I knew I wanted to be an artist early on, but I decided to seriously pursue the profession when I auditioned for Juilliard.
I'm a very private guy, so it's an adjustment for me, but a welcomed one, as long as the work remains the focus.
When somebody says, 'Do you want to play Dr. Dre in a movie?' I mean, how do you respond to that? My initial response was 'no' because I don't think I can do it ,and I don't want to be the one to mess it up!
The rules of engagement are totally different when you're on the homefront.
I like being the underdog.
I like doing things that people wouldn't necessarily think I can do.
We are a diverse people, man.
Growing up, we never got to see a hero who didn't have superpowers who looked like us, that you could kind of look to and say, 'I could be that guy one day. I could be a patriot. I could be a soldier. I could work in the government and be a hero.'
On '24,' you don't have time to emote and deal with stuff, because stuff just keeps happening. Every other minute, there's something crazy that's happening that's threatening this country.
I remember 'The Cosby Show,' but that was something completely different. Comedy. There was a lightness to it and a sort of unrealistic perfection.
You know how trends go with television. Next year, the networks might not be open to taking risks.
The challenge is making sure that every single moment is honest, no matter what. It's doing Eric Carter justice. Not trying to fill Jack Bauer's shoes. Not trying to step into Kiefer's legacy.
I have the most utmost respect for the men and women overseas, and I only played a soldier on television. Again, I can only imagine the sacrifices that they make every single day.
It can't be all serious at all times.
The only pressure, as an actor, is to step into Eric Carter's shoes and make him as fully and as complex and as flawed and as human as I could.
To be honest, sometimes you have to know your rights.
I know that people get cast based on how they look in Hollywood.
We work so hard on our craft, and once we get out of Duke Ellington, there are not going to be people looking for technique. I worry about that a lot.
I have family that are vets of the military. My grandfather served as well.
If people don't connect to Eric Carter's struggles, I'm sure they'll find a character in this series to connect to. That's ultimately what it's about for me.
