‘Once Upon a Time’ season 2 spoilers: Jorge Garcia on ‘Giant’ role
Being a villain is so where it’s at for an actor on television right now. Just look at some of the most notable evildoers on television as of late: Gus Fring on “Breaking Bad,” Trinity on “Dexter,” Charlie on “Revolution” (okay, we’re kidding about this one, but she’s still not that easy to root for). “Once Upon a Time” season 2 has already introduced us to one notable new villain so far in Captain Hook, even if he has not packed that nefarious a punch just yet, and we’re going to meet another one Sunday in the Giant, who will be fee, fi, fo, fum-ing his way around at the top of a beanstalk and keeping Emma and Hook from getting the compass they so desire in order to travel to Storybrooke.
What is interesting about this character in particular is not just that he is the largest character to turn up in the fairytale word (past or present), but that the man playing his was perhaps the most likable person on ‘the island’ in six seasons of “Lost”: Jorge Garcia. Did the actor embrace the chance to stomp around on the dark side? It sounds like it, at least based on what he told TVLine recently about his interest in playing whatever showrunners Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis, who have plenty of “Lost” experience of their own between them, wanted to throw his way. After all, they had already said that they were looking to cast him in the perfect part:
“I’d be hanging out with friends and we’d throw out ideas like, ‘The Pied Piper!’ Then ‘Captain Hook! Oh, they found one.’ But [Once creators Adam Horowitz and Eddy Kitsis] are good idea men, so I wasn’t worried. When they finally pitched the role to me, it seemed like an inspired way to bring me on the show.”
The best news to come out of this interview (save for just Garcia being as awesome as ever) is that the actor will be back for at least one more appearance during “Once Upon a Time” season 2, where we will learn more about the Giant’s origin story. While we don’t know if a character of this size (literally) could ever be a series regular, the great thing about Horowitz and Kitsis is that they are good to their own, and they love to develop the characters that they have rather than introducing new ones just for the heck of it. (The only real stories to go nowhere beyond one episode thus far are from some of the early episodes in the first season, when this show was still finding itself.)
How evil do you want Jorge’s Giant to be?