Interview transcripts

21 April 2011

William H. Macy

How would you describe the Gallagher family?
They're a family living on the edge. The Gallaghers' stick together through thick and thin, and it's timely, certainly, for these troubled economic times. The family makes do, they've got a very casual relationship with legality, but they are moral, absolutely moral. There's a lot of territory in every episode and at its core is the Gallagher family, which is living on the edge, financially.  I play Frank, the addicted, drinking alcoholic father, so the kids are on their own. The mother has left, and took the minivan, and she hasn't been heard of for a while. The oldest daughter is the de facto mother, and our stories centre around them trying to make their way in the world, and it brilliantly mixes high farce.  It's that silly kind of farce, with serious drama and heartbreaking stories. It's a grand mixture, and it's just a magical formula.

How do you describe the tone of the show?
We're based on the English series. The plotlines are outrageous, and hysterically funny, and then very moving, and sometimes frightening, so we cover a lot of territory.  It's a big show. It's unlike anything I've ever seen. 

Did you immediately want to play the role of Frank Gallagher?
Yes pretty much immediately.  John Wells sent me the script and when I finished it, I picked up the phone, said, I want to do it.  And then I watched the British version, which is outrageously good, although you need subtitles.  They tell me they're speaking English.  I couldn't understand a word they were saying.  It's so good.  It's so novel.  A lot of the characters in the show really hate Frank, but they also have affection for him.  I think it was a good choice to cast me; I've always done well at playing characters that you shouldn't really like, and making you like them. Or at least making you involved with them.  And Frank's a pretty tough guy.  He's an addict, he a narcissist, he's out for himself, but I think because he's striving all the time, he works hard, even though they're all scams, he really works hard.  And he's got an indomitable spirit, and a wicked sense of humour, he's smart as can be.

Was it easy for you to play a drunk character all the time?
I do a good drunk, which is more of a party trick, really, than acting.  To me, it's more akin to doing an accent.  I can do a good Scottish accent and I can do a good drunk so that helps.  Perhaps the danger in the character is that he is a rascal, and there is perhaps the danger that people will lose their patience with him, because he's despicable.  His six kids are doing their best to make their way in the world, and Frank will throw them under the bus in a New York minute for money.  And yet they love him. I sort of get the feeling Frank loves them, too, although he can't remember all their names.  He's an important part of the family.  And you may be disgusted with him, but you can't wait to see what he's going to do next.

Were you a father figure on set?

A little bit.  Certainly I'm the oldest actor on the set.  I'm the oldest actor on almost every set, I've noticed these days.  John Wells is the grand Pooh-Bah, and he set the bar very high. 

Emmy Rossum

What did you think when you read the script for Shameless US?
I was excited to take on the challenge.  I auditioned quite a few times, and it was such an interesting character to develop, the combination of toughness and softness. It is about a girl growing up too quickly and having to be kind of a mother figure to her siblings, and having to give up a lot of her own young life to just be that kind of mother figure, so it was interesting to develop that, and then to get the part and be around the other actors, and the younger actors, who are so crazy talented.

What was it like working with William H. Macy?
Macy's wonderful, as is Joan Cusack, who's in our show, too.  It's amazing to be around these kind of actors who are so free and creative, and imaginative, and they make stuff up, and they make up songs in the middle of the scene, and you're like, where did that come from?  That's genius.  So it's just a lot of energy, and really, it's a remarkable experience.  It's really fun.  And the stuff we get to say and do is so outrageous.  Like, not an episode goes by where somebody isn't mooning somebody or knocking somebody out, or doing somebody they shouldn't be doing, so you know, there's a lot of doing.

How would you describe the tone of the show?
I would say it's a black comedy, or a dramedy.  It definitely deals with darker subject matter, you know, alcoholism, the downturn in the economy and how families are struggling with that in a real way, what it means to be gay in an urban environment, but you know, I think there is a lot of levity and lightness and humour to it, so we have a lot of fun telling those kinds of stories at the same time as feeling like, a real emotional connection to it.

Had you watched the British version of Shameless?
I have not seen the British show.  I was hesitant to watch the British show, because I know Anne-Marie Duff's portrayal of Fiona is so lauded, and so loved by so many people, that I kind of didn't want to know what it was, so I could resist, you know, copying that in any way.  So I haven't seen it.  The only bit I've seen was the sex scene from the pilot, which I was told to watch on Youtube so I had an understanding of how much I would be showing, so I watched that.

What is the most shameless thing you've ever done?
When I was 14, I ran down Madison Avenue at night soaking wet in a bikini, with a bunch of girls, so yes, it was definitely pretty shameless.