Australian heartthrob Alex O’Loughlin has suffered television heartache in the past, but that didn’t deter him from taking on the lead role in CBS’ remake of the long-running cop series “Hawaii Five-0.”
“Yeah, that was a big decision for me and, I mean, it was ultimately and evidently … an offer I couldn’t turn down. And I’m really glad I took it up,” O’Loughlin said in a phone interview last month while promoting his romantic comedy “The Back-Up Plan.”
“So yeah, you become more realistic about what it means to sign that seven-year contract and become a little more discerning. But I feel like I’ve made the right decision.”
A graduate of Australia’s National Institute of Dramatic Art, he was first seen by American audiences on the critically acclaimed police drama “The Shield.” His breakout role playing vampire and private detective Mick St. John in the cult favorite CBS series “Moonlight” transformed his career. But the show was unceremoniously canceled in 2008 after 16 episodes, despite its fiercely faithful following. His next foray into TV, the CBS medical drama “Three Rivers,” was even more short-lived.
Still, he soon will be seen at 9 p.m. Monday nights on CBS as Detective Steve McGarrett, leader of the special law enforcement unit Hawaii Five-0. Jack Lord famously originated the role in the initial series, which aired from 1968-80.
“Of course, there’s similarities: It’s Hawaii, we’re a task force, we go out and catch the bad guys. But my character, Steve McGarrett, is a Navy SEAL now. Yeah, there are a bunch of differences, but I can’t actually talk about them. I’ve been told not to discuss it in press; they’re all being very hush-hush,” O’Loughlin said.
Here is CBS’ description of the new show:
HAWAII FIVE-O is a contemporary take on the classic series about a new elite federalized task force whose mission is to wipe out the crime that washes up on the Islands’ sun-drenched beaches. Detective Steve McGarrett (Alex O’Loughlin), a decorated Naval officer turned cop, returns to Oahu to investigate his father’s murder and stays after Hawaii’s governor persuades him to head up the new team: his rules, her backing, no red tape and full blanket immunity to hunt down the biggest “game” in town. Joining McGarrett is Detective Danny “Danno” Williams (Scott Caan), a newly relocated ex-New Jersey cop who prefers skyscrapers to the coastline but is committed to keeping the Islands safe for his 8-year-old daughter; and Chin Ho Kelly (Daniel Dae Kim), an ex-Honolulu Police Detective wrongly accused of corruption and relegated to a federal security patrol, who is also a former protégé of McGarrett’s father. Chin’s cousin, Kono (Grace Park), is a beautiful and fearless native, fresh out of the academy and eager to establish herself among the department’s elite. McGarrett vows to bring closure to his father’s case while the state’s brash new FIVE-0 unit, who may spar and jest among themselves, is determined to eliminate the seedy elements from the 50th state.
Although the original series still has many fans, O’Loughlin doesn’t see starring in the remake as a risky career move.
“I mean, everything’s a remake today. There’s nothing that hasn’t been done already really. You know, organic, new material that we’ve never seen before is very rare. And if people don’t respond, they don’t respond. But that’s OK, I mean all I can do is my job,” he said.
To find out what else O’Loughlin had to say about “Hawaii Five-0? and his experience starring opposite Jennifer Lopez in “The Back-Up Plan,” click here. [SOURCE]
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