BRIDGING TV & THEATRE: Mehcad Brooks & NECESSARY ROUGHNESS

Today we are continuing our summer spotlight on the TV shows featuring some of the brightest and best talent onscreen and onstage with the third part of BroadwayWorld's series on USA's new primetime network drama NECESSARY ROUGHNESS focusing on leading player Mehcad Brooks, who essays the role of star football quarterback Terrance "TK" King on the show. Featuring an impressive assortment of players known for roles on screens large and small and stages far and wide, NECESSARY ROUGHNESS was created by Craig Shapiro and Liz Kruger and features Callie Thorne, Marc Blucas, Scott Cohen, Mehcad Brooks and Andrea Anders. The show centers on therapist Dr. Dani Santino (Thorne) and her suddenly crumbling domestic life coming in the wake of her husband's (Craig Bierko) newly discovered affair, just as she enters a new area of expertise in her field and starts taking on the clients of her career - chief among them being star quarterback TK (Brooks). Will her newfound romance with Matthew (Blucas) and his relationship to the team lead to a fumble? And who exactly is the shadowy figure behind the scenes, Nico (Cohen)? Plus, how will Dr. Santino balance the roles of therapist, mother and newly-single woman approaching her forties? NECESSARY ROUGHNESS goes in for a touchdown by bringing together issues from all sides and taking them on play-by-play - because, after all, as the tagline goes: "Everyone has issues to tackle." Touchdown!

Charismatic and charming featured player on NECESSARY ROUGHNESS Mehcad Brooks is known to TV fans for arcs on DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES, TRUE BLOOD, MY GENERATION and THE DEEP END - and to Times Square visitors for his Calvin Klein ad - but it is with the role of Terrance "TK" King on this new USA series that he has solidified his star status - and, in only a handful of episodes, at that, since the show just began. Brooks was generous enough to field some questions about his experiences on NECESSARY ROUGHNESS on and off the field and screen yesterday, as well as working with show creator Craig Shapiro - plus, creators and show runners on DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES and TRUE BLOOD, Marc Cherry and Alan Ball - in addition to illustrating his palpable rapport with cast-mates Callie Thorne, Marc Blucas and Scott Cohen, who are all also a part of this special summer series on BroadwayWorld.

NECESSARY ROUGHNESS airs Wednesday nights at 10 PM on USA.

CK To TK

PC: I actually interviewed Craig Shapiro for this column last month and...

MB: Oh, that's great.

PC: I was curious if you could juxtapose your experience working with him with Alan Ball on TRUE BLOOD and Marc Cherry on DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES? What comparisons could you make between the three?

MB: That's a great question. Well, first of all, it should be known that T.K. is completely based on Craig Shapiro. (Long Pause. Laughs.)

PC: That's so funny.

MB: Obviously, that's not true. (Laughs.)

PC: Definitely not.

MB: Back to your question, I would say that all three were very hands-on, but they had very different ways of doing it.

PC: How so?

MB: Marc Cherry, you know, would come up in his golf cart at Universal and hand deliver you notes and critique your performance from the night before.

PC: Wow.

MB: Yeah, I was like "OK...?"

PC: Yeah.

MB: ... but, you know, it was not in a way where you felt really critiqued - he was just giving you constructive criticism.

PC: Like a stage director.

MB: Almost like a stage director, yeah - there you go.

PC: What about Alan Ball?

MB: Alan Ball was... I mean, he's just so brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. The way he handled it was that he was very hands-on by hiring the right person to do what they do and then allowing you to run with it - and, if at any point in time he felt like it was, you know, out of line with the character, then he would speak up. But, for the most part, you didn't hear much from Alan about your character.

PC: Interesting.

MB: You heard from Alan about a movie or a composer or a song or a political issue and so on and so forth... but, he was very hands-on by being hands-off. (Pause.) I don't know if that makes sense, but...

PC: It totally does.

MB: ...it completely does when you are in the situation.

PC: And Craig Shapiro?

MB: With Craig Shapiro, I think he's got the best of both worlds in the fact that: he is available any time of day; if you have any questions, he is always reachable and he always gets back to you - Liz and Craig both. He is hands-on to the point where he knows his own limits, do you know what I mean?

PC: Yes - I've seen him work on set.

MB: Yeah, when we are shooting in Atlanta sometimes he is in Los Angeles running the show, so if there is a character situation going on - something like: for instance, on other shows I've worked on if there is a different choice you want to make or a different line you want to throw in, you have to get it approved.

PC: Oh, jeez.

MB: Yeah, you have to call LA - even if it is seven o'clock in the morning on the East Coast, and, you're like, "But, there's no one awake!" "You call them."

PC: Ridiculous, right?

MB: It‘s like: "How can I get this line approved? This makes no sense!" And, Liz and Craig are just like, you know, "Hey, just do it and just give us what we want at least one time so we have the option." And, once again, they have a hands-on hands-off approach to it.

PC: I see.

MB: They are like doctors - they are very precise and if something is wrong they fix it. If something is not wrong, they say, you know, "Just maintain."

PC: Could you tell me what your physical transformation was like from DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES to Calvin Klein to playing a quarterback now? You looks like you've put on major muscle.

MB: Hmmm, you know, I don't quite recall what I was weighing when I was like twenty-four years old when I did HOUSEWIVES, but Calvin Klein, I can tell you, man: that is a kind of special deal for me. That's the anomaly - that's the pinnacle.

PC: The ad is everywhere.

MB: Once I found out I had it, I had about a month to prepare. So, what I did was I got on this special diet and I was training with weights twice a day and running or biking six or seven miles a day, all while I was shooting this show called THE DEEP END in Dallas.

PC: Wow.

MB: (Big Sigh.) Yeah, that was just insane. I was cutting carbs around three PM... and, so, that's not gonna happen again! (Laughs.)

PC: That's tough!

MB: Yeah, that's not gonna happen again unless somebody is gonna pay me to get in my underwear again. (Laughs.) So, yeah, I don't walk around like that.

PC: Who could?

MB: You see, I'm just going to have to be completely honest: I don't walk around like that. It was crazy. It would take way too much work and I would just end up being on a subway somewhere and shoving somebody because I would just go insane - (Yells. Growls.) "I want some carbs!"

PC: Could you tell me what your working collaboration with Scott Cohen and Marc Blucas is like? They're such fun guys.

MB: They are fun guys - and they are the nicest guys you are ever likely to meet. Also, I think they are actually doing some of the best work of their entire careers - and, they love it! We are all doing, like, the best work of our careers - and, we all love it.

PC: It shows.

MB: It's so nIce To collaborate with Marc and Scott - and, again, I learn so much just by watching these guys work. And, keep in mind, I am the youngest guy out of the four, so, a lot of times I am, obviously, doing my job, but I am astounded by how good everybody else is. I am so lucky to be surrounded by that and I am so blessed to be able to kind of sit back at times and learn. It's amazing. It's really amazing.

PC: It sounds it!

MB: It's like free school and a job!

PC: You make the show, Mehcad! Congratulations.

MB: Aww, thank you so much!

PC: You're the star! What a role! Craig told me when I spoke to him that he knew you were perfect from the very first audition.

MB: Oh, Craig is a flatterer - but I so appreciate it. That means a lot and I will take it to heart. Thank you.

PC: Thank you so much, Mehcad. This was great.

MB: Thank you, Pat. Bye bye.

Photo Credit: Paul Fenton/ZUMA Press