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William: I can type
Moderator: Hi everyone - thanks for joining us for tonight's cyberchat with X-Files' Cigarette-Smoking Man, William B. Davis. This is a moderated chat - if you'd like to ask Bill a question please send it to Producer as a private message.
William: not real fast but we will try
Moderator: Okay!
Moderator: What does it feel like to be part of one of America's great pre-millennial mythic cycles, The X-Files???
William: Oh sure not too hard a question to start.
William: I like it but it is very strange.
William: I am not sure that pre-millennial means too much.
Nosferatu: How does it feel to be an evil villain on The X-Files?
William: That depends on whether one thinks one is an evil villain. I subscribe to the theory that I am the good guy.
Dopeyman: Did you have fun skiing for charity a few days ago? Do you ski a lot?
William: That was a blast. I wore my skin tight race suit. and yes I ski quite a bit and I love to race.
foxmulder101: Was it an accident of was it a sign of the show ending, but the episode when Mulder and Scully when reliving the same day over and over again, Mulder woke from A BED!
William: I don't think it was a sign of the show ending but now that you raise the question....
cjxphile: For you as an actor, what has been the biggest difference between filming in Vancouver & filming in Los Angeles?
William: Travel. And it is harder to do it in LA because of the distances involved. And it was hard to develop a new crew but now that we have done it they are great.
filippomiller: Have you ever worked in theatres?
William: Lots. Most of my career has been in the theatre - and a lot of that as a director.
Pam: You have such a wonderful voice. Have you recorded any books on tape?
William: Thank you but no I haven't I would like to
Valintine:My question is this: Now that the plan for invading earth by one invading force of unknown origin has been thwarted by the faceless creatures, do you see you character as fearing for his life now that he is on the run with Mulder's first partner? Thanks.
William: CSM is always in danger for his life - I am not sure that he fears sudden death - although he does fear lung cancer
foxmulder101: "When will we see your appearance on Millennium"
William: No plans that I know of although we do know that one of my butts was seen on Millennium
foxmulder101: "What happened to agent Spender, Did his contract end?"
William: No in fact it is still going and they are paying him for episodes he is not going to do.
Mulder-Scully1: I have heard you refer to yourself as the good guy of the show what are your thought on that? Why do you feel that CSM is the overall "good guy" of the show?
William: It is what an actor has to do - to believe in the actions of his character. CSM is trying to make the best of a bad situation. And someone has to do it
BadBoy: Have you always wanted to work as a Sci-fi actor, or is this just one of the Roles that you landed?
William: Just one I landed. Actors like to act people. What the genre is usually an accident
Nosferatu™: What do you like to do in your spare time? Any hobbies?
William: Well I ski a lot - on water or snow. And I read. And birdwatch some
BenSpender: The X-files can't go on forever. What can I look forward to seeing you in after the show is over? Perhaps a spin-off focusing around you character?
William: I thought we should do a spin off - sitcom based on the Syndicate - called Golden Boys
Pokey: Why did CSM have no problem killing his own son and he still won't kill Mulder?
William: I don't know if he had no problem killing Spender if he did - but Mulder seems to be special in some way - tactical or personal we don't know
Leanan-Sidhe: to William Who is your favorite castmember to work with?
William: I like them all - tough question - Chris and Mitch have been great. I think the only way I am going to get a scene with Gillian is to write it myself
SLINGBLADE: What kind of "Historical Badman" would you might say your character is like?
William: Hard to answer as I don't think of him as a badman - but we talk about the Vichy government in France sometimes
foxmulder101: "What is your favorite snack food, just curious?"
William: I'm stumped. Let me think about it
William: Triscuits
valintine71: What do you feel is the hardest part of the role of being the bad guy on the X-Files is and is that a really high step that you had to overcome on your way to becoming a regular face in the show
William: To play a villain one has to believe in what one does. That is probably the hardest part
cindyg: Whom are your favorite authors?
William: Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, Margaret Atwood, Timothy Findley to name a few
ILTXFILES: I heard that you are going to be in a new movie called "Killing Moon". Can you give us any insight?
