4400's Campbell Back, Talking
Billy Campbell, who returns to USA Network's SF series The 4400 as the mysterious Jordan Collier, told SCI FI Wire that he took up the role again after arriving back in Vancouver, B.C., after crewing a round-the-world sailing expedition for 13 months. "About 28 hours after I had been cleaning a toilet onboard, I was standing in front of a movie camera, so it was very strange," Campbell said in an interview about his abrupt reintroduction to TV. "I honestly don't remember the first couple of weeks I was back in Vancouver. It was like I was having an out-of-body experience. [Executive producer] Ira [Steven Behr] will tell you, I was just wandering around with this dazed look in my eye. But yeah, it was quite strange to be back."
Campbell, who plays the leader of a group of abductees returned from the future to save humanity in 2006, appears in the last four episodes of the current third season. His boat trip, which began last year, prevented producers from using him more this season, Behr acknowledged in a conference call on Aug. 16. "What I told the staff [was], 'OK, we are going to basically do a full season in three episodes," Behr said. "[A] full season of Jordan Collier story, so we're going to cut out all the, ... like, connective-tissue-type of storylines or scenes and just get to the essence of what we want to do with the character this season."
As for Campbell, who was a crew member of the Picton Castle, he said he appreciated being able to go on his adventure. "I don't remember the precise conversation, but I do remember saying to my agent, 'You know, I'm going to be on a boat for 13 months,' and being shocked when she came back and said, 'Well, they're OK with that,'" Campbell said. "I thought for sure I'd never hear from those guys again. And then, of course, the conversations after that sort of went, 'But they want to know if they need you a few months earlier than 13 months, is that OK?' I said, 'Well, let them know that I'm circumnavigating the planet, and the moment I get back to my starting point, I'll be happy to come back.' And the next conversation was, 'Well, if they need you a few weeks earlier ... ?' But it kept on, and I kept thinking, 'Well, they're probably going to cut me off at some point and say, "You know what? We've thought about this again ... ."' But it never happened, so I was thrilled. It must be one of the only jobs in the world that I could have that would allow me to take a year and sail around the world."
As for Collier's role in the upcoming final two episodes of the season? "I think that obviously the chance to have Jordan Collier back, none of us wanted to blow that opportunity, and it seemed like a chance to really expand and play with the franchise a little bit and take some major steps and big moves with the storyline," Behr said. "I think that's [where] we're going to go. I think that Jordan's return is going to have a big impact on the people closest to him and the people closest to the audience, and beyond [that] I think it's going to have a major impact on society. ... [It] kind of heralds the next phase of storytelling in the series, which is a pretty big load to place on one character, as I say, but it's true." The 4400 airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT; the season finale airs Aug. 27. USA is owned by NBC Universal, which also owns SCIFI.COM.
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