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Darren Criss, Jim Parsons and Chris Evans on the lockdown and their new TV shows
Los Angeles — We almost fell off our couch when we heard Fil-Am actor Darren Criss’ character in the new Ryan Murphy TV series say he was “half-Filipino.” You don’t get that said often in mainstream TV.
The new TV drama series is aptly titled “Hollywood,” and Darren's director character, Raymond Ainsley, proclaims he is “half-Filipino”— just like Darren himself.
It is the story of a group of aspiring actors and filmmakers who will do anything to make their dreams come true in post-World War II Hollywood. Darren is also an executive producer.
We talked to Darren about the show and interviewed his co-star Jim Pasons, who portrays the manipulative Hollywood talent agent Henry Wilson, a far cry from his “Big Bang Theory” character.
Chris Evans, on the other hand, also talked to us about his new TV show “Defending Jacob” where he portrays Andy Barber in the crime-drama-mystery.
All of them shared how they are coping during these COVID-19 days.
Below are excerpts of our conversations with the three talented actors via BlueJeans video conferencing. Darren was in Los Angeles; Jim was in New York; and Chris was in Massachusetts when we talked to them separately:
Darren Criss
You have been working with Ryan Murphy for a really long time now. How has the collaboration grown in these years? Have you guys gotten into a shorthand?
I think just by nature of him inviting me to be a producer on here was definitely a step of me growing up a little bit. I can’t take a whole lot of credit for this show, we had a dinner where I didn’t intentionally pitch what would become this show, we were just talking about 1940s Hollywood, which I neither invented or created.
Hollywood in the '40s is a genre that — and I say genre, not just a period because it is so full of mythology and lore that we all love so much. It’s kind of up there with sci-fi and fantasy. It has its own kind of world. So we were just riffing on that.
By the time he sold the show after we were kind of just brainstorming, he sold it within a day or two. And then afterwards, he just asked me if I wanted to be an executive producer. And I said, 'are you sure? That is very kind of you, but I understand that this will be your thing and I don’t want to be too big for my britches.'
And of course he was like, 'you are an idiot, of course take it.' I say that because I was very appreciative, I think of the goodwill that he gave to me because he knew that it was something that were kind of piecing together.
But I definitely didn’t write the script or anything. He was very gracious to include me on the sort of very preliminary creative steps and was very open to my input and he was very receptive to that stuff. So there’s a shorthand in so far as I have learned to, he is the busiest man in Hollywood, so I try and keep it short and sweet and concise and I try not to be too big for my britches. It’s the Ryan thing and when in doubt, let him take the lead and I am just happy to be invited.
Your character is also half-Filipino, just like yourself. Talk about how much you can relate to your character.
You have been around in my life in a much more Filipino capacity than others. It’s a huge part of my background. But it wasn’t until the past few years where the idea of being white passing or the idea of a part of your identity being unrecognized was ever really a concept to me.
I think it was made clear because there are so many people, either from the Filipino community or other historically marginalized groups, that kind of gave me the term of, 'oh you are white passing.' And I never thought of that because my whole life, I just was me.
I knew I was Filipino, my dad was white, it was what it was. And so I never thought of that as an internal conflict or an issue until honestly working on “Versace.” It was a conflict for Andrew because it was something that he tried to hide because he was ashamed and he didn’t want to be different, whereas the villain in this scenario is less the self and more, the main antagonist of this show is the '1940s and the suppression and repression that comes from the time itself.
I am happy to say I don’t relate because I have never really felt slighted in any way because of my background. I am very lucky in that way. I have always felt very supported and welcomed and that’s just a lot of luck and I am very grateful in my life for the people who have given me that.
But somebody like Raymond, he sees this as a reason to kind of start this social justice crusade. You know what, he’s just like Ryan Murphy in the sense that there are things about him that he has had to fight through and accept as a young closeted man from a small town in Indiana, growing up to own the things that he was insecure about and using them to his advantage and in so doing, breaking down the walls for other people that were also in the shadows.
So I think there’s a lot of Ryan Murphy in Raymond, who looks at film and television as a way to push culture forward and to be an advocate for the underdog.
It was great for you to get into old time Hollywood. But facing the problems we are living in today, how do you envision the future of the movie industry? How can we reopen the space in the cinema while protecting and keeping people safe?
Oh gosh, I am definitely the last authority on this matter. I am just as interested in that question as I think all people are in the entertainment business. I don’t know what the answer is but I do know that after we make it out of this, I think we are going to reevaluate a lot of systems that have been in place for several decades, if not a full millennia.