William: Gosh. It was like one I had done before. Voyage into Terror was about a cruise ship - this is about a virus on a plane
Fox: William, what do you consider to be the redeeming Qualities of your character?
William: Determination, ability to delegate, single minded, selfless
Bastet: to William Is there any work that you are doing outside of X-Files now? And, If so, what kind of role do you play there?
William: None that I am shooting now but there are three coming out. A crazy parent in Perpetrators of the Crime, An old man in The Last Tzaddick and A baddie in Killing Moon
demonling: to William a personal question do you really believe in UFO's?
William: No!
William: There are of course unidentified objects but I do not believe that there is any evidence that there are aliens among us
Cordelia: What is the hardest role you have played?
William: The one I haven't yet. Your father, King Lear
Anthony: Stanley Kubrick died this week -- as an acting teacher what do you think that Kubrick's trick was for getting such great performances from his *stars*?
William: I dont know enough about his process to answer that
Chesna: What kind of music do you like to listen to?
William: Mostly classical these days
Bastet: to William: What was it like for your character to watch his son grow up from a distance?
William: Good question. I think he lost touch for quite awhile
xphile27: What has been the strangest X-Files episode you've ever done?
William: Probably Musings of Cigarette Smoking Man - some one here said it was their favorite - but it was hard in some ways as it did not fit with many other aspects of the mythology and the style was different
Bloodsong: do the herbal cigs taste nasty/ and do you worry if they'll still harm you?
William: I do worry yes. Now I have them mechanically lit for me if I don't light them in the scene to reduce the amount of smoking I have to do. It can't be good to put anything like that in your lungs
Gillian: I'm from Brazil and I just want to say that everybody there loves the series!!! Congratulations!!! Oh your character name in Brazil is "Canceroso"!!!
William: I love Canceroso - my favorite is the Italian - Il Fumatore
valintine71: I would really like to know how long it took you to get into the character of the Cigarette Smoking Man?
William: Hard to answer as the part has grown - each episode presents a different challenge
Pam: Do you have any children? If yes, are they into acting?
William: I have two but no they are not into acting at present although one - the younger who is still in high school is a dancer
Mulder-Scully2: What is the best part of your job?
William: The work. I love the challenge of figuring out what would make me do what the character does and then trying to bring it to life
sammieXFmstie: how do you think xfiles will end (if you don't already know) or how would you like it to end?
William: I don't know but I think Mulder will have a miserable death and CSM will marry Scully
valintine71: What do you do to relax after filming an episode of the X-files? How long does it take to "come down"?
William: The days are often so long - sixteen hours is common that there is not much difficulty 'coming down' - the challenge is to stay up
Leanan-Sidhe: The show is a dramatic series but between takes is there a lot of joking around?
William: Not that much when I am on set for some reason but I hear that David and Mitch cut up sometimes
Cordelia: Do you believe that the information revealed about CSM in "Musings of CSM" was the truth?
William: Not too much of it - it does not fit with what we know from other episodes
PiRho: I understand that my favorite actress, Hudson Leick (Callisto of "Xena: Warrior Princess"), attended your acting school. What kind of student was she? Would you like to work with her in the future?
William: Actually it was Lucy Lawless that was our student - and she was a terrific student
xphile27: How did you get your start in acting?
William: My cousins ran a summer theatre company and when they needed a boy actor I was handy
Fox: how long does it take to film an average episode?
William: 8 days of first unit and two to four days of second unit
Bastet: What would be the role that you would most like to play?
William: Gracious - There are lots of parts I would like to play - I would have to think about that
anthoyy: How has American television production in Vancouver and Toronto changed the face of acting in Canada?
William: I don't know - we used to be under a lot of pressure to sound American but that doesn't seem so important now - I guess the main thing the American actor brings is a sense of relaxation and spontaneity
Leanan-Sidhe: Will you ever try your hand behind the scenes or do you already?
William: I have in the theatre a lot but I would like to direct film and maybe write for it as well
Bearleft: Have you suggested or thought of suggesting a storyline to Chris Carter?
William: I have tried several ideas that only served to tell me how hard it is to write for this series but I have one now that I will pitch to them in a couple of weeks
Me: Do you get to have a say in the writing of an episode?
