December 2014 - TVGUIDE New Zealand

by JENNY COONEY CARRILLO

Simon's simple pleasures

It is now official... Next year's seventh season of the crime series The Mentalist will be the last. The sixth season wraps this week, and Jenny Cooney Carrillo caught up with star Simon Baker to talk about the show's success and family life with his wife Rebecca Rigg and their children – Stella, 20, Claude, 16, and Harry, 12.

TV Guide: Did you think the time was right to end the show?

Baker: If you ask me, the original story that we started off and laid out in the pilot episode many years ago, that story finished probably around the end of the third season. And then we picked up another thread of the story and it became less about seeking revenge and more about the dynamics of a relationship. It's now the next step and a good time to say goodbye.

Are you ready to move on?

This is the longest I've ever been in one place, and the longest I've ever played one character, so as much as I will always feel honoured to have been able to play the character for as long as I have, there's a certain part of me that, I can't deny, wants to go and explore new terrain and do different things.

What sort of impact has the show had on your family?

My family was really behind the decision to do this show. I really wasn't that interested in doing another TV show after The Guardian and a lot of it had to do with the ages that my kids were and that they needed that stability, so that was a big factor.

What do they think of your success?

They are accustomed to the experience of being around me and the fallout of my success making me a recognised person, but they're my kids, so they take it with a grain of salt... Kids are there to deflate their parents, build them up and put a pin in them and pop them every now and then.

How did it feel to get a star on the Walk of Fame?

That was a weird, funny kind of time capsule because I had a group of people around me that I'd spent so much time with along this little journey. I'm never really one to look back on things. I'm always looking forward, so it forced me to have to reflect on it, which was good, and it was nice to be able to share that with family and friends.

So what do you think when you look back on that success?

I think I'm a really lucky person that's been blessed with incredible opportunities, so that is never lost on me. I know that my path could have been so different and I could have struggled so much more. Look at me now; I'm married, I've got a healthy family, I do something that I actually love and I even get to direct the show occasionally. I don't have the right to be wallowing in self-pity at all. Being an actor was a whimsical idea in my head and the fact that I've been able to make it a reality is incredible.

How do you relax when you're not working?

I don't – this is me relaxing. (laughs) When you're the lead character in a one-hour TV show, you're never caught up with everything you need to do, so you are going all the time. I often wake up at 2.30 in the morning thinking, 'OK, what do I need? What haven't I done?' So when it's all finished, I'll have a sleep, I'll get to exercise more and then I'll get to relax.

Is there anything you would like to keep from The Mentalist set?

I would like the couch. I love the Citroen, and I've really been coveting that Airstream trailer... but I'll probably get none of them. They are the property of Warner Bros TV.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/64287279/simons-simple-pleasures