As Ned on Pushing Daisies, Lee Pace plays one of the sweetest characters on television. I was lucky enough to score a few minutes on the phone with him this week to talk about the second season of Daisies, what's coming up for Ned, and what it's like to be on a show that's so outside the box. Here are highlights:
Has the show changed at all going into season two?
I think it has a lot. I think Bryan [Fuller]'s figured out a different way to tell the stories . . . With playing Ned, at least, I wanted to pick him up a year after the show had ended [last season]. So he's been with Chuck for a year, and he's a little more enthusiastic about life, he's a little more prepared for the curveballs that he's gonna be thrown this season.
And how did the events of season one change Ned?
Chuck coming to life was probably the biggest thing that's ever happened to him in his life. Ned is someone who's created a world around him that he understands and that he's comfortable with — he can make pies and give them to people. And then he's got Emerson pulling him along on these cases and making his life more complicated, and now he's got Chuck making his life more complicated. This season, Chuck is wanting a little more independence, which scares Ned, because her independence means someone could find out about him and what he can do, which is his worst fear.
Has playing Ned changed how you're perceived at all?
I think it has, actually. I've played a lot of bad characters in my life — not bad, but kind of rough, complicated characters, and Ned is such an adorable, sweet guy that I think people think that's who I am. . . . I am not unlike Ned — I'm pretty shy and kind of reclusive, but not as much as Ned. I should probably never describe myself as adorable.
Lots more from Pace on the mysteries of Ned, the feedback he hears about the show, and what he'd do with Ned's power, so read more