Even before she started popping up all over television when she was
barely in her teens, Megalyn Echikunwoke had lived a fascinating,
unique life.
As a child, Echikunwoke (the name means “leader of men”) grew up on a
remote Indian Reservation – despite the fact that neither of her parents
were Native American. Her father was Nigerian, her mother an American
of European descent. In fact her grandfather is a Nigerian tribal chief
– making her technically royalty – but there is nothing haughty about
this talented young actress.
Echikunwoke was only fourteen when she was plucked from obscurity to
play a lead role in the mini-series The Creature – based on a
novel by Peter Benchley, the author of Jaws. This led to an
escalating series of high-profile roles, playing the daughter of the
President in the first season of 24, Hyde’s long-lost half-sister
in That 70s Show and the daughter in the Holly Robinson-Peete
sitcom Like Family. However, she really opened eyes with two
seasons as Isabelle Tyler – the all-powerful evil being on the
cult-favorite sci-fi series The 4400.
She barely had time to catch her breath after the end of that series
before she was tapped as the new coroner on the popular cop series
CSI: Miami – a role which was recently upgraded from recurring to a
series regular. She is also in two upcoming films which are working the
festival circuit, Who Do You Love? And Fix.
Recently, Megalyn was nice enough to give us a call to discuss her
career and her life.
You grew up on a
Navajo reservation even though neither of your parents was Native
American. That must have been an interesting way to grow up. How did
that come about and what was that like?
It was a very interesting way to grow up – interesting in the best
possible way. My mom is a nurse. She worked for the Indian
Health Service. She also always had an affinity for Native American
culture as well. She got this opportunity to go to work on a
reservation. We were only ever supposed to stay for like two years or
something like that. Then, she liked it so much and it ended up being
such a safe and great place to be, [so] we just stayed.
When
did you know that you wanted to act?
You know, I think it definitely started at a very young age. Probably
started when anything I’d hear, anything I would watch, I would mimic.
I started being a mimic and I was always very dramatic. Anytime I heard
someone with an accent I would instantly try to emulate it. I think it
started with a kind of sensibility for the performing arts. I just
always kind of had it without knowing that I wanted to be an actor or
that I would be. As I got older, I just always did it. When I was on
the reservation, because it was so remote I didn’t really have an outlet
for it. The schools, we had basic things but we didn’t have any extra –
like we didn’t have a dance studio and we didn’t have a big theater
department or anything like that. I never really had an outlet
there until I was in band class. We did have a music department and
I was thinking I don’t want to be bored…
because there really isn’t a lot to do so far from everything.
(chuckles) I grew up not having been to a mall until I was like
ten. The mall is like five hours away. The movie theater is like three
hours away. So there wasn’t a whole lot to do (laughs) except
for enjoy nature and read or something. I saw a poster for this arts
academy at my band class and so I applied. I went and did a theater
workshop here in California – at Idlewild Arts Academy. While I was
there I got selected to do a monologue. I did a little musical theater
thing… the performance you do at the end of the workshop. The person
who is still my manager today was in the audience watching and was
interested in me. He pursued me and I started auditioning by videotape
and then eventually got a job.
You mentioned band
class and musical theater. I was reading you are also a singer. Is
that something that you are pursuing professionally as well, or has the
acting sort of taken over?
Well, the acting has taken over in a way, just because unless you have
all the resources at your fingertips, it’s kind of hard to wage war on
more than a few fronts at one time. (chuckles) It’s so funny,
I’m only just now barely starting to think: oh, maybe I am kind of
emerging – coming into my adult self – (laughs) even though I’m
well past the child cutoff. I’m not eighteen anymore. Now that I’m
sort of older and getting a handle on my acting, I really would love to
really start putting more energy into my music. I love to sing. I’ve
always done it. It makes me really happy, so I’d definitely like to
expand.
In your
early years while you were still living in Arizona, you would audition
via videotape and only come up to LA for important interviews. When did
it become obvious to you and your family that you needed to be in LA?
It was pretty shortly after I did my first job. My manager [said] for
practical reasons – I was working and I was making money and I was
flying back and forth. And my mom was ready for a change in her career
and everything. So we just did it. We all just moved.
That
first job – was that the miniseries of
Peter Benchley’s The
Creature?
Yes.
How did you get that
job and what was it like as such a young actress working on a major
miniseries?
