Well, I think he as the physicality to bring a credibility to say “that guy can do the action”, but I also think that he can deliver a line where he is very endearing and self deprecating, so you find him very charming, he’s not just a tough guy that’s one dimensional. He does everything with a wink and a shrug an a devil may care attitude, which makes you want to go along for the ride and he’s one of the great entertainers in that respect. I think that he’s doing today what we loved so much about Bruce Willis in Die Hard.

On top of getting to perform breathless stunts and be the hero on a weekly basis, there’s another reason Mark Valley relishes his starring role on Human Target. “It’s nice to know that I’m playing a character that once saved Batman’s a–,” the actor jokes, referring to his character’s comic book legacy.

Based on the DC Comics character of the same name, Human Target (Tuesday at 9/8c) follows a bodyguard named Christopher Chance who will go to any lengths to protect a client. Chance enlists the help of not only his trained detective skills and physical prowess but his partners in crime Winston (Chi McBride) and Guerrero (Jackie Earle Hayley).

Watch full episodes of Human Target

Although the original Human Target was known for impersonating his clients to protect them — whereas Chance simply integrates himself into his client’s lives — Valley says the show stays true to its source material. “I’m always just impressed that everything from Chance’s wardrobe to what he would say is in there. I think, most importantly, the character himself had a real gallows humor about things, was a little bit dark and also enjoyed what he did. I’m trying to kind of bring that out as well.”

Valley says it’s important not to underestimate how much Chance enjoys his job despite — or because of — the danger that comes with it. In the series’ first two episodes, Chance has already saved clients on a runaway bullet train and a plane on the verge of crashing. “There’s a real sort of rush that comes from saving someone’s life or making it through some really challenging physical situation,” he says.

That rush is part of the show’s charm, thanks to its many fight scenes and real-life effects. “That’s what gives it a kind of gritty, throwback appeal that you had in Die Hard and some of the television stuff back [in the '80s] as well,” Valley says. “The action has been pretty thrilling … The fight scenes are the most fun and they’re probably the most dangerous as well.”

Fox lines up midseason premieres

Luckily, Valley is used to danger. Before making a name for himself on shows such as Boston Legal and Fringe, Valley served in the U.S. Army. “It’s helped me in strange ways. One is getting up in the morning when it’s still dark out; that reminds me of being in the Army. We use guns in the Army so I’m maybe a little bit more familiar with that,” Valley says. “We had to do a scene where I was wearing an Army uniform and I remembered how I used to tuck my pants into my boots so I wouldn’t trip.”

Beyond the action, more of Chance’s back story will come into play as the series progresses. Valley hints to a previous rift between his character and Winston as well as a woman from Chance’s past he has yet to get over. “We have mythology dumps, as the writers call it, in certain episodes and we’ll find out more about Chance, which I think is exciting. Every time I get a little clue, it’s just one more look into this person.”

Just like Chance, Valley says Human Target is not easily pigeonholed. “It’s going to take awhile to define itself.”

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Crave Online: What’s your take on the nonchalant action hero?

Mark Valley: I think what’s interesting is he’s nonchalant about certain things. I think what’s going to be interesting with this guy as we go on is deciding on what things that he is nonchalant about and what things that he really does care about. For some reason, he really thinks that no one deserves to die, which is one thing that is pretty specific with him. We’re going to find out. He’s not really concerned about his own safety and his own life. I don’t know if it’s because he’s taken so many chances in the past or there’s some sort of guilt.

Crave Online: Is it self-referential because he knows he’s the hero?

Mark Valley: It’s funny you mention that because I was trying not to kind of go into that too much wink wink at the camera. We’ll see where the show goes and how it works out but I was thinking that. I was watching a lot of action shows. Why is it that this person just sort of has this kind of smarmy grin about things? Why is because they know that they’re not going to die. The actor is having fun with it because he knows he’s the star of the show and he’s read the whole script and he’s not going to die. It sort of frees the actor to have fun but kind of grounding that in reality with the person becomes a little more complicated. Then again, I was in the army. I know some guys who were doing much more dangerous things than I was doing and they just have this kind of macabre sense of humor that not only is sort of endemic to those groups but is sort of necessary.

Crave Online: Sort of like the Hurt Locker guys.

Mark Valley: Yeah, I’ve heard the movie’s fantastic but it’s true. It’s more of a survival mechanism than it is some defiance of life or safety or anything.

Crave Online: Personally, I want somebody that confident in charge of danger.

Mark Valley: You do, wouldn’t you? Maybe that’s why people keep hiring him.

Crave Online: So how do you capture that without playing the wink wink?

Mark Valley: Yeah, it’s a fine line. I’ve got to kind of remember the scene before and the scene after, what to take seriously and what not.

Crave Online: Have you guys already established a group dynamic in only a few episodes?

Mark Valley: We really are. A lot of us just sort of came into the show with a genuine love for the script and the idea. We all sort of bonded on that. We don’t make drama. We like to make good TV. So let’s just get together and work. That’s what happened. There is. There’s a bond.

Crave Online: Are there some missions where Guerrero is more directly involved with you and Chi McBride?

