By the time William B. Davis debuted in the pilot episode of The X-Files as the Cigarette Smoking Man, he’d already built a storied career as a director, acting teacher, and actor on both sides of the Atlantic. William documented his journey to The X-Files in his 2013 book, Where There’s Smoke… Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man – a journey that began with CBC audio dramas when he was a child and continues to this day with roles on popular fare like Amazon Studio’s Upload and Mike Flanagan’s highly anticipated horror series The Midnight Club. 

Despite his busy schedule, William somehow found the time to write a second book: On Acting… And Life, which was released earlier this month and is a celebration of the craft of acting. This new book is rich with anecdotes about directing actors and developing characters, while also providing the kind of practical information about rehearsing, learning lines, and fine-tuning work that actors pay good money for in acting schools. 

In this compelling conversation with Sabrina Rani Furminger, William reflects on his career (including his time in the Cigarette Smoking Man’s cloud of smoke), and shares what he feels actors need to know in order to build careers that feed their souls. Episode sponsor: UBCP/ACTRA