THOMAS MIDDLEDITCH
Leading actor in
CBS series
B POSITIVE
On location at
INTERVIEW BY ALLIE KING.
“Everything about life, if approached from the correct angle, can be funny.” Thomas Middleditch brings a smile to our faces talking about using comedy as a method of catharsis in trying times. Middleditch, an accomplished comedian, has brought laughter upon viewers for years in his lead role as Richard Hendricks in “Silicon Valley,” for which he was Emmy nominated. After successfully tackling voiceover acting, stand-up, improv, etc., he is back on the sitcom screen as Drew Dunbar in “B Positive.”
AK: First, we must acknowledge that 2020 was a tough year for everyone. Entering 2021, how are you feeling?
TM: I feel partly spent, partly optimistic. I would argue it’s been tough for a while. Gonzo politics, environmental catastrophe, racial injustice, plus whatever anyone’s going through their personal life. It didn’t all just happen in 2020. Covid was just getting kicked while you’re down but rest assured, we were already on the ground at that point. A new administration has the potential to at least start to turn things around, but we’ll see. But hey, I lose weight when I’m depressed so I look absolutely fab.
AK: As a comedian, do you feel like comedy is an adequate coping mechanism for people to turn to in times like 2020? What do you feel of comedy’s role in troubling times?
TM: Comedy is a great method of catharsis. For the audience, for the comedians themselves. Everything about life, if approached from the correct angle, can be funny. Sometimes it’s obvious, sometimes it requires that perfect perspective to see exactly why it’s appropriate to laugh. But it’s there. And finding out why the thing that’s weighed a hundred pounds on your shoulders is funny somehow makes it seem less harmful. How could this silly little thing I’m laughing at hurt me? It will, don’t worry, it’s just waiting for you to finish cackling away and then it’ll swoop in for the kill, and then it will stand over you yelling “Who’s laughing now, motherfucker?!?!” But at least for like ten seconds, you had the upper hand.
AK: With a long and successful run with Silicon Valley under your belt, do you approach your career differently? How do you decide on the projects you want to be involved in?
TM: Of course. It’s like… well… before a successful stint in entertainment you are outside the club looking in, seeing everyone packed in there and dancing and someone ordered bottle service and you can feel the bass pounding against your chest even all the way out there in the cold and you’re like “Damn, that looks so fun! Why did I wear cargo shorts? I should be in there by now!” But then you get in, and you realized the guy who ordered shots is high on coke and Bethany barfed on her dress and the bartender ordered last call and you just got in so you’re desperately running around sipping the remaining swill out of other people’s drinks trying to get a little buzz on before it all shuts down for the night. Sorry, what was the question?
AK: Middleditch and Schwartz is your 3-episode improvised Netflix comedy show with Ben Schwartz. What was the inspiration behind this project? How did it come about?
TM: Ben and I have both been improvising for around 20 years each. For that entire time, improv has always been basically a five dollar ticket for a backroom show, or, you’re doing it for free and you should be happy you’re getting stage time. A few years ago, Ben and I set a goal for ourselves. We are going to tour, we are going to do big theaters, we are going to sell our product at an elevated price point (because dammit we’re worth it!), and once we have shown the various powers that be that we can sell out big theaters with silly ol’ improv, we are going to get some comedy specials that go in the same category as any standup special. It was basically the only goal I’ve ever set for myself in this industry that played out exactly as planned. That never happens. We’re very proud of those specials and we hope people watch them and can’t wait to get on stage again.
AK: Maintaining a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, the show was obviously a big success. Can we expect similar projects in the future?
TM: I’m sure something, in some form, will happen again.
AK: Along with improv, you have also begun voiceover work. Tell us more about your work on Solar Opposites.
