Michael Chiklis was discovered as dectective Vic Mackey in the Emmy-nominated Fox TV Show, The Shield. Chiklis is back in Rise of the Silver Surfer as Ben Grimm, alias “The Thing”, a super-hero with extraordinary powers. Chiklis won an MTV award for “Best On-Screen Team” for Fantastic Four with Jessica Alba, Chris Evans and Ioan Gruffudd.

Emmanuel Itier: Was it really a “love/hate” relationship between you and your Thing suit?

Michael Chiklis: Well, now it’s a different story. It was a question of being unhealthy and uncomfortable in the first movie. Uncomfortable I can deal with, but not unhealthy. There is one of me, so if this is going to be harmful to me, I should not do it. And shooting the first film was harmful for me and took times to recover from many problems. It was quite bad. I won’t get into details because it’s quite awful, but imagine spending five months in your own sweat, 12 hours a day, and you can’t pee. So it causes problems. I’m sure you understand. But this time, the suit goes on in seven minutes and it comes out in five, so I’m not in the suit all day. I’m waiting around totally free. Once I have the face on, it’s uncomfortable and I have to keep it on, but it’s only uncomfortable and it’s only on my face. This is 100 times a better experience compared to the first shooting.

EI: Were you set on doing another one, or did you hesitate?

MC: I was set, but at the condition they revise my suit and how it was tailored to my health–my needs. I had reservations only to the suit. But to Fox’s credit and everyone who built the suit, they truly realize I was honest about the problems caused by this suit. Everybody who was on that set could see I was totally miserable in that suit, but now this is fine.

EI: Was it also because you smelled awful on the set?

MC: Maybe, but I don’t really know how bad I smelled. The only smell I had was coming from the rubber glued into my nose to hold the mask on my face. Maybe people were respectful about it and didn’t tell me anything. I probably smelled like a big ball of latex.

EI: What else do you think has been improved with this film?

MC: Well, this time we didn’t have to lay down character development tracks. We could just go right into the adventure. I saw a rough cut of the movie, and this is really an incredibly stunning, visual movie to watch. The team of special effects from Peter Jackson’s house is amazing. The first time, we had four different houses of special effects working on the movie, and because of this I thought there were inconsistencies. But here it was all done under one great roof–it’s much better and so stunning. The Silver Surfer is really breathtaking. It will make you gasp for air. It’s so cool and fun to watch.

EI: What was your favorite super-hero toy to play with?

MC: I really loved the car. It’s a dream-come-true for a man. Also, I enjoyed doing that scene with a bear. Call me crazy, but I have an aversion to predators and I don’t usually hang out with things that eat you, so I never thought I was going to do a scene with such a large predator–an animal like this bear we had on the set. On top of this, I had a bad experience way back doing a scene with alligators, so I was nervous. But I did this scene with a ten-foot tall, 1,660-pound bear named “”Gus”". It’s only a little scene, but this was one of the coolest days in my life. This is one of these great things about doing these movies. You have experiences you will never usually do or find yourself doing. To spend two days with this “Godzilla” was amazing. The head was so massive, and this is not a fish story. He really was huge. You really feel alive when you see that thing coming towards you. I was on the phone with my kids and telling them about “”Gus”".

EI: So you have other fears about predators?

MC: It’s not fear, it’s healthy respect. I’m not afraid of it, but it’s not a natural thing to stay near one of the biggest predators alive. You would not jump in a pool with a great white shark, right? Unless you’re in a cage.

EI: What about you with other people, because you’re a super-hero and then you’re tough guy on The Shield on TV. Do people challenge you or are they afraid of you?

MC: Again, in some situations, I just get in a “cage”. I sort of preclude experiences like that because I don’t really go to bars. I have had a couple of experiences facing guys who had one too many and who wanted to be the guy that kicked my ass. It’s very simple to deal with that. I just look at them in the eyes and would say, “You’re right, man. You could totally kick my ass.” So I give it up to them and they give up. What is the alternative anyway? On top of this, I am not a tough guy. I just play one on TV. Next you know I’m laughing with these guys and I buy them another drink.

EI: Did you think, way back, that you would have done so much–being part of a super-hero franchise and one of the best TV shows around?

MC: You live with hope everyday that things go well. My father used to say, “Every minute is a new minute,” and that’s the greatest single thing about being an actor, because you don’t know what’s coming next and it could be great. You could be working with a ten-foot grizzly bear and be a super-hero. You could be on the stage holding an Emmy. You really don’t know.

EI: What’s next — the Academy Award?