Oh my God, it was a dream come true. Mind you, I had no comparison. I
had never lived in the big city, so when I got the job, I didn’t know
what it meant, really. I didn’t really know what it meant to be an
actor. Living in LA. I didn’t know anything. I was just like, okay,
I’m just going with the flow. I’m not going to question it.
(laughs) It ended up being, to this day one of my best location
experiences. It was kind of like a fairytale because I was like
fourteen years old, living on a reservation, had never been in a limo.
I don’t know if I’d ever even seen one. This limo comes to pick me up
in the little doctor’s compound where we lived – it comes in,
it’s like this big thing and everyone’s like, “What!?” I drive to
Phoenix and I take a first class flight to St. Lucia. (laughs)
I spent two months in the Caribbean and then I go to Canada and spend a
month there. It was really pretty dreamy. I had never really traveled,
either.
The first time I
remember seeing you – and many people would – was on
24 when you played the daughter of the fictional first
black President. At the time, that storyline seemed so daring, now
several years later, it has really happened. How cool is that?
It’s so cool. Oh, my God, I’m still pinching myself. Every day, I’ll
see a new photo and I’ll take a moment and say: okay, we did that.
As one of very few
people in the world who has even close to any of the same kind of
First Daughter experience as
Obama's daughters – do you
have any advice for them?
Oh, wow. Well first of all I’m envious. (laughs) I’m so
envious I can barely… it makes me want to spit, I’m so envious. No, I’m
not really envious. I just hope that they will learn from their mother
and maintain their humility, but also stay curious and proactive about
their lives and take responsibility for the position that they have.
Really keep the legacy going. Change the world with their father. He’s
the first black President. He’s got three amazing black women around
him. That’s pretty powerful. We’re in store for several generations of
powerful black women in this country, which is something that is long
overdue.
Most
of your major recurring roles have been in dramas, but as a guest star
you have done comedies like
The Steve Harvey
Show, What I Like About You and That 70s Show. Do you enjoy
comedy? Is that something you’d like to try more?
Absolutely. I love comedy. I love, love, love, love comedy. I also
did a TV show – a WB series for a year called Like Family with
Holly Peete. I had done a lot of guest star stuff and recurring stuff
and then I did that for a whole year. I really learned a lot about
comedy and sitcoms. It’s really like a whole other medium. There’s a
whole other technique to it. I find it just as gratifying. It’s
actually a lot more like theater than anything else. It’s just as
gratifying as doing drama. I would love to do more theater. If
I was lucky enough to get on a great show – like 30 Rock or
The Office or something like that – that would be dreamy.
I’ve been catching up
on
The 4400 lately,
so I’ve been trying not to ask any questions that might get you mad at
me or anything.
(She laughs
heartily.)
What’s it like to
play the personification of limitless, powerful evil?
Oh it’s always way more fun to play a villain than it is to play
the good guy. It was a treat, because I had only ever been allowed
to play someone’s daughter or someone’s
sweet young… you know, always the straight man. I got to be the villain
in that. Always more interesting, I think.
Your last name means
“leader of men.” Did that make the role of Isabelle seem kind of a
natural for you?
Oh, yeah! Oh yeah. You know, I throw that around on dates and things
like that as well, to remind people…. (laughs) No, it’s kind of
a fun thing.
In your second season
of the show, when Isabelle lost her powers, you got to show the more
human, insecure side of the character. Was it fun to explore that level
as well?
Yeah, it was fun to take that character on that arc – from utter,
reckless abandon and malevolence to kind of finding herself and becoming
a human being and caring about people.
On both
The 4400 and now
CSI: Miami, you have come on board a show which is established
for a while. Is it difficult getting the hang of it when you are the
new person in a cast which has been together for a while?
Yes, definitely. It definitely takes a second. With CSI, I’m
still sort of getting the hang of it. It’s such a
demanding role in terms of the subject matter that I’m dealing with… the
medical jargon and stuff like that. That takes a second to get the hang
of. But it really depends on the cast and the production environment.
I’ve been lucky enough to work with really great casts. Everyone is
really welcoming. David Caruso is really supportive and welcoming as
well.
David
Caruso is such a good actor, but his character is always so serious and
dour. You hear those stories of the problems he had early on in his
career with his co-stars in
NYPD Blue, but I’ve only heard good things from
castmates on the new show. What is he like to work with?
Oh he’s great. He definitely knows exactly what he’s doing, exactly
what he wants. It’s his show. He’s very instrumental in creating the
tone of the show. It’s kind of like his deal.
