Simon Baker relishes complex 'Guardian'role
USA TODAY - 2001

When Simon Baker talks about his TV character, Nick Fallin, he sounds like The Guardian's guardian. Fallin's shorthand identity-- a rich, aloof lawyer ordered to do child legal services after a drug conviction -- is hardly sympathetic by TV terms, but Baker sees him as a lost soul whose emotional coldness protects his vulnerability. ''He's a guy who needs a friend, but it's lost on him,'' Baker says during a break in taping the CBS Tuesday series, the most-watched new drama of the season.

As Baker is protective of Fallin, he has had somebody watching over his career: CBS president Leslie Moonves, who noticed the Australian native's ''rare combination'' of movie-star looks and strong acting ability after seeing him in a pilot a few years ago. A casting executive ''used to joke that God doesn't give with both hands,'' Moonves says, referring to good-looking people who can't act and vice versa. ''With Simon Baker, God gave with both hands.''

The network boss wasn't sure if CBS would get the chance to showcase Baker, who was acting in feature films, including L.A. Confidential and Red Planet, since moving to the USA five years ago. After CBS signed Baker to a talent deal, ''we almost knew he would be on the air this fall in something,'' Moonves says. However, he denies, as do all involved, that CBS required Baker's involvement for The Guardian to be green-lighted.

If Fallin needs some human connection in his life, Baker has plenty. At a time when most young actors might just be thinking of settling down, the 32-year-old is married (to actress Rebecca Rigg) and has three young children, whose pictures dot the walls of his dimly lit trailer on the Sony studio lot. More family time in one place was one of the reasons he looked into TV. ''They come by a lot'' during the long shooting days, says the soft-spoken Baker, whose restrained acting style draws praise from the show's creator, David Hollander. ''There's a lot going on behind his eyes. Simon is one of the few actors you can film (while he's) still,'' says Hollander, a TV newcomer joined as executive producer by vets Michael Pressman and Mark Johnson.

Baker may be new to American TV, but he is supported by a well known cast, including Dabney Coleman as Fallin's attorney father and Alan Rosenberg as the head of the legal services office. Halfway through the season's taping schedule, Hollander says Baker knows the character as well as he does. Hollander and Pressman say CBS hasn't pressured them to turn Fallin into a ''good guy'' who might be more comforting to viewers, a likely benefit of the drama's early ratings success. He will make bad choices and face serious problems, Hollander says, although a major theme of the show is redemption.

The Guardian, which had been cruising in the 9 p.m. Tuesday slot, lost viewers two weeks ago with the premieres of NYPD Blue and 24, but Moonves was impressed it didn't take a bigger hit in one of TV's toughest time periods. The network chief's main suggestion? Have Baker smile more. (The actor breaks into a wide grin while joking with an actress about a love scene taped the day before.)

Baker dismisses questions of whether Fallin is good or bad, saying the character dwells in a gray area with no guarantee that his problems, such as the temptation of drugs and less-than-perfect family and romantic relationships, will get better. He doesn't want the show to become too pat and familiar, ''like elevator music.'' ''What I thought was interesting was (Fallin) was always open to interpretation,'' he says. ''He's pretty much a guy who has a strong conscience but is very flawed.''