A Q&A with Michael Peña & Dax Shepard

The late-70s/early 80s TV program “CHiPs” was a phenomenon in its day and introduced a pair of more-than-capable California Highway Patrol officers: Officer Jon Baker and Officer Frank “Ponch” Poncherello. “CHiPs” was one of the first shows on network television to stage large-scale stunts and explosions, and the series ran for six seasons and continues in syndication.

Nearly 40 years after its initial premiere, “CHiPs” has been adapted into a film starring Michael Peña (“Ant-Man”) and Dax Shepard (“Parenthood”) as Ponch and Baker, respectively, with Shepard also serving as writer and director of the project. I had the opportunity to speak with both men at a press conference at the Ritz Carlton in Philadelphia on March 3, where we discussed influences, luck, and public demand for Erik Estrada.

ROSE WELDON: Were there any scenes you had to cut that you really didn’t want to?

DAX SHEPARD: Yes, in particular, there was a scene with Michael, who you saw in the movie. [His character] is not just obsessed with women, but also with the clothes they wear and the stitching – he’s a savant about his appreciation for women and their clothing. So he [Peña] had a sex scene that we cut out of the movie, that I kept fighting for and I kept trying, in every version, to make it work. He was having sex with this woman, but he could not stop looking at her underwear. He was so distracted with her underwear, like ‘why would she wear those underwear?’ and ‘you shouldn’t wear these brands,’ and then it becomes a thing about what brands she’s wearing. And it was so weird. I think, for us, we loved it, but the test audiences were like, ‘He’s a bit of a serial killer now’ [laughs]. I think we dipped into serial killer territory. But that’ll be on the DVD.

MICHAEL PEÑA: Oh God, dude! If it’s in the movie for some reason, it’s cool, but having the sex scene in the outtakes just makes it a little…

DS: Well, yes. Had that scene come later in the movie, I think people would have died laughing. But they’re still getting to know [Ponch], it was just too early. They don’t love [him] yet, but by the end they’d be up for it.

RW: Of course, you’ve got Erik Estrada [the original actor who played Ponch] in there for a cameo – but did you also make an attempt to get Larry Wilcox [the original actor for Baker] in there as well?

DS: No, because when we were about to make this movie, leading up to it, every single person I told that I was doing the movie, the very first question out of their mouth is, “Will Estrada be in it?” There was such a demand from the public for Erik Estrada that it was unavoidable. He [Estrada] was going to be in the movie hell or high water.

RW: Was there any difficulty in maintaining the tone of “this is a comedy, this is like ‘Bad Boys,’” while you have some serious events and accidents?

DS: If you’re directing something someone else wrote, you’re already combining two different points of view – the director’s point of view and the writer’s. Then you add the actors to that, and they are adding their own point of view. And so, I do think it’s much easier for me to achieve a consistent tone, because I know what I like at all times. Whether that’s for action, I know what kind of action I like, and I know what kind of acting I like. So weirdly, what I like becomes this unifying tone. I can feel, even if it’s kind of a broader bit of comedy, weirdly it’s the same mechanism that determines whether the action sucks or looks cool. There wasn’t anything that Michael [Peña] needed to be told. But with the many other actors who would come in, and a lot of them were just friends of mine who came in for an afternoon – Maya Rudolph just stopped by for an afternoon [for her role] – I have to tell them what movie they’re in, because you can read the script in many different ways. So I would just say to them, ‘You’re in “Pulp Fiction.” You’re not in “Paul Blart: Mall Cop.” Pretend you’re in “Pulp Fiction,” and this scene will work.’ And pretty much, if you start it from that point of view, then everyone’s in the same movie. 

RW: Were there any other influences besides the TV show? Because while I was watching, seeing the balance of the comedy and the action, I was thinking of “Burn Notice.”

MP: [The show with] Jeffrey Donovan, right? That’s my golfing buddy, but I haven’t seen that many “Burn Notice” episodes.

DS: Definitely, my influences were “Bad Boys” and “Lethal Weapon.” That’s what I watched on repeat while I was writing the script. Have you seen either of those?

RW: Yes.

DS: I wasn’t trying to be insulting, just curious. I’m sure “Lethal Weapon” was out before you were born. And “Bad Boys” probably came out the year you were born.

RW: So around ’97?

MP: Whoa! Okay.

DS: Hey-o! We’re old as f***.

RW: So, what were the biggest surprises for you while working on “CHiPs?”

DS: Mine was how lucky we got. We were shooting during what was supposed to be the worst El Niño in California in the last 20 years. And in our entire shoot, which was all outdoors, it rained only one time, and it was on the scene where we needed rain. I just thought this is not possible. The fact that we did hundreds and hundreds of stunts and we had a single injury – a guy got stitches on his chin – that was it. No broken bones, no one went to the hospital. We didn’t smash any cars on accident, everything that got hit was supposed to get hit. The amount of luck we had; it felt like a very blessed experience…We finished on time and under budget, it was all too good.

“CHiPS” opens in area theaters on March 24.