TM: You’d think that after playing a weirdo who eats his own inbred monster offspring in an episode of Rick and Morty, Justin Roiland would never want to work with me again. But it turns out, that’s precisely why we are working together. Solar Opposites is such a blast to record. The scripts are so funny, and there are plenty of opportunities to riff and come up with even more insanity as we go. I love getting to voice Terry because he truly is an idiot with a ton of confidence.
AK: After a long history on Silicon Valley, which ended in 2019, how does it feel to be starting fresh as Drew Dunbar in your new series B Positive on CBS?
TM: It’s a different world, the network multicam sitcom. I actually really like the challenge of it, as it’s kind of like performing a play. There’s a whole different rhythm to everything, a different way of delivering lines and jokes. And I’m excited to reach out to a wider audience, as most people who don’t have HBO most likely just know me as the Verizon guy. The show is really sweet, and in a world of twenty bummer headlines a day, to have a show out there whose title is telling us to be positive, it’s nice to be a part of that reminder.
AK: The show has been getting great reviews. How do you feel about the reaction from critics and fans since the show first aired in November?
TM: I try to stay away from any published reactions to just about everything I’m involved with. It can be such a self-worth wormhole, I don’t have thick enough skin to do it. But I do pick up the odd positive bits from people personally reaching out. It’s nice people are digging it. I will say, it’s a super fun show to make. So even just on a selfish level, I hope I get to keep telling the story for years to come because everyone I work with is just a bunch of mensches. A bundle? A gaggle? A pride? What unit do mensches come in?
AK: Chuck Lorre and Marco Pennette, two sitcom geniuses, are behind the creation of this who. How has it been working with them on this project?
TM: They’re great. If I can continue to navigate my way through Hollywood working with the like of Chuck, Marco, Mike Judge, and Alec Berg… then bring me to Vegas and roll me down the Craps aisle, sister, I must be filled to the brim with that lucky joo-joo! You know, as the saying goes.
AK: Drew and Gina [Annaleigh Ashford] have an unlikely relationship. How would you describe their dynamic? What excites you the most about the potential of their relationship moving forward?
TM: They definitely have this Odd Couple dynamic going on. Drew is a buttoned-up Debby Downer, and Gina is this optimistic carefree whirlwind. Are they gonna teach each other a little about life, borrowing both positive and negative elements of their personality to give to the other person? You betcha, sister! And if you don’t believe me, you can take me on down to Vegas and roll me down the– ok, I’ll stop.
AK: With that chemistry on camera, I can only imagine that you all had a good time filming. What was it like on set? Any favorite moments?
TM: Annaleigh consistently tells me about farts, childbirth, and her consistently plain as fuck lunches. She’s hilarious and strange and exactly the right person to spend your workday with. There’s this dialysis crew that my character visits on the regular, and all those cats are just so fun to hang around. It’s rare we get through a take without blowing it from laughing. A truly professional environment.
AK: What can we look forward to from you in 2021?
TM: Unless ol’ Jonny Covid messes it up, I’ll shoot a film I wrote eight years ago in the Spring. Boy does it take a long time to get an indie made. Solar Opposites season 2 is out March 26th. There are a couple more voiceover projects that are in the works but I have to be delightfully hush about. There’s obviously more B Positive. Ben and I are chomping at the bit for the green light from theaters to start touring again. Oh! Since I’ve been at home a lot, I started a Twitch channel. So if you ever want to hang out online and joke around and watch me fumble around as I play video games go to Twitch.tv/Middleditch. Other than that, it’s a lot of sitting around drinking White Claw while having full-blown existential debates with my two dogs. Potter tends to be on my side but I think Meatloaf might be reading QAnon because she’s ending every argument screaming how she has to take her freedom back. I might have to ban her from Twitter.
Creative Director & Fashion Editor
DEBORAH FERGUSON
Grooming
JAMIE TAYLOR
@ The Wall Group
Fashion Assistant
JUAN MARCO TORRES
Location
Thank you
Independent Public Relations x Jodi Gottlieb
View trailer for B Positive here. 