Alan Tudyk OF ‘RESIDENT ALIEN’ ON SYFY

Other fantasy projects you’ve done have proved that you’re used to the genre. How is it for you to return to it as a human-looking extraterrestrial, who initially comes to Earth with the intention of eliminating mankind, in “Resident Alien”?

When I play the character, there is a lot of discomfort going on inside of me, because it’s sort of you’re looking standing behind yourself looking out. That’s what he would be doing.

It’s like he’s wearing a mask, the mask that looks like me, as he’s looking at the world. I didn’t look in the mirror and find the creepiest, weirdest faces; it’s usually the other way around.

How do you go about introducing human elements into your new character, Harry, while still maintaining the sense of his being an alien?

The longer he’s on Earth, I think it’s a great thing as an actor that as he inhabits this body, it starts to play upon him. He gets to feel emotions. He’s not just a lizard brain or alien brain the entire time. He feels.

That’s a lot of fun, to get to just play with emotion. That’s a lot of what acting is. It’s the basic blocks of, “What is it to be human?”

What can you say about Harry’s relationship to the Colorado town’s somewhat inexperienced mayor (played by Levi Fiehler), who starts developing doubts about what’s happening in his locality?

He’s the father of the little kid who can see me (as Harry). He’s got a kid who’s losing his mind, so he’s got parenting issues.

Where do you get the basis for playing an alien?

I don’t like to tell this story, but ... I was on my honeymoon. I was in the Cayman Islands, and I met an alien. (Note: Tudyk said this with tongue in cheek.)