Santiago Cabrera

Santiago: On my first day back after the holidays, Wendi, my makeup artist, showed me a copy of the Heroes feature in SCI FI magazine in the makeup trailer. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. Thank you, SCI FI magazine. Now how am I gonna live up to that? One of 10 sexist men to watch. Tough question. Maybe this can bring on a whole new world for Isaac. I could ask the writers to give him some steamy shower scenes, and if that doesn't work, they could always make him a doctor.

Santiago: (About the comic books Tim Sale gave to him) He gave me a few issues of his and Jeph's Daredevil: Yellow. He gave me a collection of different kinds of drawings which were things that weren't necessarily out in the stands. He gave me a Batman as well. Daredevil is something I really love. I didn't really know Daredevil before. I just find it fascinating so I've been buying my own lately.

Santiago: Well you never know. Isaac is a very crucial character and what I loved about this part is that he's still full of surprises. He's someone that can go anywhere and you never know what direction he's going to go. You can take him different places. There's a lot of depth to him and a lot of layers to this part so I'm thinking yes, but there's no guarantee for anybody.

Santiago: (On working with Tim Sale and Jeff Loeb) Yeah and I have. After I met Tim, he gave me a few of his comics. Since I'm playing a guy who actually does comics himself I've been reading more comic books and trying to get more into it. Comics are much grittier than I thought.

Santiago: Yeah, they are. There's a happy vibe. Yesterday we went to a TV Guide photo shoot and everyone was there. It's a good feeling. People really feel good about what they're doing and they feel like they're involved in something special.

Santiago: I went to a lot of rehab clinics and talked to a lot of heroin addicts which was very helpful. It's very interesting to see everything from the case worker to some actual patients. They were telling me they get a lot of artists like musicians and writers that go through the same thing as Isaac without the premonitions of course. There's something about Isaac that stems from insecurity. He's a hypersensitive guy even though he feels disgusted and dangerous; he still has an affinity to be an artist. The drugs are maybe a way to deal with the outside world and with his ability. A lot of artists that are patients are people that are doing well, they're creating great music and great writing but they think that they can only do it when they're on drugs. They really don't believe or they're too scared to try it own their own. Eventually when they kick the habit, they all say that their work is even better. It will be very interesting to see what Isaac will paint when he's off the drug. That's definitely something that I think is in the works. We don't know much about what's going on too much because they don't really give us much, but it's definitely an interesting territory to get into with the character.

Santiago: (On pursuing "Heroes" so much) I thought it was very universal. I've lived in different places. I'm from South America but I grew up in Europe mostly and I imagine that people from all over the world would like it. Also there were a lot of characters so different people would have their favorites and identify with each one in the story. I really liked that there were a few drawings already in the script, which you don't normally see, like in the chapter pages and the introduction. They were simple drawings but it just gave it a feel and an atmosphere in a gritty adventurous way which really stood out for me.

Santiago: (On his audition for "Heroes") I pursued Heroes because it was like nothing I have ever read before. I had read a few pilots and this one just stood out to me. I rang my manager and said I really want to go up for this. They saw me eventually and it was in a room, everyone was there. [Heroes creator] Tim [Kring], the director, producers. I remember it was a pretty intense scene from the pilot where he's getting back on heroin. When I read it, I was really in the zone there and I just really went for it and there was a silence in the room afterwards and they were like, "Well thank you very much for that. Maybe you would try it now not so on the effects of drugs." I just lost myself and really went for it. So then I did a different version. I got a feeling it went well because they spent a lot of time with me. That's always a good sign. We did a few different versions and afterwards we talked about the character so I could see they were already interested in me. Then they called me back for the network test and then I got the part so it was very exciting.

Santiago: (On keeping in touch with Tim Sale) Yeah. He's always there. We keep in touch a lot. He sends me email. Sometimes I ask him to send me the drawings beforehand. I met him very early on. I did the pilot and I asked to meet him and he was very nice. He has a studio in his home and he showed me around his studio and the way he works and how he approaches his projects. We've kept in touch and figured out the style of this character with where he's coming from and what his style specifically is. It's been a lot of fun to be able to have a relationship with the actual painter.

Santiago: (On playing the role of Isaac Mendez) I can say very little, but there is a change in him wanting to do something about his addiction and wanting to do some good with the paintings. What we've seen until now is a very tortured relationship as a result of his ability to paint the future but not being able to control it and not knowing what's happening. In a way, it is out of his hands. So we do see more of a want there to maybe make a difference and change.