With today being his 83rd birthday, Cinema Scholars celebrates the career of Lance Henriksen. With 260-plus roles to his name, an online business selling his own pottery, and with no sign of slowing down, Henriksen stars in the new release The Artifice Girl.
Henriksen has famously played good cops and bad cops, FBI profilers and vicious criminals, astronauts and cowboys, Antichrist protectors and of course, and possibly most famously, cybernetic organisms (“I prefer the term “Artificial Person” myself.”) He can now add ‘father of an advanced artificial intelligence being’ in the new sci-fi drama, directed by Franklin Ritch in his feature debut.
Lance Henriksen in a scene from “Dog Day Afternoon” (1975). Photo courtesy of Warner Brothers.
From the Boardwalk to Off-Off-Broadway
Prior to stage and screen appearances, New York-born Henriksen had a troubled youth. He left school – “as soon as I could run – I ran” – and without having yet learned to read. In the 1950s he joined the U.S. Navy and after serving, he found work across Europe as a laborer and muralist. On his return home, he stepped off a ship and saw an advertisement for a play looking for actors. He thought he would try his luck.
The director was taken with Henriksen’s look and charisma, but the aspiring actor knew he had to buy himself some time, being unable to read for a part, as he simply could not. He, therefore, offered to build the set and do the lighting, giving himself an opportunity to have the script recorded onto a tape so he could memorize the lines.
In his inexperience, he went on to memorize the lines of every single part. It all worked out as the off-off-Broadway production, Three Plays of the Sea, played for a month to sold-out shows. Not even a young actor called Alfredo James Pacino could get a ticket. Henriksen’s picture was printed in the New York Times, with the review ‘Someone less soulful would be better in the part…’ Henriksen was delighted with this, his first review.
Francois Truffaut, Lance Henriksen, Bob Balaban, and Steven Spielberg on the set of “Close Encounters of the Third Kind.” Photo courtesy of Sunset Boulevard/Corbis.
From Stage to Silver Screen
Stating that every role has “been a gift” and putting his illustrious career down to “a lot of luck,” Henriksen has been one of the screen’s most distinctive character actors, as well as a self-proclaimed ‘wise-ass’ for half a century. It was not until the age of thirty that Henriksen made his first credited appearance, appearing in It Ain’t Easy (1972), but it was worth the wait, as the film set him on the path to becoming one of cinema’s most recognizable faces.
Henriksen would go on to shine in small but appreciated parts in huge films such as Sidney Lumet’s Dog Day Afternoon (1975). This led to him being approached by some kid called Steven Spielberg who had just finished a picture about a shark, whose next project would be the sci-fi classic Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977). Henriksen tells the story that at the onset he made the suggestion to Spielberg that his character throw a coat over an alien and stick him in a port-a-loo as proof. Spielberg declined.
Henriksen rounded off the 1970s with the horror sequel,Damien: Omen II (1978), and alongside John Huston in The Visitor (1979). However, it was in the 1980s that would see his film stock fully go to another level. He met first-time director, James Cameronwho cast him inPiranha 2: The Spawning (1981). It was a film neither enjoyed making.
Cameron and Henriksen did, however, become buddies and worked together in their next two films. Both iconic, sci-fi classics: The Terminator (1984), where Henriksen was famously the first choice to play the killer cyborg, and Aliens (1986), where the actor created the enduring fan-favorite character of Bishop. The late 1980s then yielded two further genre classics in Near Dark (1987) where he reunited with fellow Aliens alumni Bill Paxton and Jenette Goldstein, and Pumpkinhead(1988).
James Cameron and Lance Henriksen on the set of “The Terminator” (1984). Photo courtesy of Orion Pictures.
Turn of the Millennium
Henriksen continued to be positively prolific throughout the 1990s, 2000s through to the present day. Looking at his IMDB credits, you will struggle to find any time off. He contributed appreciated cameo appearances, such as playing a (disturbingly prophetic) ‘sleazy Hollywood producer’ for Wes Craven in Scream III (2000), a film Henriksen called “bubblegum for the eyes.”
Henriksen also made his mark across various forms of media, including extensive voiceover work in animation. This included Disney’s Tarzan (1999) and American Dad!, as well as videogames, most notably voicing Jedi Master Gnost-Dural in Star Wars: The Old Republic (2011). He also provided motion capture performances in the games Detroit: Become Human (2018) and The Quarry (2022).
His most famous role (outside of Bishop), however, may be found on the small screen playing ex-FBI profiler and serial killer hunter Frank Black in Millennium, from The X- Files creator Chris Carter. Running for three seasons from 1996 to 1999, Henriksen admits “it was a tough show” as was removing himself from the role once filming was complete. Being a practitioner of Method Acting, Henriksen infuses his roles with his own experiences and past traumas.
Lance Henriksen in a scene from “Pumpkinhead” (1988). Photo courtesy of United Artists.
During a superb virtual Q&A for the film Falling (2020) moderated by fellow legend Werner Herzog, Henriksen stated he and Viggo Mortensen (the film’s director) would often “keep old wounds open” to help find a character’s inner pain and turmoil and then leave a role behind completely, often being exhausted and needing time “to get myself back.” Falling was a harsh role for Henriksen that earned him deserved acclaim, playing a homophobic, embittered father riddled with dementia who cannot accept his son (Mortensen) is gay. Henriksen called it:
“the best experience I’ve ever had as an actor… maybe the best role I’ve gotten in my lifetime.”
The Artifice Girl
Henriksen’s latest film, The Artifice Girl is directed and written by Franklin Ritch in his feature film debut. The film stars Tatum Matthews, David Girard, and Sinda Nichols and tells the story of a team of special agents that discover a revolutionary new computer program to bait and trap online predators. After teaming up with the program’s troubled developer, they soon find that the AI is rapidly advancing beyond its original purpose. In an interview with Cinema Scholars, director Franklin Ritch admitted he never dreamed that Henriksen, his first choice, would get near the script let alone consider the role. But his dreams came true.
Lance Henriksen recently spoke with our own Glen Dower to discuss, amongst other topics, his joy at how well the film is being critically received.
Note: This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.
Interview
Glen Dower:
Mr. Henriksen, how are you, Sir?
Lance Henriksen:
I’m good, thank you, man. You seem very, very enthusiastic at this moment.
Glen Dower:
It is a surreal moment, Sir. I’m sharing a screen with Lance Henriksen.
Lance Henriksen:
Well, you guys seem to be celebrating this movie. Everything I’ve heard that people are saying and what’s happening, and I have to tell you I’m really happy about it because Franklin is going to be the next big guy coming up. I mean, this movie was like putting harnesses on a horse. He had it all figured out. It was like he knew what was going to happen and he played a role and these guys rehearsed it like a play and ended up using that freedom that they got from doing that. The dialogue was real. Everything in it was real and it was mind-blowing because every detail…Look, chess, why was the chess scene in that place, in that film? It was right on the dot. It was like he was an orchestrator. He’s wonderful, he wrote it, he’s in it. He got all of these people that he respected in it and invited me and I couldn’t wait to do it. I’m not as intellectual as Franklin. He’s a bright guy. Very, very bright. So, we went out and had dinner every night as we were working and I started thinking, wow, I only went to three years of grammar school. I cannot compete with this guy, so the best thing I can do is make him laugh. But anyway, it was a great shoot. It really was.
Glen Dower:
I had the pleasure of speaking with Franklin as well, not so long ago. And he’s a very calm, cool, collected individual. And he talked to me about how you and he planned everything, like you said, in real detail. He had all the scenes planned and storyboarded. So when it came to filming everything, like you say, was ready. He told me you were his first choice, but he had no inclination that you would say ‘Yes’. He just said he got the script in front of you, somehow. You loved it, you said yes. Was it as simple as that for you?
Lance Henriksen in a scene from “The Artifice Girl” (2023). Photo courtesy of XYZ Films.
Lance Henriksen:
Yeah, yeah. I did want to do it. And then Viggo (Mortensen) saw it and he couldn’t believe it. I mean, in his…I’m not going to tell you his opinion, but he was very happy to see it. Yes, we all were. When I finally saw it, I just went, this is like somebody wrote an opera.
Glen Dower:
I said to Franklin that I think it would make a fantastic stage piece because there are essentially three scenes which are two to four-handers. The whole of Act Three is just you and Tatum. But wow, are we engrossed in that scene? There’s a moment I love, I don’t want to spoil too much for our readers, but Tatum’s character gives your character a tongue-lashing, and he takes a breath and falls back into his chair with a mix of exhaustion and relief that you convey so effortlessly. Wow. I did think, yes, I would fall back like that too.
Lance Henriksen:
That’s great! I had to have my chair thrown on its back. Yeah. I said to Franklin while we were discussing the scene ‘Wait, I don’t want to miss anything. Help me out. Tell me about some moments in time in the character’s life. We remember specific moments and those moments are what drove us to do whatever we decided to do. And when you come from a place like that, he starts it out with the police believing that he’s a pedophile and he’s not a pedophile. He had nothing to do with that. What he did was react to what they did to him when he was a child. So, it’s like, it’s unbelievable. I mean, how he built it, it’s like a very complicated emotional construction and how he did it. He’s so talented. I mean, I’ll be in any movie he does, I will.
