Villain in new ‘Hawaii Five-0’ is part-Pinoy

(Published April 25, PDI-Entertainment)

By Oliver M. Pulumbarit

Contributor

Prior to his star turn in “Iron Chef America,” actor-martial artist Mark Dacascos appeared as the title character in the live-action film adaptation of “Crying Freeman,” as well as the Iroquois warrior Mani in the acclaimed “Brotherhood of the Wolf.”

He considers himself lucky that, aside from diverse film roles, his TV characters are distinctly different. He previously guest-starred in “Stargate Atlantis,” “The Middleman,” and “CSI,” among others.

Now he’s cast as the villain in the modern remake of “Hawaii Five-0.”

In a recent teleconference, Dacsacos, 47, revealed that he’s especially proud of playing Wo Fat, originally played by Khigh Dheigh in the original “Hawaii Five-0” series.

“I was in New York doing a read-through for ‘Iron Chef the Musical,’” he said. “I was completely focused on singing and dancing for a Broadway show that we might do. It came out of the blue. They called my agent. I was ecstatic, to be able to go back to my birthplace and do a show that I was a big fan of!”

Dacascos, who has an eclectic mix of Filipino, Chinese, Japanese, Spanish and Irish heritages, remembers the original “Hawaii Five-O” fondly. “I used to watch it with my grandfather. Being a big fan of the original, I was a little skeptical, but I watched the (new) pilot and was blown away. They did their own take on it; the actors were fantastic.”

Interpreting the arch-foe Wo Fat, he added, was a welcome challenge. “I have to play what I feel comes out of me uniquely. I try to bring my own Wo Fat to the screen. I put the clothes on, I step onto the set, and I feel very comfortable playing him. For good or for bad, that is the truth.”

Dacascos was a martial arts instructor discovered over two decades ago while on his lunch break. He’s thankful for the multiple disciplines that have proven useful in his entertainment career. “Suffice it to say, my parents are kung fu teachers, so I’ve been training since I was four years old,” he said. “In addition to my father’s style of kung fu, I’ve done capoeira, wushu, Northern Shaolin, and I am still practicing Muay Thai.”

Dacascos is very appreciative of the variety of his characters. “I play the antagonist, sometimes the protagonist. I played a half-leopard, half-man character in ‘Island of Dr. Moreau.’ These are crazy characters, and I love that. We all have different sides. So I like tapping into the different colors and shades of who I am.”

He’s gotten used to the different demands of TV and film, and compared their dynamics. “Television shoots are much faster,” Dacascos said. “For example, when I did ‘Brotherhood of the Wolf’ years ago, we shot in 16 different locations in France for almost six months. The opening fight sequence took about 11 days to shoot. A whole TV episode takes nine to 10 days. You have to be a quick study and you have to really be on your game and know what you’re doing; I’m not saying that in a movie you don’t have to be, but we have a lot more prep time and more time to shoot.”

(“Hawaii Five-0” airs Sundays, 8:05 p.m. and 9:00 p.m., on AXN.)