Actually it’s nice
working with him, because he’s so assured. He knows exactly what he’s
doing. Where he’s going. Why. What. It makes things move a
lot quicker. He’s also a part of the behind the scenes as well.
You are essentially
taking the place of Khandi Alexander’s character. Is it sort of
intimidating to replace such a well-liked actress?
Yes. That is another thing that can take a little while to kind of get
over, because also you have to answer to the fans. When you’re
replacing someone, it’s like you’re just setting yourself up for
inevitable scrutiny and judgment from the fans. That happens and that’s
to be expected. But I’m a different character, so there is that. I
think it will take a while, probably, for the fans to warm up to me
completely.
In the few episodes
I’ve seen of your work on
CSI, so far they
haven’t given all that much background on Tara beyond her work. Are you
looking forward to exploring some more of the levels of her life? Maybe
that will open people up to her more.
I think that’s the idea. It’s just taking a second to incorporate me
and also I’m not a CSI, which makes it a little bit more difficult to
incorporate me and my backstory. But, yes, I am looking forward to
that. I think that they’ve got some interesting things in store for my
character. That’s probably part of the problem, it just takes a while
to get that going.
Have you talked with
the producers to work out Tara’s backstory and some of the things that
may be coming down the line for her?
Yeah, we’ve talked about it a little bit. I’ve heard some things. I
think actually this next episode I might have some interesting things
going on. They’ve assured me that there is going to be some juicy stuff
coming up, so I’m excited.
What
is an ideal storyline you’d love to see Tara in?
It would be interesting – because I spend so much time in autopsies in
my office – to be caught in the crossfire in
some way. Maybe become a victim. Not die, obviously (laughs)
but maybe be caught up in one of the crimes in some way. It would be
kind of interesting. Not in a bad way, but in a good way.
I’ve always thought
that CSI:
Miami is by far the most beautifully and evocatively shot series on
TV – particularly when you watch in HDTV.
Oh, definitely.
Even more so than the
other two
CSIs, I feel the city is an integral part of the story. I know much
of the series is filmed in LA, but have you gotten to go to Miami to do
any exteriors down there well? How do you feel really filming the real
city adds to the vibe of the show?
I agree with you that the show is really beautiful and really sexy. The
saturated, rich oranges and everyone looks beautiful and tan.
(laughs) So there’s that. I haven’t been to Miami, ever before.
I’m hoping that I’ll get to go. I don’t know if I’ll get to go this
season, but if they keep me around then next season for sure. I’m going
to demand it. (chuckles) It really adds to the show,
because if you think about it, any major American city, the city is
always a huge part. It plays a character in the story of your life. We
live in LA and LA is almost like a friend, the city. You’ve got your
certain parts and your certain restaurants and the different
landscapes. You’ve got the ocean, the mountains and the weather. It’s
an important part of anyone’s life. I love that. I don’t know any
other show that incorporates the city so well.
You also have a movie
called Fix
coming up. What can you tell me about that?
Fix,
well I actually did
that last year. Speaking of incorporating a city into the
movie, that is another movie that is sort of a road movie and it
really takes you all over LA. LA definitely plays a character in the
movie. It was shot a while back. We went to Slamdance and we’ve done
some other festivals. It’s doing well still. I don’t know that it has
distribution yet. I don’t know if viewers will get to see it in the
near future, but eventually I’m hoping it will come out and people will
get to see it. It was a really, really interesting, really fresh and
unique take on narrative storytelling.
Are there any
misconceptions you’d like to clear up?
Well, I think if I were to say anything I would say, I don’t know that
it is a misconception about me, but just in general, I think that it’s
easy to judge someone based on the work that they’ve done. Sort of put
them in a box and say, “Oh, well she’s just pretty.” Or “she’s just
this…” It’s not true. I think the business is what it is. You
sometimes don’t always have a choice in the way you are portrayed. It’s
not always as clear cut as it seems.
Ideally,
how would you like for people to look at your career?
You mean based on what I’ve done so far?
So far, or plans or
dreams you have of your future work…
Well, ideally I think my journey and my job and my passion, where
eventually I’d like to master... I think the beauty of this art form –
cinema and theater and music, all the fine arts – the beauty of them is
the stories that you tell and the experiences that you can allow other
people to have through you that they may never experience on their own.
It’s really a storyteller’s medium. At the end of the day, I would hope
that people would view my body of work as a place of refuge. A
sanctuary, whatever it is that I can offer you through the stories that
I can tell. I would hope that I will become a great storyteller and
effect people and move people with my work.
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