So I love the big joke that once we started going into quarantine, I saw something going around about now we all know which meetings really could have just been an email. So there are a lot of things where we go okay, we really don’t have to do it this way. And times of chaos make you reevaluate systems. I mean personally, I am a fan of the cinema, I will always be a fan, I think it’s because I am a theater person.
What is the first thing I am going to do when I am out of this? I am going to go to the bars, I am going to go to my piano bar, I am going to get really close to people, and I am probably going to make out with everybody at my bar, frankly.
I mean I just want to be with people, I enjoy the catharsis of communicating, of experiencing things with strangers in a fun — that is what entertainment does, it brings us together.
And even though we are brought together in our homes, there’s something so magical and eternal about sitting in a room and in real time feeling people and hearing people laughing or crying and realizing, oh they are feeling what I am feeling. That’s one of the sort of nuclei of the human experience is getting to do it together.
So I hope that cinemas can reopen soon, however given the priorities of human necessity, I should hope that it isn’t the absolute first thing that needs to happen, I say that to my own chagrin, I work in entertainment and I work in the theaters.
Obviously I would love this to happen but only when it is safe for the world at large. But I think no matter what, human beings will always find a way, even though we always say, 'oh, we are on our phones, everyone is so disconnected, look at all the kids, they are on their phones,' human beings inevitably always find a way to get together in person. It is inevitable and I wholeheartedly believe that.
What does the word Hollywood evoke for you? What is the first image, the first sound, the first memory that comes to your mind if I say Hollywood?
It is such a huge concept because I didn’t think, it wasn’t until I moved to Los Angeles that I even realized that it was a place.
I think for so many people, it’s a concept. To go to Hollywood is so much bigger than the sign and the place and the industry, it’s a mantra of sorts to people. So Hollywood to me was the entertainment industry.
I think there are people who aren’t even in the entertainment industry that refer to Hollywood as going big, going for broke, the big dream, the classic great white somewhere.
It’s always meant a whole lot. I mean it’s hard for me to disassociate it from the Hollywood sign and my own career. But gosh it’s an interesting question, it’s just all the things, it’s dreams and it’s the dream factory. For me, all of us having dreams as kids and wanting to work in the entertainment industry, you hear the world Hollywood and it’s exciting, it’s this eternal exciting Mount Olympus that you hope you get to visit. And I have been lucky enough to be granted access and I am still waiting for them to kick me out.
Jim Parsons
What it’s like to enter the Ryan Murphy universe and what it’s like to collaborate on a project with him?
It is one of the most creative places, for me at least, that I’ve ever been involved in anywhere.
It was one of the reasons without having read it or even knowing that much about it when he brought it up to me, I knew in my heart I was going to end up doing it barring something very odd because I feel really fortunate to consider myself part of the Ryan Murphy world.
I consider Ryan and people he works with, kind of my artistic family if you will. It’s amazing — and you know this to varying degrees I’m sure, but it’s amazing how often work the majority of the time does not come from an audition or from an agent or a manager, as much work as they do, and sometimes things do but more often comes from relationships you’ve built.
And to have this relationship with Ryan is just always rewarding. As you know, he’s not only brave and unafraid, which he’s always been in his artistic endeavors, but it’s paid off for him so handsomely that he now also has more leverage. And so there’s just so few things that Ryan can’t realize if he wants to, maybe nothing. So I guess that’s my Ryan answer.
You had just come off a beloved sitcom character when you took on this role. Was it liberating or scary for you to take this on?
It was liberating. I was very excited to do it. Part of that though does go back to Ryan again. Ryan creates such an environment of — I guess safety is the right word, freedom, you feel very taken care of, you feel like you’ll be able to play and only your best stuff will make the cut. He’s going to take care of you and guide you.
The physical transformation was also very freeing, it was a long time in the makeup chair, I got a bald thing put on and then a head on top of that. And then I got these prosthetic teeth and the brown contacts and everything. And I was surprised from beginning to end at the way I felt different at a level I had never felt as an actor before when I left that trailer every day.
And part of it was due to the amount of time I was in there, it was get in, sit down, you go through a process, you’re a changed person by the end. And then looking in the mirror. Eye color alone is an amazing thing of how it changes people. But I had never gotten to do anything like that before and I would love to do more like that. Whether it was just because of that or that was just part of it, it was as playful an experience as an actor I’ve ever had. It was such a joy.
I really had fun also watching you choreograph that drag scene in the bedroom with the Rock Hudson character. Did you get a standing ovation?
