On September 26th, NBC hosted a conference call featuring Masi Oka (Hiro). When last season of Heroes concluded, Hiro, Peter, and crew successfully halted the release of a deadly virus. However, with the silver lining comes some clouds, as “flying man” Nathan Petrelli was shot down moments before he was to announce to the world his extraordinary abilities. Proving that when it rains, it pours, superbad Sylar also regained his abilities, effectively kicking off the new volume, which will focus on the baddies.
A bit on our interviewee:
Masi Oka returns for his third season on the popular NBC program, reprising his role as the ultra popular Hiro Nakamura. With a child-like enthusiasm towards his powers (the ability to travel through time and space), Hiro is undoubtedly one of the series most popular, breakout characters.
In addition to his role on Heroes, Masi Oka also recently starred in this summer’s Get Smart film. He’s also appeared in Robot Chicken, Balls of Fury, Reno 911, Without a Trace, and Joey. Masi is also a digital effects artist.
Masi is introduced and the moderator mentions how supportive the actor is of the show. Masi notes that he likes to give back to those that made the show as popular and successful as it is.
The first question is a very good one. The caller remarks how the season premiere was shown at Comic-Con and was almost universally praised. Yet when it was shown on television, the critics bashed it. The caller wants to know if Masi thinks critics bash the show just for the sake of bashing it at this point. In response, Masi says that he isn’t quite sure, but that perhaps the critics are just continuing their criticism from season two. He says that he hopes the series can go back to what made it so great in the first season, and that he believes that season three is heading in that direction.
In response to another question, Masi equates the relationship between Hiro and Daphne to that between Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner.
The next couple of questions relate to balancing Hiro’s child-like, light hearted sensibilities with the tragedy he’s experienced. Masi notes that he believes that the balance is important, and that while his character may not be quite as naive as he was before, that he’s still pure. He adds that Hiro will always do what he thinks is right in order to save the world. And since Hiro gets to see so many wonderful places and makes such amazing discoveries due to his ability, he will always have that child-like sense of wonderment.
However, Masi does also acknowledge that following his father’s death, things did get more grave for Hiro, as it’s not really something that can be made light of.
Interestingly, Masi also reveals that one of the greatest difficulties for him as an actor is to consciously remember the level of English that Hiro has mastered.
According to Masi, we will also meet Hiro’s mother this season (or will we? It was a bit confusing).
Another caller asks if Hiro will have a love interest this season. Masi says that he doesn’t know, but that he always preferred his love story with Charlie, and actually disliked how Hiro fell for Yaeko a matter of weeks after Charlie’s death. In Masi’s eyes, the perfect ending for the Hiro character would be for him to live in an endless loop of his short time with Charlie, over and over again. He believes that it will be ahrd to top that particular love story.
In regards to how the season three promos have advertised that within every hero there could be a villain, another caller asks how Masi would react if Hiro became a villain. Masi answers that while Hiro does always do what he thinks is right, sometimes what he thinks is right might not actually be what’s right. He also brings up that Hiro is particularly susceptible to a lot of things and is very gullible. Masi adds that, from a societal standpoint, we clearly know what’s “good” and what is “evil.” But from a personal standpoint, it’s not as clear-cut. Nevertheless, Masi says that he has faith in Hiro and that he’ll always be a “good guy.”
Another question asks Masi about Hiro’s ability and whether we will see him use his power in new and unique ways. Masi answers that the writers are very creative with how Hiro uses his ability, but also notes how it was important for Hiro to respect the time/space continuum. Otherwise, anytime something went wrong, he could just go back five minutes and prevent it from happening.
Masi is also asked how he feels about how Hiro has been developed since season one, and whether the writers’ door is open to him and the other actors. Masi responds that the writers are very collaborative and open about discussing their character. He also reveals that characters are sometimes a slave to the plot, and that their actions may seem inconsistent or out of character in order to advance the plot. He openly admits that he’s watched episodes and called Hiro “stupid.”
Masi also indicates that when the “future” scene of the premiere was filmed, it was much less ambiguous, and that Ando was decidedly evil. It was shortened and edited to make it more open to interpretation.
Another caller asks Masi what he would change about Hiro. Massi answers that he would make him less gullible. However, he also recognizes that if Hiro wasn’t so gullible, he wouldn’t be getting in as much trouble or having as much fun.
Masi is also asked if all of the characters are on the same timeline (as in, is everything we are watching happening at the same pace of time, in the same time period). He answers that he never really thought about it, but he would assume so.
As Masi makes his exit, he promises fans that season three is going to be absolutely fantastic and it’s just going to get better from here.
Matt Basilo has been writing for Inside Pulse since April 2005, providing his insight into popular television shows such as Lost, Heroes, Prison Break, and Smallville. You can visit his blog at A Case of the Blog.
