'Terra Nova': We interview Jason O'Mara, he interviews Stephen Lang and Brannon Braga

Jason O'Mara is deep into shooting FOX's ambitious new drama "Terra Nova" in Australia, but he came to the United States last week to discuss the show with reporters at the Television Critics Association press tour.

O'Mara ("Life on Mars") is also an interviewer himself. He's been conducting "impromptu interviews" with his co-stars and some of the "Terra Nova" producing team on his website, and you can see a couple of them (with co-star Stephen Lang and executive producer Brannon Braga) below.

In "Terra Nova," O'Mara plays a former cop who travels 85 million years back in time with his family as part of a colony that aims to restart human civilization. And yes, he's aware of the surface similarities between this role and his last series: "I called my family, saying, 'Guess what? I got a new show. It's about a cop who travels in time.' And they said, 'I think we've seen that one,'" he jokes.

That coincidence aside, though, "Life on Mars" and "Terra Nova" don't have much in common. "Life on Mars" didn't have dinosaurs, for one thing, and O'Mara's "Terra Nova" character is a husband and father, which is part of what drew him to the role.

"Playing a father is something I've wanted to do for a while, being a father in real life. My son [with his wife, actress Paige Turco] is 7 1/2. I feel like I'm able to bring that just by being a father," he says. "... And also, I'm attracted to gambles, to long shots. I know there are some great people attached to this, and obviously there's a large marketing campaign, a lot of buzz. But it's still pretty high-concept, and we're betting on this. I'm betting on it. I think it's a cool idea."

"Terra Nova" premieres Monday, Sept. 26 on FOX. Take a look at O'Mara's interviews with Lang and Braga: