William B. Davis: No Longer A Cigarette Smoking Man, But Still A Water-Skier

William B. Davis is one of those people that open up like layers of an onion, with each layer more interesting than the last. He is best known for his role as “The Cigarette Smoking Man” in the X-Files TV series, where he played the mysterious, chain-smoking arch-nemesis of Fox Mulder.

For this role, he received a cult following and was nominated for ”Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series” by the Screen Actors Guild Awards in 1997, 1998 and 1999. He was regularly voted “The Nastiest Villain” on television in polls during the nineties and TV Guide listed him #20 in their “25 Greatest TV Villains” list. Entertainment Weekly mentioned him in a list of “50 Biggest Emmy Snubs.”

This is how I remember him anyway. Before that, I may have seen him as an ambulance driver, a judge, a lawyer, a doctor, a police chief, or a teacher — in a number of films and TV shows throughout the eighties and nineties.

Little did I know, William B. Davis was an active player in the Canadian and UK drama scenes, working with theatres, which became stew-pots for cultivating acting talent (like “Chief” from Battlestar Galactica and “Xena the Warrior Princess!”)

He’s taught others to act, he’s written / directed / produced his own shorts, he’s published his own compelling memoir, he’s given academic lectures, he’s found love again at 73, and he’s won national water-skiing championships.

Without further ado, here’s a Fan Quarterly exclusive interview with this incredibly fascinating man…

Fan Quarterly: I want to start with The X-Files, where you are most well-known for playing the role of notorious villain “The Cigarette Smoking Man.” I’m curious how you went from being the mysterious guy smoking cigarettes and leaning against bookshelves with only four audible words in the first season… to being Fox Mulder’s primary antagonist in later seasons.

William B. Davis: I guess I have a lot of people to thank for the rise of my character to prominence on the series. I’ll start with John Bartley, the DOP who lit me with such relish in the early seasons. The fans became intrigued and started to communicate together on the new-fangled internet. Gillian Anderson got pregnant, requiring unexpected adjustments to story. Finally Morgan and Wong came up with a script with a huge scene for me. I heard much later that the producers loved the script, but they had no idea if I could act. But they took a chance and — as Bob Goodwin the director told me much later — as soon as work began, he knew they were in fine shape with me.

FQ: Some people thought of Cigarette Smoking Man as a “Darth Vader” type character, whereas others said the villain was “pure evil” or even “the devil.” Yet, one could also argue that you were a hero who made tough decisions and tried to protect people from the truth. What was your take on the character?

WD: I believe an actor always has to see his character as the hero. After all, villains don’t think they are villains. So for me, it was necessary to find the positive in the character’s actions – from which followed a lot of negatives: Mulder being the main one. But Cigarette Smoking Man’s position was something akin to Marshal Pétain of the Vichy government in France in WWII. CSM made a deal with the aliens believing it was the best that could be done, but the aliens kept exacting more and more from him until he lost all humanity – as if his soul was hollowed out – and could only be filled by smoking.

FQ: You are a noted skeptic who has even gone so far as to give lectures on the topic at universities around the country. I love this quote from you: “One of the problems with human intelligence is that we are so good at defending ideas that we arrived at irrationally.” With a psychologist mother and a lawyer father, you must have been a real monster to debate! In your experience, why do you think some people hold such deep-seated convictions about aliens and conspiracy theories?

WD: Thank you for loving the quote but I can’t take credit for it – I just don’t remember where I read or heard it. Since then, I have read even more alarming results of psychological research and neurobiology. It seems that when people holding long-held beliefs are presented with compelling evidence to refute those beliefs, rather than allowing themselves to be persuaded, they hold even more fervently to the original belief. The truly scary aspect of this is that, no matter what science is presented to executives and politicians on the subject of climate change, they will not be convinced until their children perish for lack of food or their city is under water. Even then, they will say it is a ‘normal fluctuation’ and nothing to do with human activity. But I stray from your question.

Aliens make great stories, of course, but then… so do fairies, and most people doubt the existence of fairies. So to be honest, I don’t know why those ideas take such hold on some people.

There is research indicating a certain personality that is more likely to believe they have been abducted by aliens, but they are only a subset of the believers.

I would ask groups of fans if they believed in government conspiracy and every hand would go up. And this was in the nineties when Clinton could not keep eleven private meetings with Monica Lewinsky secret.

And yet, we were to believe he could keep vast world wide networks of activity secret. Of course, they may have been right after all – did you know the US had 1,000 foreign military bases? I stray from the question again.

FQ: Despite playing The Cigarette Smoking Man, you actually quit smoking in the 1970s and you work with the Canadian Cancer Society. What did it take to finally kick the habit, and what advice do you give to others who are trying to quit?

WD: Quitting smoking is one of the hardest things I have ever done. And I partly did it on the strength of a lie, as I describe in my book. Someone told me that it only takes three days to quit smoking. So, believing that, I hid in my ski cabin for two days – I had to work the third – and went cold turkey. And I waited on the third day to believe I was a non smoker. Well, it took another six months for the cravings to really subside and about fifteen years to really be clear of the habit. But there is nothing fancy about quitting, so far as I know. You just have to do it. Tie yourself down if you have to. I went to the cabin to reduce stress as far as I could. Stress is a great promoter of the desire to smoke.

