He's not a real pirate, but Norfolk actor Derrick Johnson will soon be able to say he played one on TV.
At 10 p.m. Sunday, the Discovery Channel will air "Somali Pirate Takedown, The Real Story," an examination of the Somali pirate standoff in April that was ended by Navy snipers.
Johnson plays the leader of the hijackers, Abduwali Abduqadir Muse, 18, who was the only pirate to survive the siege and who awaits trial in New York.
On April 8, Muse teamed up with other young bandits to hijack the U.S.-flagged Alabama, which is managed by Norfolk-based Maersk Line Ltd., as it hauled humanitarian supplies off the Somali coast.
An FBI criminal complaint said Muse was the first to board the boat, firing his AK-47 assault rifle at the captain, Richard Phillips. The pirates eventually got Phillips on a lifeboat and tried to get away.
The pirates held Phillips, of Underhill, Vt., hostage for several days on the hot, enclosed lifeboat.
The standoff ended when Navy SEAL snipers aboard the Norfolk-based destroyer Bainbridge
got the go-ahead to shoot, and they killed three pirates, rescuing Phillips.
The Discovery Channel and sister cable station The Military Channel have produced a study of the case, including re-enactments, new footage of the pirates aboard the rogue lifeboat, original interviews with members of the Maersk Alabama crew, an outline of the Navy's efforts to rescue Phillips, and exclusive footage shot by Military Channel's embedded crews aboard Navy ships leading counterpiracy operations in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean.
Johnson said he took part in six days of shooting in Hampton Roads on the Cape Rise and the Gopher State, two Military Sealift Command ships.
He had about a week to prepare and said he learned a great deal about the pirates, Somalia and the history of pirating.
Johnson said he was curious to know what would motivate someone to head out to sea in a little boat and hijack a giant ship.
He found out that one factor is khat, a plant that is used as a stimulant.
"I found out that they chew on the leaves that get them all hyped up so they could actually take on such a task."
Johnson, who also acted in a production this week about Dolley Madison that was shooting in the Richmond area, said he was very impressed with the team from the Discovery Channel.
As they shot re-enactment footage for the documentary, "it was like they were actually shooting a movie."
The Discovery Channel said the program will give a moment-by-moment account of the story from the time the pirates boarded the cargo vessel to the safe return of Phillips.
Some interviews, including Chief Engineer Mike Perry's, are the crew members' first broadcast interviews in which they share their experiences confronting the pirates and regaining control of their ship.
Vice Adm. William E. Gortney and Rear Adm. Terrence E. Mc-Knight illustrate the Navy's timeline of events from the Maersk Alabama's initial distress call to the amazing conclusion, featuring three simultaneous gunshots fired by SEAL snipers. Kevin Dockery, Navy SEAL expert and author, discusses the expertise required to coordinate these deadly accurate shots from the fantail of a moving vessel.
Dan Duke, (757) 446-2546, dan.duke@pilotonline.com
Source: Hamptonroads.com
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