'V' dares to ask the big questions, actor says

For Scott Wolf, one of the stars of V, ABC's alien-invasion drama, it's exciting to do a TV series that's chock-full of "big ideas."

This show, which returns at 8 p.m. Tuesday for its second season, has taken a premise as old as H.G. Wells and woven into it contemporary observations about terrorism, about religious faith when it is challenged by new science and about the broadcast news media and how easily it can be manipulated.

And that was just Season 1.

"It's pretty amazing," Wolf says. "Within the framework of science fiction, you can ask some interesting questions and talk about things on a deeper level and get people thinking."

That said, Wolf hasn't lost sight of what counts most when making sci-fi: It has got to be fun.

"It's like doctors who have this oath of 'First, do no harm,'" the former Party of Five star says. "For all of us making television, the rule has got to be 'First, entertain.'"

Wolf plays Chad Decker, an ambitious TV newsman who was used as a propaganda tool when extraterrestrial "Visitors" first arrived on Earth. Now Chad regrets being "played" by Anna, the leader of the lizard-people V's, and he seeks redemption for his part in papering over her malevolent plans for our world.

More from Wolf about the show:

What do you think of the show's core premise, that there might be other life somewhere out there in the universe? Would you be surprised if we were visited by alien beings one day?

"Let's put it this way: I think the only thing that makes this science fiction is that it hasn't actually happened yet."

What was it about the role of a TV newsman that appealed to you?

"First of all, it was a career I thought I might move into when I was first in college. I studied broadcast journalism for a year before switching majors and switching gears and becoming an actor. So it's something I've always been interested in. I'm somewhat of a cable-news junkie, especially during election cycles. I just can't get enough of it. So I've had my fill of watching other people do it."

Did you get to hang out with any real-life news anchors in the name of research?

"There was a guy up in Vancouver, where we're shooting: Chris Gailus, who actually was in Dallas for a long time [anchoring morning newscasts for WFAA/Channel 8 from 2000 to 2003]. He was gracious enough to let me tag along all day up at Global BC, and it was fascinating to watch all the elements of a newscast come together. He is not ethically challenged like my character, of course, but it was useful to pick up little details that fill in blanks."

In the end, do you think this ethically challenged reporter will be regarded as one of the good guys or one of the bad guys?

"There are people within our story who are vigorously searching and digging for the truth. With Chad, you had someone vigorously searching and digging for the opportunity to get ahead. It makes him a potentially dangerous person. He lost Round 1, but he's still fighting, still battling his conscience. I, for one, don't know yet which part of him will win out."

Has it been the easiest acting challenge ever to pretend to be thoroughly captivated by Anna, given that she's played by someone as stunning as Morena Baccarin?

"That is true. And the ridiculous thing is that I get paid to do it. She is exquisite. I hope we get years of squaring off with one another."