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Fred Weller Talks the Season 2 Witness Protection of 'In Plain Sight'
by Troy Rogers
 After making the leap to cable television from a busy and accomplished career in theater and independent film, along with several notable roles in TV, actor Fred Weller takes his acting game to new heights in the second season of In Plain Sight on USA Network, which debuts April 19 at 10pm.
Playing Federal Agent Marshall Mann of the Witness Protection program, the often "at odds" partner of actress Mary McCormack's Mary Shannon, Weller finds his character dealing with the fall-out of Shannon's Post-Traumatic-Stress when she ditches administrative leave in the Season 2 premiere, "Gilted Lily," that sees a witness turn up dead with more soon to follow.
After chatting with Fred prior to the first season premiere of In Plain Sight, we came out of hiding long enough to catch up with Fred Weller on a recent conference call where we asked a few brief questions about his memories of season one, his second stint shooting in Albuquerque, and how he feels about the evolution of his relationship with actress Mary McCormack and their characters.
THE DEADBOLT: What was your favorite episode from season one?
 FRED WELLER: I liked it when we were shooting it out in the desert in that little shack with Dave Foley. Also, it’s amazing that we went from a "whodunit" one week to a family drama the next week, which is one of the great things about the show, the versatility genre.
THE DEADBOLT: What’s Marshall’s stance on weed in the episode "My Humbolt Opinion"?
WELLER: He wishes it would be legalized. As long as it’s illegal, he’ll abide by the law.
THE DEADBOLT: Overall, does Marshall like working for Stan?
WELLER: He’s a complex and interesting character. I’m referring to Stan [not Paul Ben Victor].
THE DEADBOLT: How is Albuquerque treating you guys?
 WELLER: There’s a lot to like about Querqistan. I just want to name two things; Artichoke Café and Annapurna Restaurant, in the hopes they’ll give me some free stuff.
THE DEADBOLT: How have you noticed Mary and Marshall’s relationship evolving both personally and professionally on the show?
WELLER: Well, I mean I think that the audience sees, and also our characters are able to see more and more of our feelings for each other, which operate on many levels. I mean we were just discussing the extent to which Marshall’s very intense romantic feelings for Mary are requited. I think that’s still unclear to Marshall and not entirely clear to Mary herself. That’s my opinion. But we’ve got a deep affection for each other and you see different shades of that every week.
Other Conference Call Highlights:
Fred Weller on whether we’ll learn more about Marshall’s back-story:
"Well, Marshall is a bit of a man of mystery. You’ll learn different languages he speaks [and] you’ll learn different dorky sports he plays. But as to whether you’ll learn about his family or where he lives, that is something I’m going to have to leave open."
Weller on why he thinks fans are drawn to Mary McCormick’s character:
 "Well, it’s multi-dimensional. She’s dangerous yet she’s vulnerable, I think, a character with a lot of defenses. But a soft vulnerable underbelly is always interesting and you have an actress who has that comedic ability and the ability to be cynical and edgy. But at the same time she has the emotional chops when she needs it. When that stuff erupts, it’s riveting because it’s so high stakes to the character, because she doesn’t want the world to see that."
Fred Weller on how the show is different on cable than it would’ve been on network TV:
"I think that you can be edgier on cable because you’re targeting a smaller, more select audience. Mary was talking earlier about how David Maples doesn’t want us to be super heroes. You can see our flaws a lot and he takes risks. The possibility of alienating the audience when you see people’s flaws and their tempers, I think those kinds of risks are easier on cable."
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