HEROES MAGAZINE
Issue 6
Partner in Time
James Kyson Lee has become known to audiences the world over as Ando Masahashi, a Tokyo office worker swept into unexpected adventures by his best friend, Hiro. Lee was born in Seoul, South Korea, and raised in New York City, where his parents moved when he was six. Although he's just put in a 15-hour night working on an episode for season three of Heroes - he explains, "We were just shooting one episode, but we were trying to shoot four scenes, and it was these big set-ups, and there was a lot going on" - he is still up for a talk about all things Ando...
HEROES MAGAZINE: What were you told about the character of Ando when you went in to audition for Heroes?
JAMES KYSON LEE: They weren't even auditioning anyone for Ando at the time, because they were trying to cast the main nine characters. So I actually auditioned as Hiro. I just went with my own interpretation of the character, which was a young man who just wanted to escape the corporate life. I could relate to that experience - I had that [in real life] right after college. I guess they saw something that they liked in me and so the audition process just kept going. I ended up auditioning five times. When it was all over, they said, 'That guy's going to be Hiro and you're going to be Ando.' I guess I was a little disappointed [not to be cast as Hiro], but at the same time, I was intrigued, because there wasn't really anything revealed about Ando yet.
James Kyson Lee has become known to audiences the world over as Ando Masahashi, a Tokyo office worker swept into unexpected adventures by his best friend, Hiro. Lee was born in Seoul, South Korea, and raised in New York City, where his parents moved when he was six. Although he's just put in a 15-hour night working on an episode for season three of Heroes - he explains, "We were just shooting one episode, but we were trying to shoot four scenes, and it was these big set-ups, and there was a lot going on" - he is still up for a talk about all things Ando...
HEROES MAGAZINE: What were you told about the character of Ando when you went in to audition for Heroes?
JAMES KYSON LEE: They weren't even auditioning anyone for Ando at the time, because they were trying to cast the main nine characters. So I actually auditioned as Hiro. I just went with my own interpretation of the character, which was a young man who just wanted to escape the corporate life. I could relate to that experience - I had that [in real life] right after college. I guess they saw something that they liked in me and so the audition process just kept going. I ended up auditioning five times. When it was all over, they said, 'That guy's going to be Hiro and you're going to be Ando.' I guess I was a little disappointed [not to be cast as Hiro], but at the same time, I was intrigued, because there wasn't really anything revealed about Ando yet.
How do you think Ando has changed during his time on Heroes?
Ando started with a purpose of complementing and balancing out Hiro's storyline, and somewhere down the line, he started forming his own identity. I think you'll probably see more of that in season three, where he carves out his own way. It's sort of like this Luke Skywalker/Han Solo relationship. With these guys, I think they go on these adventures together, but their lives are starting to form their own layers and I think that's what makes it interesting. In the second season, they tried [separating Ando and Hiro for part of the season]. When Hiro went back to the past in Japan, I think a lot of people just felt that when they're not together, something's lacking. When they brought us back together, it really started working again, and I think that's going to carry on through the third season.
How has the fan response been for you and Ando?
Really good. It seems like a lot of people like the character. I think in some sense he represents the audience member. He's used a lot to bring the audience on the journey - he's like the mortal on this show and I think that people [like] that there are a lot of elements of loyalty and friendship. They're always asking, though: "Is he getting a power?" "When is he getting a power?" "I think he's getting a power." (Laughs) So everybody's got their own theories.
• Read the full interview in issue 6 of Heroes: The Official Magazine - on newsstands September 16. For more information visit www.titanmagazines.com/heroes.