FQ: You graduated from the University of Toronto with a degree in philosophy. How does your academic background help you in your profession?

WD: To be honest, I don’t know if it does. It helps me as a person and – I know it’s an old fashioned idea – but I think that is what education is for. My education promoted critical thought and that is a huge aid to an actor delving into a script — knowing the questions to ask, even knowing to ask questions. But except for particularly intellectual roles and plays — and I have acted and directed some of both — my degree is probably pretty useless. But I wouldn’t be without it.

FQ: I understand you worked as an assistant director at The National Theatre of Great Britain under Sir Laurence Olivier. Do any particular anecdotes come to mind that summarize what it was like working with him?

WD: Once I got by my first interview I never actually worked with him and only really met with him when I had to get out of my contract to work at The National Theatre School of Canada. But the interview, which I describe in detail in my book, was alarming to say the least. He was a man of great presence and little social skill. Beyond saying “Good morning,” I am not sure he said anything in my interview. He just stared at me with those penetrating eyes, while I babbled on about anything I could think of. After five minutes or less he said, “Thank you,” and I was sure my career had stopped right there. But a few days later someone phoned and offered me the job.

FQ: What void did you fill by starting The William Davis Centre for Actors Study in Vancouver, and who are the school’s most notable graduates?

WD: We wanted a place where working and aspiring actors could find a creative home, a focus for their energy and contacts within the profession. Notable graduates have included Lucy Lawless, Aaron Douglas, William MacDonald, Nancy Sivak, and Sarah-Jane Redmond.

FQ: In your new memoir, The Musings of the Cigarette Smoking Man, you talk about your history working with the Straw Hat Players in Ontario and theatres from Scotland to Quebec. What were “the golden years” of Canadian radio drama and theatre like, and how have things changed since then?

WD: The golden years of radio and theatre were not the same. The 40s and 50s were the golden years of Canadian radio drama. There was very little theatre at the time, though there were several summer theatres which I was fortunate to be part of. But radio was where it was at. There were two major drama programs a week, as well as many series, school broadcasts and soap operas. And the piece de resistance was CBC Wednesday Night, which broadcast drama and music. As a boy, I heard the entire Shakespeare history cycle on CBC Wednesday Night. The golden age of theatre was probably the seventies when seed money was pouring into theatres across the country — including Festival Lennoxville, which I founded and was artistic director for six years.

FQ: The pitch for your memoir says: “Those who love a bit of scandalous gossip will not be disappointed.” Can you give readers a taste of what they might expect from reading your book?

WD: Ah well. There is gossip of various kinds. I was probably all too candid about my personal life and the women I have married – and haven’t married. But to get that information you have to come up with the price of the book!

I have been candid as well about the inner workings of sacred Canadian institutions like The National Theatre School and, of course, about life on X-Files.

Unfortunately, while I knew I would offend some people, I seem to have offended others unwittingly. Well that’s what honesty gets you, I guess.

FQ: From what I understand, you have traveled all over! What destinations hold a special place in your heart, and why?

WD: Right now the city of Hyères in the south of France… Partly because that’s where my new wife lives and I spend a lot of time there, but it is an amazing place: a city where you can walk everywhere under the ruins of a medieval history, close to wonderful beaches, and enjoy 300 days of sun a year. But I also love London — where there is almost no sun, but some of the most varied and exciting theatre and music anywhere on the planet. And I still have a soft spot for Quebec, where I learned to ski and lived for eleven years.

FQ: In your bio, you mention that you  are ‘terribly proud’ of your two daughters – Rebecca, who runs a dance company and works in troubled countries, and Melinda, who is a cardiologist. What were the greatest challenges and rewards of raising two daughters?

WD: The latest research I have read on this subject suggests that we don’t actually raise our children. They raise themselves with the help of their peers and their genes. But, leaving that aside, the rewards are immense, as one sees one’s children becoming people. In my case, the challenges came from an unhappy separation and divorce from their mother, leading to a period of limited contact.

FQ: I find it terribly interesting that you are a former national champion water skier! Even though you will be 74 on January 13^th, I hear you still hold the record for tricks. How do you stay in such great shape to be able to do that? I’ll be honest, I can’t even stand up on water skis!

WD: I am not sure I still hold the record for tricks – I think some young sixty-year-old took it away from me. But I still ski – on water and snow. And I plan to set some new records when I move into the Over-80 category. It’s just what I do – it is hard to imagine stopping.

FQ: What other interests, hobbies and pursuits do you have, aside from what’s already been mentioned?

WD: I used to be an avid birdwatcher until I found I needed to spend that time running or otherwise keeping in shape. I read pretty widely; I love classical music and opera. And, as you may know, I got married a few months ago and am devoted to my new wife and, if I may say, have rediscovered — or simply discovered — the joys of an intimate relationship, if I may put it that way.

FQ: I see that you have a couple film titles listed in your IMDB queue. What’s next for you?

WD: I am shooting a science fiction film called Singularity Principle, and appearing in the pilot episode of a television series Out of Time. And I will be directing students from The William Davis Centre in the spring.

For more information on William B. Davis, visit www.WilliamBDavis.com, and don’t forget to pick up your copy of Where There’s Smoke… The Musings Of A Cigarette Smoking Man!