From his memorable role on "Boston Public" to a guest appearance on "How I Met Your Mother," Chi McBride has practically seen the entire spectrum of TV shows throughout his career.
As of late, McBride has stepped into the shoes of Detective Don Owen on CBS' "Golden Boy," and while he told HuffPost that "it is what it is, another TV show" there's a glimmer of excitement beneath his tough and experienced exterior.
Read on for McBride's "Golden Boy" commentary, how he feels about acting as an art, and what it was like working with "Parks and Recreation" star Rashida Jones.
How is "Golden Boy" different from other shows you've been on, like "Boston Public" and "Pushing Daisies"?
It's a cop drama. It's a difference in genre, so that's pretty much the only difference for me.
Do you have a lot of action scenes?
Yeah, a lot of running and jumping. Thank God I lost 60 pounds. But it's fine. It's good for my career! Me losing weight is because I'm trying to stay alive, because you can't do a show if you're dead. But I'm not one of those guys who believes you actually have to smoke crack to play a crack addict. I'm not one of those method guys.
What do you think makes this cop show different from the other ones out there?
I think there are a lot of cop shows out there for a reason. People like what they like. The only people who want something new and out of the box are television critics, and that's because they watch everything. But everybody doesn't watch everything. Cop dramas are pretty much as old as television itself. But the difference is that this is more about relationships than just the case of the week. The writers do a pretty good job of balancing the procedural and character development. That's the greatest difference in these shows.
So is there anything you do to get into character?
I don't know. I wish I had one of those sexy answers for you. The truth is that the only thing more boring than actors talking about politics is actors talking about acting. It's all pretend, man. Some guy took a tumor out of some kid's head today the size of a lemon, that's work. This is just the same thing you did as a kid, and the fact that some guy can sit around and wax poetic about the process of acting is quite honestly laughable to me.
Rashida Jones was on "Boston Public" with you. What has been like watching her career blow up?
Rashida played my character Steven Harper's assistant. Rashida is a very talented actress. With talent, awards come and eventually more people will know who you are. There will never be issue with Rashida's talent. She has plenty of it. She kind of comes from talented genealogy. [Laughs]
"Golden Boys" airs on Fri., Mar. 8 at 9 p.m. EST and will move into its regular time slot on Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET starting Mar. 12.
