Peter Kelamis brings a searing, sneering intensity to his evildoer role on Freeform鈥檚 hit sci-fi series Beyond, but he鈥檒l be wielding a wholly different set of skills when he hosts the Leo Awards Gala on June 4.
Kelamis 鈥� who plays The Man in the Yellow Jacket on Beyond, and is a familiar face (and voice) thanks to scene-stealing turns in Stargate Universe and My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic 鈥� will call upon his years on the stand-up comedy circuit when he steps behind the podium for the glitziest of the three annual Leo ceremonies, which recognize excellence in BC鈥檚 homegrown film and television industry.
鈥淚鈥檓 going to be more Ricky Gervais and less Academy Awards,鈥� chuckles Kelamis in a recent phone interview. 鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be less serious, and fun. That鈥檚 my goal.鈥�
Decades before this Leos gig, the 麻豆传媒映画actor was the star of his family鈥檚 living room, mimicking the comedy masters (Rich Little, Tim Conway) he watched on TV. 鈥淚t was the most amazing thing in the world to me, that you could make people laugh,鈥� recalls Kelamis. Early on, he figured out how to harness this ability and 鈥渨ork it for things.鈥� 鈥淚鈥檇 do a Tim Conway impression for my parents, and they鈥檇 laugh, and I鈥檇 go, 鈥榃hy don鈥檛 we go to Dairy Queen?鈥� And they鈥檇 go, 鈥極h, sure!鈥欌��
He was 8-years-old when he declared his career intentions (鈥淚 was on the playground and another kid asked, 鈥榃hat are you going to be when you grow up?鈥� and I said, 鈥業鈥檓 going to tell jokes鈥欌�� and they鈥檙e like, 鈥楬uh 鈥� well, I鈥檓 going to be a fireman鈥欌��), although his comedy aspirations pushed up against something just as impactful from a galaxy far, far away.
鈥淚 remember going to see Star Wars: A New Hope at a birthday party, and all of the other kids were like, 鈥榃ouldn鈥檛 it be incredible to be Luke Skywalker?鈥� And I remember saying, 鈥楴o, it would more incredible to be Mark Hamill playing Luke Skywalker!鈥欌�� Kelamis takes a beat. 鈥淭hey all looked at me funny.鈥�
Haters gonna hate, but Kelamis has achieved success on the comedy circuit (you can watch one of his early Just for Laughs performances here: ) and as an on-screen and voice actor. His lengthy filmography is a fascinating mix of studio and indie fare, and includes The X-Files, Smallville, The Killing, 50/50, The Cabin in the Woods, and No Men Beyond This Point. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think I鈥檝e ever had two days on set that have been exactly the same,鈥� says Kelamis. 鈥淚鈥檓 always surprised by something when I get there, and I always come home with a story, usually a cool one.鈥�
Kelamis still works the stand-up circuit whenever he鈥檚 so inclined. 鈥淪ometimes I go far too long between doing stand up, and you start second-guessing yourself,鈥� he admits. 鈥淭here鈥檚 something about the gratification of a live audience that鈥檚 both terrifying and gratifying at the same time.鈥� Also gratifying: the infectious energy that comes from being in the mix with other comedians. 鈥淵ou realize how skilled these comedians are getting up there with nothing but a microphone and a voice box and making you laugh,鈥� marvels Kelamis. 鈥淚 still respect the craft so much.鈥�
Kelamis isn鈥檛 just a Leo host; he鈥檚 also up for an award for Best Supporting Performance by a Male in a Dramatic Series for his work on Beyond. The series 鈥� now rolling into its second season 鈥� follows a young man (played by Burkely Duffield) who awakens from a coma after 12 years and discovers that he鈥檚 at the heart of some kind of sinister conspiracy. As one of Beyond鈥檚 primary villains, Kelamis鈥� The Man in the Yellow Jacket 鈥渄oes some very nasty things,鈥� he says. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 really know where his loyalties lie, although he does have loyalties. They鈥檙e not really clear and present.鈥�
The Man in the Yellow Jacket (so named because of his ever-present dandelion-hued apparel) isn鈥檛 the kind of role Kelamis often gets the chance to play. 鈥淯sually if there鈥檚 an assassin or some kind of sociopath, they tend to pick a certain type of person, whether it be big or physical because he鈥檚 enforcing an agenda,鈥� says Kelamis. 鈥淚鈥檓 not this big, huge, hulking, imposing individual, and the fact that [series creator] Adam Nussdorf went against type was something I really appreciated.鈥�
And Kelamis might weave his appreciation for the role into his Leos hosting gig. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a strong possibility that a yellow jacket may make an appearance.鈥�
The 2017 Leo Awards take place May 27, June 3, and June 4 at the Hyatt Regency Vancouver. hosts the first night, and and Veena Sood (Battlestar Galactica) host the second. The awards aren鈥檛 broadcast, but Reel People will tweet from the ceremonies () and post next-day results to Westender.com. Follow and .