(Laughs) I don’t know, I may have been too bashful to look around at that point. I had this little rental apartment in L.A. and I knew that day was coming that I’d have to do some sort of dance and I just started looking up Isadora Duncan and examples of people doing dances like her and reading about her a little bit.
Oh it sounds so silly, but then I just started moving my body and mimicking them but also it was what Isadora, what I felt she would do. And argh, the only thing I felt was thank God Henry Wilson, my character, probably isn’t supposed to actually be a good dancer. He’s not supposed to ace this, don’t worry about it, he just cares about it, he cares about it passionately. And that was really fun.
Here’s what’s funny about it: It was ridiculous but I really felt for somebody that had that relationship with that and that he had this…it kind of related to being gay, some of his bliss was in this secretive…of course he dragged Rock into to see it so I don’t know how secretive he was about it but that was quite a costume he threw together. Anyway, it was really fun and I’m lucky I didn’t throw my neck out, that’s all I’ll say.
Chris Evans
Where are you calling from and how are you coping in this new lockdown?
I am actually back in Massachusetts, that is where I am from and that is where I spend the majority of my time and I just wanted to be closer to my family.
It’s unprecedented times and I think everyone is trying to navigate these unchartered waters together and I think it certainly is scary and it’s certainly unsettling to think about what the future may hold. So I guess I just feel very lucky and fortunate that I am around people I love and just trying to stay united during this, like I said, it’s scary times.
What kind of things are you doing during these days? Are you watching a lot of TV?
No, it’s pretty much a similar habit that I would normally do. I am pretty much a homebody anyway, I don’t go out much as it is. I suppose there’s a lot more time to kind of kick around the house now, it can lead to being a little stir crazy. But a lot of reading, a lot of time with my dog.
How has this pandemic affected you on a professional level?
There are a few projects on hold, everything is on hold right now. So yeah there were a few projects that I had kind of lined up and everything will now have to be shifted a bit I suppose. But not in a major way, I wasn’t in production or anything and there wasn’t any start date on anything that had to be pushed. This was all still in the early stages.
Do you see yourself working out more often or maybe less because we can’t go out as often anymore?
I certainly feel more active. My sleep pattern is much more regular, I am usually in bed by 9:30pm and I am up at 7am and it just feels very quotidian and even a little monastic.
You can be a little bit more deliberate when the day is encumbered with responsibility. You can take your time with things a little bit more and as a result I think that actually has a little bit of a healthier vibration and rhythm to it than a constant breakneck speed.
How much did you enjoy playing Andy Barber? You play a lawyer, a father, a husband? Did you identify with him?
It was fun to play him just because I really enjoyed playing a father. I have a wonderful relationship with my father and I like exploring that depth of love. I think whether that depth of love comes with a husband and a wife or a father and a son or an animal and their owner, any sort of, the willingness to show how far we are willing to go with people based on that love and that connection.
I think one of the scariest things is when that love is predicated on an understanding of who you think someone is. But to have that foundation rocked when you have spent so much time on this and as I said earlier, this isn’t something that you can just walk away from, it’s your family, it’s a part of you. And you are forced to wade through the swamp to find out if this is salvageable and this is something that you kind of not only lie to yourself about, but lie to the people you love about.
You have not been doing television for 20 years and here you are now with a magnificent show. Can you talk about your coming back to television?
Some of the most captivating, exciting material is coming out of TV and all these streaming services popping up everywhere and there are a lot of really wonderfully creative people taking a lot of fun risks and making a lot of great work.
So I think those lines are blurred and it doesn’t feel very different to me to traverse between film or television. And this project just came along and it was more about wanting to work with people that I had sat down with.
I met with Mark Bomback (the creator) and Morten Tyldum (the director) and they were just incredibly thoughtful in the material and Mark is such a wonderful writer and Morten has such a clear vision. And Morten was going to direct all eight episodes which I loved, the kind of unity of vision and a singular voice. And it was just timing really.
What does this period which is both traumatic and different teach you?
It’s such a scary time and it’s so easy to get lost in your thoughts and let those thoughts really create a certain level of anxiety. But for me, it’s been about, I think we all have a little bit more stillness in our life right now and I think leaning into that stillness, maybe surrendering a little bit to it and kind of in this time of pause, maybe try and ju-jitsu that a little bit and try to make that an asset, begin to cultivate that stillness as a daily practice.
And I think it’s one of the most effective ways to combat the anxiety, but certainly an effective tool to add to your repertoire as you move forward in life. Because the thoughts will always from time to time, start galloping and it’s really nice when that happens to kind of ease it down to a trot by remembering the stillness. — LA, GMA News
