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The Weekly Static Interviews: Patrick Fischler of Happy! and Twin Peaks

While I was getting myself acquainted with Patrick Fischler's filmography, one thing came to mind pretty quickly: he's clearly an actor who refuses to be typecast, with a versatility to his craft that's made that possible. Fischler is definitely not a stranger to genre films and television, with 2017 being a particularly strong year for him in that regard. Earlier this year, we were treated to his turn as Las Vegas executive Duncan Todd in David Lynch and  Mark Frost's return to Twin Peaks for Showtime, and Fischler is currently stalking our screens as sociopathic mob enforcer Smoothie in Syfy's series adaptation of Grant Morrison and Darick Robertson's graphic novel Happy!.

Fischler was kind enough to take some time out of his holiday schedule to be our very first television show interview for The Weekly Static: Interviews and break bread with me on a number of topics, including: first impressions of the Morrison/Robertson graphic novel; how his Smoothie differentiates itself from the comic book; thoughts on working with David Lynch, from 2001's Mulholland Drive to this year's Twin Peaks revival; and why you absolutely should be watching Starz's Outlander:

Fischler was born and raised in Los Angeles. His parents introduced him to films and the theatre, which inspired his love of acting. He spent his freshman and sophomore years of high school living with his mother in her native Johannesburg, South Africa, where he attended American International High School. He completed high school in Beverly Hills and moved to New York to study theatre at NYU.

At NYU and Circle in the Square, Patrick worked in numerous productions, including the lead in Arthur Miller's "After the Fall" (his first acting milestone). He also met his future wife, fellow theatre student actress Lauren Bowles. These two best friends did not marry until ten years later in Florence, Italy but are now the proud parents of daughter Fia Lucille Fischler. Together they also raise Roscoe and Lady, local rescue dogs.

TV Shows You've Seen Him In: DirecTV's Kingdom; Showtime's Shameless, Dice, Weeds and Californication; HBO's Silicon Valley, Veep and Curb Your Enthusiasm; USA's Suits; AMC's Mad Men; ABC's Lost, Scandal, Fresh Off the Boat and Grey's Anatomy; NBC's Law & Order: SVU; CBS' Criminal Minds; IFC's Maron; and TNT's Southland.

Movies You've Seen Him In: Speed, Twister, Ghost World, Old School, The Black Dahlia, Idiocracy, Red State, Dinner for Schmucks, 2 Guns, The Diabolical, Hail, Caesar! and Under The Silver Lake.

Fischler and Christopher Meloni (Nick Sax) discuss what it's like making Happy!:

Fischler opens up about his experiences filming Lynch and Frost's Twin Peaks for Showtime:

Fischler's famous scene from Lynch's 2001 Mulholland Drive:

The Weekly Static: Interviews is our semi-regular-depending-how-this-goes series spotlighting individuals or groups from television, cable, streaming and the intertubes. The Weekly Static considers itself an equal-opportunity opportunist, so we'll be bringing you guests from across the broadcasting landscape: sports, comedy, talk, reality, docs and everything else that falls in between. We'll also stay away from the clichéd public relations crap: we're going to ask about things we think you'll be interested in because we're interested in them; and we'll make sure to sneak in at least one off-topic question they might not see coming. Special thanks to Bleeding Cool's own Dan Wickline for making all of this possible.

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