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MORE FROM PETER KELAMIS
On his Beyond co-stars: 鈥淚鈥檓 kind of the creepy guy coming in. Whenever I interact with the other actors, it鈥檚 usually not a normal scene. I鈥檓 kind of the X factor. It鈥檚 weird. I actually haven鈥檛 had scenes with most of the cast. We were actually talking about that in the off-season. We were saying how excited we were about next season, and wishing that we were going to have a scene together, because all in all, I think I鈥檝e done scenes with maybe three or four of the cast, and there are maybe three or four of the characters I haven鈥檛 interacted with at all yet. This season is going to be interesting with regards to that.鈥�
On fan conventions:鈥淪ome people don鈥檛 care for conventions. Some actors are kind of shy about it, or feel weird about it. I love going to conventions and interacting with fans. I absolutely love it. One of my characters was Goku in Dragon Ball Z, and to this day I have people come up and start crying at the tables, shaking my hand as if I鈥檓 some deity. The character is so important to their upbringing, and I鈥檓 just, 鈥業 did the voice but so nice to meet you.鈥� They鈥檙e having an emotional episode meeting this hero that meant so much to them 鈥� and it鈥檚 not me, it鈥檚 the character. Having the honour to do it makes you feel pretty darn good.鈥�
On advice he鈥檇 give to a younger version of himself starting out in the biz: 鈥淒on鈥檛 take it so seriously. People think that getting a part or not getting a part is life or death, and although we all have to pay rent and pay bills and survive, just enjoy yourself along the way. That will convey in what you do, whether it鈥檚 on stage or on screen or just meeting someone on the street who鈥檚 seen your work and wants to say hello. Have more fun with it, because this particular industry, although it can be difficult when you are working and doing things, it鈥檚 the best thing in the world. There are times where you may have a really early call and you go, god, I鈥檓 tired 鈥� but think about the alternatives of what you could be doing at six in the morning for a living. I think we鈥檙e all pretty luck to be a part of it.鈥�
On his collection of call sheets: 鈥淚 used to keep my call sheets [the filmmaking schedules crafted by assistant directors and distributed to cast and crew every day of production]. I flip through them and it鈥檚 like going through a photo gallery: 鈥楾here鈥檚 me with Brad Pitt. There鈥檚 me with Morgan Freeman. There鈥檚 David Duchovny.鈥� You can go down a list of things shot in 麻豆传媒映画and I鈥檝e got this really neat memento that I鈥檓 glad I held on to.鈥�
On his Star Wars connection: 鈥淢y amazing Star Wars connection is I got to do the voice of Yoda in the Star Wars Lego mini-movie. I was paid by essentially George Lucas to perform Yoda. It sounds ridiculous, but in the studio 鈥� I鈥檝e done a ton of voiceover work, and sometimes you just go and it鈥檚 a lot of fun, or it鈥檚 a paycheque and you go and do your thing and go home 鈥� but that one was, 鈥業鈥檓 doing Yoda! Yoda!鈥� It was a big sense of pride personally to do that particular role.鈥�
