Rory Cochrane

Fans of Tim Speedle were chagrined when Rory Cochrane decided to leave CSI: Miami at the beginning of the show’s third season. Cochrane retuned to his film career after leaving the CSI: Crime Scene Investigation spin-off, and he took the time to talk to CSI Files' Kristine Huntley about his two 2006 films and his newest gig.

CSI Files: Your CSI: Miami colleagues speak very highly of you. Do you keep in contact with anyone from the show?

Rory Cochrane: Yeah, definitely. Adam Rodriguez (Eric Delko) and I just had dinner last night.

CSI Files: Do you have any regrets about leaving the show?

Cochrane: Not really. I know people love the show and some people still come up to me upset that [Speed] was killed off. But you have to do what’s right for you. People are very sweet and kind and will still come up to me in airports and want to have their picture taken with me because of the show, which is cool.

CSI Files: Would you have preferred to see Speed written out in a different way?

Cochrane: Yeah, absolutely. I had asked the people in charge to not kill me off and that I would like to come back and do a few episodes here and there, but they said, you're leaving and we're killing you off. It was their decision.

CSI Files: Would you ever do television again?

Cochrane: I wouldn't want to be a regular on a series again, but I'm doing a Ridley Scott miniseries, which is six hours long. I'm just not cut out for doing TV all year long. It's good for a lot of people, but it's not for me.

CSI Files: What's your newest project?

Cochrane: I'm about to go film this Ridley Scott miniseries in Canada about the CIA and the KGB. I plat a Soviet spy--a KGB operative that's in the U.S.

CSI Files: Were you happy with how your latest film, A Scanner Darkly turned out?

Cochrane: Yeah, I was happy. I think it's a film people need to see twice to really get it.

CSI Files: Do you think it followed the Philip K. Dick story fairly well?

Cochrane: I think they were pretty accurate towards the book. Philip K. Dick's daughters saw it and thought it was accurate.

CSI Files: Why do you think director Richard Linklater decided to animate the film?

Cochrane: I think it was because of the subject matter and things like the scramble suit in the film. It made it easier to show people's hallucinations. We shot it live action though [before it was animated].

CSI Files: What drew you to the role?

Cochrane: I like working with Richard Linklater, and I like the people involved, the other cast members. I liked going to Texas!

CSI Files: Your other recent project, Right at Your Door, deals with a terrorist attack on Los Angeles. What was it like to film that?

Cochrane: It was probably the hardest thing I've ever filmed. It's not a big flashy story with things blowing up; it's a simple story of a man and a woman who have to deal with the consequences of a terrorist attack. [In the movie], my wife goes to work and [the attack] is on the news and they’re saying don’t come into contact with the people [who were exposed to the dirty bomb] and my wife comes home and I can't let her in.

CSI Files: The film debuted at Sundance; when is it going to be in wide release?

Cochrane: Lionsgate picked it up at Sundance. It's being released in the UK first, in September, and then they're going to bring it [to the U.S.] in January.

CSI Files: What led you to pick this role?

Cochrane: My manager sent me the script and then I sat down with the director. I liked the material, but I was scared to do it. Anyone [in that situation] would let his wife into the house, so I needed to try to find a way to do it [and make it understandable].

CSI Files: Given recent events, do you find the film especially relevant?

Cochrane: It's definitely topical. But I think it's more of a simple human story about the people who are left behind when these attacks happen. We're not trying to exploit people's fears; it's more about the lack of preparation of governments [to deal with terrorist attacks].

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