SOMETIMES actors become so renowned for playing a particular role that you can’t imagine them in anything else.
It’s as laughable as expecting to see Melissa McCarthy cast in a serious role à la Jennifer Aniston (Cake), Charlize Theron (Monster) or Halle Berry (Monster’s Ball).
I’m not saying she can’t pull it off, she probably could go method and be bloody marvellous – but she’s pigeonholed in comedy.
Of course, there are those actors who, despite the objection of sceptics, make that departure with aplomb.
We have seen it with Ted Danson when he took over the baton to helm CSI. More recently, it was Dawson Creek’s James Van Der Beek, who was cast in CSI: Cyber, and Scott Bakula, with NCIS: New Orleans.
Now the question is: can pretty boy Josh Duhamel pull off a crime drama? Especially given that he has proved to be more in his element in the rom-com playground.
But he has been cast as FBI Special Agent Milton Chamberlain.
And if heavyweight TV creators David Shore (House) and Vince Gilligan (Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul) saw fit to cast him, he must have been pretty darn impressive.
Also, its seems as if Duhamel is scouting for diversity in his career – that’s something Matthew McConaughey can relate to.
Of course, when McConaughey divorced himself from flimsy roles, he went on to win awards with Dallas Buyers Club and True Detective.
Battle Creek probably won’t do that for Duhamel – it didn’t get the nod for a second season – but it is a step in the right direction.
On returning to the TV world, especially after Las Vegas, he told Hitfix.com: “Well, I wasn’t looking for anything specific, you know. I made a conscious effort that I just wanted to work with people who were going to make me better – writers, directors… in whatever medium – and that was the main thing. And when this came up, it was more about the fact that it had Vince and it was David Shore. Of course, that was appealing.
“When I first read the script, I wasn’t sure even then. It was like: ‘is this really something I want to do?’ I liked their script, but the character was… just a little bit too perfect and too buttoned up. I really wanted to know, ‘okay, this guy cannot just be the polished-up, perfect agent who has got everything going for him’. That’s boring. So we (the creators and he) talked a lot about it.”
When they established that this character was more multi-layered and wore a veneer of perfection, the character became a lot more interesting for Duhamel.
Of his character, he shares: “The lengths and the lies this guy will perpetuate are heinous, which means that whatever the ‘truth’ is, it’s a lot worse.
“Milton really believes he can change. It’s not a masquerade that he’s orchestrating. He really does want to start afresh and believes that if you do the right things, you can outrun the wrongs of your past.”
On being partnered with Winters, he offers: “Dean, he’s a tough guy. He grew up in New York. He is a lot of fun to work with. He is a really cool dude and I love his prickly nature. He reminds me of James Caan in a lot of ways.”
Despite the fate of this series, Duhamel has already won part of the battle in finding that change he’s been yearning for as an actor.
l Battle Creek, M-Net, Tuesdays, 9.30pm.