Glen Dower:
He gives you a lot of work to do and heavy lifting. I mean, you get a lot of that exposition. You get “the reveal” if you like. That must have been a delight for you to think you are in one scene, but this scene is incredible.
Lance Henriksen:
Yeah, it’s kind of amazing how many levels he took that too. And how many pieces of detail. And none of them were like arbitrary crap you have in science fiction. Like, Ooh, here comes something flying through. No, it was none of them. I mean, have you had anybody yet steal all your information off your credit card?
Glen Dower:
Not yet.
Lance Henriksen:
I have. And I couldn’t believe it because I was just buying a piece of, I make pottery when I’m not acting. And I wanted to buy a piece of machinery. By the time I finished, I think they tapped out my whole credit card. I called the bank and then they closed the door on that. But it was like, are you kidding that somebody on this could reach out?! What part of the story are you going to join when you’re seeing this movie? What part of it is going to grab you? And then now you’re in and you won’t be able to get out. It’s like, it’s amazing. And I cannot talk enough about that young actress mean, have you ever seen any of that kind of talent?
Glen Dower:
When we first meet her, she’s on screen as a 2D creation, if you like. And then with you, she’s walking, talking, interacting with you in a way she did not in the rest of the film. And that evolution just seems very natural as well. The time jumps, and the sci-fi elements are also subtle. You don’t really need them because you’re so invested in the characters and the performances.
Lance Henriksen:
And every character, the character in that was like that. They were relentless in honesty. Very honest. And so that even makes that structure that he built, the whole world that he built real, yes. There’s no fakery in it. No, no. You know what I mean? Even to the point of chess, I’m not a chess player. But when people play chess, it’s obvious that they have to be very confident in their own thinking. Very confident. And he’s even putting in, I mean, I can’t talk enough about it. I could give you a week if you want it!?
Glen Dower:
Well…
Lance Henriksen:
Haha! No, we don’t need it. We got the movie, we don’t need it. Yeah. I’m very proud to be part of it. Thanks. And we went out every night together and just talked about life. And it was like, yeah, we loved that.
The theatrical poster for “The Artifice Girl” (2023), directed by Franklin Ritch.
Glen Dower:
As I say, I spoke with Franklin and it was great. Again very cool and calm…and then I brought up your name, and then he jumped out of his chair. And he and I just “geeked out,” shall we say, over your career. But, do you register yourself, Mr. Henriksen, that now you are being sought after and cast by the kids who grew up watching your performances when they were young? Or do you just think a job’s a job?
Lance Henriksen:
I know. That’s crazy, isn’t it? They saw me go from 30 years old to where I am now. I wasn’t losing any limbs along the way or anything. Yeah, I’m still here. Still working. What I like the most is the attempt at a role. I have to really call it an attempt at a role because I really am looking for surprising things as we do in life. I mean, you could have a flat tire, and start a whole drama. Just that, let alone talented scripts. I mean, I love good scripts. I just love him. Even if my role, I played a guy recently who’s, who runs a 12-step program, and he has all the feisty kind of telling, why don’t you tell the truth? Tell the truth, see if it hurts. I mean, that kind of thing. He’s running it and a hypocrite, a freaking hypocrite. But it was a great role. I mean, I loved it, but, I kind of like the idea of doing small roles. Just small roles. I’ll make my presence known! Don’t worry!
Glen Dower:
Oh sure, that’s what we want. We want to see it. I also want to tell you my favorite quote of yours is, it’s actually a ‘Lance Henriksen’ quote, not from a role. But it’s:
“I leave a job like a cat leaving a cat box. I do my business, I walk away, and I don’t look back…”
I love that.
Lance Henriksen:
It is true, it is true. It would be like dragging an anchor behind you. Every movie is an anchor. By the time I had five movies, I wouldn’t be able to walk, you know? You have to let it go. I have tremendous gratitude because I came from nowhere in New York, and everything is a gift. It’s a gift. What are you going to do? I don’t know how else to put it but I still like the producers to pay! I don’t mean to be…Yes, I do! Haha! Oh, buddy. Well, it’s really nice to meet you. Nice to talk.
The late Bill Paxton and Lance Henriksen stay dry on the set of “The Terminator” (1984). Photo courtesy of Orion Pictures.
Glen Dower:
It’s been a real pleasure and I wish I could have a week with you. Of course, I do. But Mr. Henriksen, this has been a highlight of my life. Thank you so much for your time.
Lance Henriksen:
No, no, thank you too. I mean, it’s a two-way street. Otherwise, I’d be sitting here talking to this computer! You take care of yourself.
Glen Dower:
Will do, Sir.
THE ARTIFICE GIRL, from XYZ Films, is available in Theaters, On Demand, and Digital now.
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