MC: I have to set my sights on that. I would be liar not to say it wouldn’t be wonderful. Especially when you get close to it, since I work with my friend Forest Whitaker who did get an Award. I looked at him up there and it was amazing. You have to dare to dream in life. I’m an actor–this is what I do and what I dream about. Nobody, obviously, spends hours on a daily basis thinking about it, but it doesn’t mean that from time to time you can’t dream about it. And you never know. In the case of Forest, he really didn’t know. He shot that on a hiatus with the TV show and he had no idea about how successful it was going to be. For him, it was just a little movie and he was just hoping it turned out good, and look at what happened. When you’re doing a movie, you’re working on the work and you’re not thinking about awards. And if you do, you’re probably sucking and you’re probably kind of lost. I’m only admitting to you that once in a while, in the shower, you think to yourself that this would be cool….but then the day goes on.

EI: Do you think TV has changed and that we have the best shows right now?

MC: Yes, we do. TV has such an incredible level of quality right now. I think that what’s happening is explainable. The smartest stuff is being more and more reserved to the small screen because now people have 65-inch flat screens at home now, so they can see that performance very well in the comfort of their own home, where if they’re going to be emotional and cry, they can do it privately. They can stop and pause the show and get some popcorn or whatever. The big screen is more and more reserved for movies like this, like “”Fantastic Four”". This is for spectacle and for the ride. The feeling is that to draw people in theaters, you better have something special and unique. For me, I’m a fan of movies and I like to see it all, little independent movie or big shows like Rise of the Silver Surfer. This seems to be the direction we’re going in–the spectacle is more reserved for the big screen. The smart and dialogue-driven shows are more for the small screen and to be seen at home.

EI: The Shield is coming to an end. How do you feel about it?

MC: It has been such a pleasure and a privilege to be part of it. I have feelings of joy and I’m also torn because we’re about to shoot the last season. We always said we would leave on our own terms and before the audience doesn’t want the show anymore. I want to look back at it and be proud of it, as if it was a baby of mine, and as if every episode was perfect, but this is really over — at least on the small screen. The only potential is to bring it to the theaters. It can’t continue on the small screen.

EI: What about working with Glenn Close and the fact she gets her own show now?

MC: This is the biggest compliment by osmosis that you can receive. Obviously, Glenn had an incredible experience with us. She came to our set and we had the time of our lives together. We laughed, we played, and we went at it with intensity and smartness, and I think she thought about it and then she decided to do her own show, and this is so great. She is probably one of the best actresses ever. I’m so happy for her.

EI: What’s next for you?

MC: I’m shooting the last season of The Shield until November so nothing is set yet beyond that, but we will see. It’s quite far out and I’m just starting to look for things. Right now, I have a little movie called also Rise, with Lucy Lu, that is opening at the Tribeca Film Festival. This is a very “genre” and “art house” kind of movie. I did this one for various reasons. I had never done a horror movie, so this was the occasion.

EI: If you had the Fantastic car for yourself, any particular destination you might want to go to?

MC: Well, the Autobahn comes to mind! But the thing is, it flies! So anywhere — the sky’s the limit. Literally. I’m sort of jealous of 10 and 11-year-old kids these days. That’s when I was reading “”The Fantastic Four”" for the first time. A lot of it was what you saw in the comic book and what you imagined in your head. Now what’s so thrilling about being in the movie business is that whatever someone with a wild imagination, like Stan Lee, can create on the page, you can now recreate it credibly on film. As recently as ten years ago, you couldn’t have done this film. And certainly further back, it just wouldn’t work.

EI: Were you a big fan of The Fantastic Four?

MC: Yeah, I was.

EI: What did you like about them?

MC: It’s funny. The thing I liked the most was the rapport between Johnny Storm and The Thing. That sort of ball-busting big brother/little brother thing that they had. It was funny. And let’s face it, it was just cool. Let me clarify something. I thought I was a fan of comic books until I went to Comic-con two years ago. I mean, I liked comic books when I was a kid. These are fans. They’re rabid! I mean, they’re grown up. They’re 40. I never saw anything like it in my life.

EI: Playing this part, does it help you to embrace your inner child?

MC: Absolutely, yes. But the greatest joy of the whole thing is seeing it through my children’s eyes. I think I get more joy out of this than anybody, frankly, because of my kids. My kids see this and, you know, kids have a way of bringing out the kid in you again. You sort of re-live your childhood through your kids again. I know it’s an overworked cliché, but it’s true. When you’re standing in front of a green screen dressed as The Thing, you’d better be in pretend mode or you’re not going to make it. It’s a wonderful opportunity to touch that pool again–those moments in your life that you go back to. And to get paid for it as a grown-up? It’s great.