Mark Valley: Yeah, yeah. I’ve actually spent most of the time with Chi than Guerrero. I think Guerrero is involved more in Chance’s past. They worked on cases together because that’s another running joke that they talk about. “Remember that time in New Orleans? No, the job you did in Cleveland?” “Which one, the one on the roof?” “No, the one with the dog sleds.” So we’ll find out a little bit more about that but right now it’s sort of Chi and I running the company. Guerrero’s kind of like a contractor.

Crave Online: After Fringe, did they want to keep you in the Fox family?

Mark Valley: I think there was. I definitely think there was. I really like Kevin Reilly’s taste and I trust him. It’s always a pleasure working for him. So yeah, yeah. There wasn’t any specific agreement but Fox is a good fit for me.

Crave Online: Do you shoot near them in Canada?

Mark Valley: It shoots in Vancouver. Yeah, they shoot in Vancouver.

Crave Online: What cool stunts will you get to do?

Mark Valley: The only thing I know is the producer asked me once if I knew how to ride a horse.

Crave Online: Do you?

Mark Valley: Yes, yes. Not particularly fast.

Crave Online: That’s the old actor’s lie.

Mark Valley: It really is but I did do a job, I lied about it once before and made that mistake and had to learn how the hard way.

Crave Online: How much of the parachute out the tunnel stunt was you?

Mark Valley: It’s me except for the dragging on the gravel. I wasn’t being dragged across anything. I sort of got up from it. It was me jumping off and everything and flying through the air. When I’m getting dragged, it was somebody else and even so, I think he was on top of the girl too. It looked like she got the worst of it but they were all padded up anyways.

Crave Online: Was the parachute on a green screen?

Mark Valley: Yes, yes, we got pulled into a green screen.

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By now you are likely aware of Marvel’s movie plans. No, I’m not talking about rebooting Spider-Man, rather their plans to finally bring The Avengers to the big screen in a live-action film. Iron Man was a huge success, and we’re all eagerly awaiting the sequel with Robert Downey Jr. re-inhabiting the role of Tony Stark later this year. Chris Hemsworth has been cast as the Norse god of thunder, and Thor is currently in production. The Incredible Hulk accomplished the goal of rebooting that character, and Edward Norton is rumored to be involved in the Avengers movie in some way (ally? villain?). And don’t forget we also already have Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury. But before the Avengers can assemble in a new film slated for 2012, there are plans for a Cap-centric film, The First Avenger: Captain America. But that can go nowhere until an actor is found to don the red, white, and blue. So who should be cast? My vote is for Mark Valley. Read on to found out why.

First of all, just look at him. The blue eyes, the light colored (and easily dyed blond) hair, the strong, square jaw. He already has the look of Steve Rogers/Captain America going for him. And while Valley is a handsome guy, I’d qualify him as being ruggedly so. Other names that have been rumored for this role include Jason Lewis and Matthew McConaughey, but these guys are both just too pretty for the role. Captain America should have a look that intimidates enemies more than it makes the ladies swoon. Plus if you saw the premiere of Valley’s new television series on Fox (Human Target) you can attest that he has a lean, powerful physique that would serve him well playing the recipient of the experimental Super-Soldier serum.

For those of you who think Valley is too old for the role (he’s 46), I’d offer this. Robert Downey Jr. is 45. Edward Norton is 41. Samuel L. Jackson is 62. The actor playing Captain America not only has to hold his own in scenes with these men, he (assuming the film stays true to the comics) needs to be able to believably assume (or at least contend for) a leadership role in the group. Other younger actors that have been (or could be) associated with role include Jensen Ackles (32) and Channing Tatum (30), or another 20-something, popular with the teen crowd actor. IMHO, this would be a mistake. Casting a young actor in the role would either completely change his interactions with the Avengers (a brash Captain America that bucks authority?) or would permeate scenes with an “in over his head” vibe a la Jake Lloyd in The Phantom Menace (okay that’s not really fair, but you get my point, right?). Let me just say it would take one helluva young actor to go toe-to-toe with RDJ and Jackson, and I’m skeptical one will be found. Valley, on the other hand, doesn’t suffer from those potential problems. His age would bestow Captain America with the aura of an experienced, battle-hardened veteran that he should have.

Related to that last idea, Captain America is supposed to be as much a symbol (if not more so) of American patriotism than Superman. The actor portraying Cap should be able to convey that sense of duty and honor simply by breathing. Aside from the fact that Valley is an actual, real-life graduate of the United States Military Academy who served in the Army during the Gulf War, Valley’s body of work would be a boon in this regard. He’s not enough of a star that his real-life persona would compromise his integrity in the role with audiences, and (likely unintentionally) he’s built a resume damn-near tailored for the role of Captain America.

Some people might know him from his appearances on Boston Legal as the straight-laced marine-turned-lawyer Brad Chase. Others might recognize him from his brief stint on Fringe as FBI Special Agent John Scott. And then there’s the afore-mentioned new series Human Target, in which Valley plays the lead character Christopher Chance, a heroic body guard and security expert. Do you see a pattern here? I sure do, and it’s one that would be just under the surface of viewers’ minds. Josh Holloway could be a good physical match for Cap, but he’s so firmly established himself in as the self-serving, duplicitous Sawyer on Lost that it would be hard to accept him playing so against type. And regarding Jason Lewis, do you know what people think of when they see Jason Lewis?

That’s the guy from Sex and the City who had to pretend to be attracted to Kim Cattrall. Acting ability aside, is that what you want to be thinking of when you finally get to see Captain America on the big screen?

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