Welcome back to real life, folks. As I sit in my place of business (read: dorm room) writing this, I’m clutching onto memories of indulging in a Hallmark Channel romantic comedy marathon on the couch in my pajamas from the bygone era of Thanksgiving weekend (aka Sunday afternoon). But to stave off the harsh realities of the fact that there are still three weeks of the mundane left until you get off from work again, you can fantasize about the TV you’re going to watch tonight. (Or, in my case, back to Hallmark.) Until you get there, here’s what the actors that you’ve self-proclaimed to be your alter-egos, much to everyone else’s disagreement, have been saying this week. All of these actors have a unique quality about them in that they don't fit the blonde, blue-eyed, pre-Hobo chic Brad Pitt template. But from what they said in their interviews, it seems like that's not a requirement to make it in TV anymore.
In possibly one of the most understatedly legendary lunch dates I’ve ever heard of, Roseanne Barr and Mindy Kaling sat down at the hopelessly swanky Bel-Air Hotel together for an interview with the New York Times. Yep, together. Just for a casual chat about their dreamy lives. At the risk of awesome-overload, let’s take what they said one at a time.
Mindy Kaling, The Mindy Project
Mindy’s known for her blunt vocalizations about the challenges of making it as a woman in the industry that’s not conventionally beautiful (“If you’re saying that Hilary Swank isn’t hot, then I’m not hot, because obviously I’m not as hot as Hilary Swank!”). But she doesn’t often talk about how she got her start, and it’s as hilarious as you can imagine, but not surprising, considering Mindy essentially speaks in pop culture references.
She said, “I wrote a play [“Matt and Ben,” about Matt Damon and Ben Affleck], and then I was a writer and an actor on “The Office.” But I knew if I was going to have my own show, I’d have to do it myself.”
Roseanne Barr, Roseanne
Roseanne also had challenges breaking into the fore of television, especially considering how popular her show became after hitting its stride peppering comedy with serious problems like obesity, poverty, and domestic issues. Even though you could imagine Roseanne Harris bursting into a room full of studio execs in her bathrobe and slippers and curlers in her hair, it turned out that Roseanne Barr was unsuccessful in that approach. As much as we would pay to see that scene... #GiveThePeopleWhatTheyWant
Barr remembers, “Nobody wanted the “Roseanne” show. I heard from agents that there was no interest in a show about a fat woman and her family. It wasn’t until [the producers] Marcy Carsey and Tom Werner got involved. They wanted to do a show about a working mom, and they were the ones who sold it to ABC.”
Jonathan Groff, Looking
Jonathan Groff, who you may not recognize by name but will definitely recognize by reputation, made his television debut as Lea Michele’s boyfriend, Jesse St. James on Glee, back when anyone other than Ryan Murphy watched the show. Before that, he was a Broadway star in Spring Awakening (you know, that scandalous one about teenagers discovering their sexuality…onstage?)
TowleRoad interviewed him about his wave of new projects, from a role in Frozen to an AIDS drama, The Normal Heart and the television show, Looking. Groff commented on how such pivotal roles in television culture affect his approach.
He said, “I feel like getting "Normal Heart" and getting "Looking"... It was the projects that excited me. The fact that both obviously are gay projects is an added bonus. Obviously being out, being gay, it means even more to me that I'm getting to work on projects like that. Whether or not things are well received, I put my head down and do the work. That's been the way.”
Louis Lombardi, Mob City
Often when an actor has a nontraditional appearance, they’ll carve out a niche for themselves so they can play a certain character consistently. But don’t worry, I’m not going to go into a diatribe about typecasting (mostly because I already did). I’ll let Lombardi, who you may recognize as the omnipresent henchman in Entourage, 24, The Usual Suspects, Natural Born Killers, and more, speak for himself. He told TVWise about why there are so many roles for guys like him in the gangster genre.
He said, “I think people are fascinated with gangsters in general. Look at The Sopranos which is a modern day gangster story. It’s probably the greatest television show ever. The Godfather is like the number one movie ever. I think people from every walk of life relate to that criminal element. People just love gangsters.”
