On “Outlander,” Tobias Menzies plays a pair of very different characters. Frank Randall is dogged and dependable. Black Jack Randall is, as Menzies puts it, “a study in sadism.”
Black Jack is a nasty piece of work, but in certain corners of the internet, there are great affection for him.
“I completely understand it,” Menzies told me on the PaleyFest 2015 purple carpet for “Outlander.” “Yeah. Of course. The Devil's sexy, isn't he?”
Menzies explained, “I try and understand him as much as I can, make him as three-dimensional, as rooted in the life he's lead. I think he's a product of that war and that time, rather than just sorta randomly evil.”
Plus, it's just liberating to play the bad guy.
“You get to say and do all of the things that you're not allowed to do in your own life and that is absolutely cathartic and enjoyable. There's a relish about it,” Menzies laughed.
But our carpet conversation wasn't only about Black Jack. Menzies excitedly talked about the “Outlander” midseason finale “Both Sides Now,” in which he got to experience some 1945 Frank Randall moments that aren't in Diana Gabaldon's book.
Check out the full interview above. Also check out my interview with Sam Heughan and my chat with Caitriona Balfe.
“Outlander returns to Starz on April 4.