Kevin McKidd is "Journeyman"

You can just picture this tall, buff, cute, Scottish guy in a kilt... or a toga. Kevin McKidd was in the mini-series "Rome" and the movies Trainspotting and Hannibal Rising. Blond, blue-eyed Kevin went to college to study Engineering at the University of Edinburgh but got involved in the school's drama theater and switched to acting. This Fall, starting Sept. 24th on NBC, you can watch this cutie as a San Francisco reporter suddenly traveling through time in the new romantic mystery series "Journeyman".

We cornered the "Journeyman" star at a press party in Beverly Hills recently to ask about the show. Kevin's Scottish brogue is really hot. All dapper in a suit, the actor was flanked by a cute kid...

TeenTelevision: Oh, is he yours?

Kevin: No. This is my onscreen son Charlie (Charles Henry Wyson). He's the best actor on the planet [the cute kid beams. We say 'hi'. Kid moves on to the food area].

TeenTelevision: Are you a fan of time travel films or stories? Like maybe Back to the Future?

Kevin: I loved Back to the Future but, when I read this script, the thing I connected more with were things like Donnie Darko and Jacob's Ladder. It was more like those movies that set up a real debate in the audience. When you finish watching Donnie Darko, you sit down with your friends and go 'my take on that is this'. 'No, no no'. And the same with Jacob's Ladder that great Tim Robbins movie. It's about alternate states of reality and all that kind of stuff. I guess those are the movies that sprung to mind when I read the script.

TeenTelevision: Are you hoping "Journeyman" will spark that same kind of controversy and questioning?

Kevin: I hope so. I think that's the point of good television. It creates a debate, a watercooler mentality where people will stand around the next day and it becomes event television. I think event television doesn't happen as much these days. That's why I loved doing that show "Rome". It was a real event. Each episode, something really new and different happened. That's why I didn't want to go back. If I was going to do another TV show, which I was dubious about doing, I didn't want to do a TV show that was just another TV show. Even thought 'Journeyman''s a risk, I think because it's out of the box; not your standard TV show that's got a formula that's going to definitely work, but I think it's better in life to take risks and try things out.

TeenTelevision: How is your character going to balance the two women in his life? He's running around with his ex (through time) and his wife.

Kevin: That's a really tough one. I think that's where the big drama is. That's the crux of this whole show in a way. That's a great tension I think for the audience to look at but I think he'll make the right choice in the end but who knows [big grin].

TeenTelevision: Are you going to always travel into the past?

Kevin: I think it's always in the past but it's always within his own lifetime. He can't travel further back than the date of his birth and he can't travel any further forward, I don't think but they may change their minds on that.

TeenTelevision: Hey, Masi Oka, the time traveler from 'Heroes' is here tonight.

Kevin: Really. Hey, we can have a little chat.

TeenTelevision: If you could travel back into your own life and change something would you? Maybe beat up a high school bully?

Kevin: Oh, I didn't get into fights. I was a good kid. Probably I'd change some of the fashion that I wore. Something I thought was fashion at the time. Some of the hairdos I had I regret deeply [laughs]. But I've been pretty blessed in my life. I don't feel as though I've taken many wrong turns so I guess 'no' is the answer to that question.

TeenTelevision: So, how did a kid with bad hair and bad clothes get into acting?

Kevin: [laughs]. Well I was useless at sports and I realized I could get up on a stage and make people laugh. That was it. As soon as I knew I could do that, I was on board.

Kevin: It started with a comedy role in a play when I was seven. I played a king in a play, a king who couldn't stop sneezing and I sent an edict around the kingdom saying whoever stops me sneezing, I'd give them a million gold pieces. I was pretty good at it. I was a very shy, tongue-tied kid. I could barely speak in public and look at me now, geez. I found having this way to express yourself that didn't require your own words but you could interpret somebody else's, was a revelation to me and helped me get over myself and be less shy.

TeenTelevision: You have a delightful accent but weren't you told to change it or you wouldn't get work? [He doesn't have an accent in the show].

Kevin: I respect actors that stick to their own thing and never really change their persona. A lot of people think that's what a 'movie star' is. But, for me, I've always loved transformations. Acting and trying to change yourself, disguise yourself and become somebody else so I never saw it as an insult. A lot of Scottish actors are quite political about it. They always say, 'I will always be a Scottish actor and just play Scottish characters because I feel that that's a political choice' but I think that's short-sighted and it's good to diversify so I never saw it as an insult.

TeenTelevision: What is the key to doing an "American" accent?

Kevin: The key is hard work, perseverance and learning the rules. There's a set of rules to an American dialect. If you don't learn each one of them and have them ingrained in you so you know what to look at; what vowel and consonant sound to use at the right moment, then you'll get it wrong and the American audience will hear it. You have to do your homework.

TeenTelevision: Is it hard not to do an impression of American actors you've heard?

Kevin: Exactly. That's the thing is to make it so it doesn't sound like an impersonation. Make it sound like your own voice but with an American accent. That's the key to doing it naturally and believably. I hope I've done that. Some actors just stay in the accent all the time but I can't do that. It's too much like hard work. I feel like I can jump in and out.

TeenTelevision: Have you done any research on being a reporter?

Kevin: I knew some reporters in Scotland so I kind of know how high-pressured your job is. I take my hat off to you. It's really tough [we love this guy!]. So I talked to them about it. I think, once we get filming I'm going to try to get down to a newsroom and see what's going on as news is changing.

TeenTelevision: You probably had more freedom on HBO [for "Rome"]. Is working on a network show more restricting?

Kevin: I think some people say that because you can swear on a certain channel, that makes that channel cooler. I think that's really short-sighted. I think you can make interesting, engaging and challenging drama without having to resort to excessive nudity or swearing or all that stuff. You can still peel the onion in a network situation and make an outstanding show.

TeenTelevision: So I guess there won't be a third season of "Rome"?

Kevin: We fought and fought to try and get a third season but the numbers just didn't add up. It was such an expensive show. I'm so glad I did that show. I'm so proud of it but I think it burned a little too brightly and was never meant to last beyond a few seasons. It was a special show. But they are talking about a one-off movie to say goodbye to it. We just all have this feeling that it's not done yet. We have one more story to tell. So, I hope that that happens.

Lynn Barker is a Hollywood-based entertainment journalist and produced screenwriter.