William: Not really - a few lines here and there or points of view but not any great changes
Guest8729: I smoke too much... Do you think your character CSM smokes too much or do you think it suits his personality???
William: No one should smoke. I did for far too long. It does suit the idea of cancer man - of intelligent evil but it is not a good thing for anyone to do
cjxphile: Have you ever found yourself disappointed that a particular CSM scene or moment ended up on the editing room floor? If so, please describe the scene/moment.
William: Ah yes! There are two wonderful scenes with the Well Manicured Man - another of my favorite actors to work with - that had to be cut for reasons of time
Ad-Noctum-: If you could change one thing about your character, if anything, what would it be?
William: I'd give me more of a sex life
Ad-Noctum-: Out of the acting roles you've had, from when you started to the present, which would you say is your favorite?
William: Probably this role as I have had so much time to work with it and the complexity is building
Fox: William, I'm in England (it's nearly 3am here, so I have to go to bed soon) have you ever been to England? Are there any plans to shoot an episode here?
William: I have been in England lots. I trained in London, I worked in Chesterfield, Dundee, Colchester, Chichester, etc and London. I was there for six years
Leanan-Sidhe: You mentioned earlier that you would like to write a scene with Gillian Anderson. What kind of scene would it be???
William: It would be giving away my idea but if you know Richard 111 you might remember the scene where Richard convinces the wife of the man he murdered to marry him
Mulder: Speaking of sex, would you like your character to be involved with someone or do you consider this a weakness for CSM?
William: Well Mrs. Mulder and I used to ask when we were going to get our bed scene but now it looks as if it might be with Diana Fowley but in truth I don't hold out a lot of hope
Pam: Do you laugh a lot on the set or do take your work very seriously?
William: I'm pretty serious on the set
CRViewer: So how many cigarettes do you have to smoke in a typical 2-minute scene? And do they have to keep giving you new ones so they don't keep changing length every time you're on camera?
William: We go through a LOT of cigarettes - at the end of one short scene we had gone through four packs - yes we have to use a new one for each take to match the length to other shots
spacefan1: Do you like science fiction?
William: I'm not a fan of sci fi but I like it when I am exposed to it
JRuby: What did you think was different about working on The X-Files movie vs. the show?
William: Time. It was a much slower process. On TV we might do four takes of a shot - in the movie we would do forty. On TV it would take no more than an hour to light a scene on the movie
William: it might be three hours
Fox: William, was it very different making the movie to the series, or just the same?
William: Slower and therefore a challenge to keep fresh but on the other hand we could try more different ways of doing something
Bloodsong: How do you think the California move affected the series ?
William: It does look different. Personally I miss the gloomy forests but we have had some new opportunities as well - on the Queen Mary for instance
felty: Since you appeared to have killed your son and the syndicate is all but gone. Will more people be brought in to help your cause?
William: Frankly I doubt it but I am not sure where they will take it from here. And Strughold is still out there somewhere.
cjxphile: What process did you go through to learn the German dialogue in "Triangle"?
William: That was hard. I had a German coach put the lines on a tape recorder and I worked from that
Me: Would you like to continue the show or make a new movie every few years?
William: I like doing the show but it might be good to have some time freedom to see what else I might be offered
Fox: William, what are your views on the 'will they won't' they relationship of Mulder and Scully?
William: I don't think they will but who knows - maybe at the end of the last movie when they are ready for the old folks home
Moderator: Last question for the evening - and Bill, thanks so much for joining us here tonight! and being such a fast typist -
jamie: What kind of advice do try to give to your acting students?
William: Well they are starting in the right way if they are acting students. The first thing I suggest is that people get good training if they want to act. But they must do it because they love to do it and not because they will be rich or famous
Moderator: Thanks Bill -
Moderator: Thanks too to everyone in the audience - you've been a great audience, the questions were wonderful and we're very sorry that an hour isn't long enough to answer them all.
William: It was a real pleasure speaking with you and I hope you keep enjoying the show
Moderator: Thanks again, Bill - you are one of the chief reasons many of us love the show!