Nils Hognestad – Psych 2: Lassie Come Home

By starrymag | July 15, 2020

By: Sammi Turano

 

 

Q) How would you describe your role on Psych 2: Lassie Come Home?

 

A) I play Per, son to the owner of the Norwegian Viking Ice Bar. He’s Norwegian. Bit of a rough badass. He’s very much a Viking whom other people may describe as arrogant and entitled, but I’d say he’s confident and deserving and takes himself so seriously he doesn’t see how comedic he is.

 

Q) What initially attracted you to the role and how did you prepare for it?

 

A) The show first and foremost attracted me. I’ve been keen to be apart of this cast for several seasons and am so pleased to be a part of the #Psycho family now. I love a show that never takes itself too seriously; allows space for some feels without getting too mushy. As for the role, when I saw the breakdown, being Norwegian, I personally thought I was a perfect fit. In preparation for any role, I always need to find the voice and physicality of the character first, but specifically for this role, I spoke with my parents a ton, brushed up on my Norwegian accent and prepared a few different degrees of accent thickness so myself, our director Steve Franks and Christopher Heyerdahl (who plays my father Ova) could unanimously come to a decision on what would land best. I also did a lot of arm workouts. Guns are heavy.

 

Q) “Psych” is a show with a big cult following. What was it like joining the main cast for the movie?

 

A) First and foremost, the feeling here is gratitude. Gratitude to Candice Elzinga for casting me in the role; Steve Franks for orchestrating what was the warmest set welcome and farewell I’ve ever experienced; to James Roday, Dulé Hill and all of the lead cast for making the on set experience fun, light, playful and collaborative.

I also found out that a dear friend of mine is a #Psycho. To be seen as a celebrity in your friends’ eyes is always a little jarring but also so rewarding. Especially when it’s a project that has a piece of your heart invested into it.

 

Q) What would you say was the biggest challenge about playing the role?

 

A) The role, the project and the on set experience weren’t a challenge. My biggest challenge was actually coming from my personal life. I was in the middle of fighting deportation back to Norway during the duration of the shoot. I was having lawyer meetings and going to the Canadian-American border dealing with CBSA who were threatening to deport me with no access back to Canada for a minimum of two years. Long story short, we still to this day don’t know whether it was a clerical error on the Canadian government’s part or a case of stolen identity, but I am a certified Permanent Resident of Canada again (which I have been since I was one years old) and since Norway allowed dual citizenship as of January 2020, I have sent in my paperwork and am now awaiting news on my Canadian Citizenship. My memory is quite patchy of the time, to be quite honest. I was operating in fight or flight mode with not much more than coffee as fuel.

 

Q) What are some of your favorite memories from working on set?

A) Two memories for you. They’re both those wonderful synchronistic moments where everything comes full circle and makes you feel like you’re really in the right place at the right time (even when dealing with deportation). Firstly, Happy Birthday. Fans of the show will know that on both your first and last day on set everyone in the cast and crew will sing you Happy Birthday. That in and of itself was beautiful. But then to find out the film is getting released on July 15^th, the day before your birthday on July 16^th? Priceless.

And secondly, in getting to know Christopher Heyerdahl, I found out that he was a really close friend with one of my former directors from Theatre School at Ryerson University, Ian Watson. Through Christopher I was able to reconnect with Ian just weeks before he unfortunately passed away. It was beautiful for us both to share our mutual respect for one another and to do that before he passed was quite therapeutic and harmoniously cyclical.

 

Q) What are some things fans can expect to see in the movie?

 

A) Lots of recalled jokes from the series. Tons of celebrity cameos and a bunch of their favorite characters from the series.

 

Q) What is some advice that you took to heart from the cast?

 

A) Don’t bring your cellphone to the urinal. Thanks, Dulé. Also, cut your hair. Thanks, James.

 

Q) What is something you personally have taken away from being part of the “Psych” family?

 

A) Psychos are everywhere. You never know who’s a Psycho. Best to just accept that we’re all Psychos deep down.

 

Q) What are some other recent projects that you have been working on?

 

A) A Hint of Love just recently aired on the W Network and is now available on Amazon Movies. I also write and produce, so I am currently in the midst of producing a feature film I wrote called Cross Country Baby about an interracial gay couple that go on an illegal cross-Canada road trip to find their egg donor and surrogate. With this pandemic, timelines have now been shaken up, so we are aiming to go to camera for Cross Country Baby in the Spring. I’m also currently establishing my team for a television series I’ve been developing called The A-Gays. We’re currently seeking more LGBTQ2+BIPOC people so we can sensitively tell this story that shows the evolution of one man’s coming out journey from self-hate to pride, told from the perspective of all the letters that make up the community’s rainbow, allowing insight into the history and individual struggles within the queer community, but with a Mean Girls

 

Q) Is there anything else you would like to tell your fans and supporters?

 

A) Stay healthy, stay active, give love and be sensitive. Take the meditative time to yourself to stay grounded. All the external factors are very loud right now. We’ve all been going through a really tough time globally and the best we can do right now is act out of love and not fear.