mother’s side was from Providence. In college we [The Princeton football team] played a game at Brown. It was the worst rain storm I have ever experienced in my lifetime. The rain came down so hard it actually hurt. Everything went down third quarter – the time clock, the scoreboard, the lights. It was crazy.

MR: But you guys finished the game?

DC: Of course. We never stopped playing. But we didn’t know what the score was or how much time was left. So I’m sure Providence has got to look better this time around.