Interview With The "Under The Bridge" Actor Jovan Walton

[00:00:00] Shopify grows your business no matter how far or big you grow. Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business. Whether you're selling your fans' next favorite shirt or an exclusive piece of podcast merch, Shopify helps you sell everywhere.

[00:00:20] Shopify powers 10% of all e-commerce in the US. Allbirds, Rothies, Brooklinen, and millions of other entrepreneurs of every size across 175 countries. Plus, Shopify's award-winning help is there to support your success every step of the way. Because businesses that grow, grow with Shopify.

[00:00:46] Sign up for a $1 per month trial period at shopify.com slash income, all lowercase. Go to shopify.com slash income now to grow your business no matter what stage you're in. Ich schwöre feierlich, dass ich ein Tu-nicht-Gut bin. Du auch?

[00:01:12] Dann schnapp dir deine Rumtreiber und erlebe das 8. Abenteuer von Harry, Ron und Hermine. Denn die Magic Weeks sind wieder da bei Harry Potter und das verwunschene Kind in Hamburg, wo Magie live auf der Bühne Wirklichkeit wird. Spare jetzt bis zu 30% unter magicweeks.de

[00:02:34] Hi, Jelan. Hey, how you doing? Hi, I'm Nadia with Next Best Picture. I'm doing well. How are you doing today? Doing really good. Great. Well, welcome to the Next Best Series podcast. Thanks so much for your time.

[00:02:49] Very very excited to talk about this brilliant new series with you, Under the Bridge. You know, we see a lot of true crime stories across movies and television, and this one really stands out for its respectful characterization and the humanity in dramatizing this case.

[00:03:05] You know, growing up in Canada myself and hearing about Rina Verk's story, I was really moved by how the show aims to understand who Rina was as a person. And part of understanding who she was is also to understand the mindset of the people around her.

[00:03:21] People such as your character, Warren Glowowski, who's written with so much complexity and brought to the screen by a wonderful performance by you. And yeah, it's really truly incredible. And I wanted to start by asking, when you first got the script for Under the Bridge,

[00:03:39] what was your initial reaction and what drew you to want to be a part of telling this story? Right. So my initial reaction to Under the Bridge was, well, I need to know more information on this case, right?

[00:03:51] They were all kids at the time, so it was hard to find information on this case. But I basically did as much research as possible to really embody the character of Warren.

[00:04:01] I wanted to make sure that the story was told in the best way possible to give justice to the Verk family and Rina herself. So once I realized how deep it is, you know, everything going on with this series, I was

[00:04:13] like, I need to be a part of this. This is something that is so important to tell. And you know, there are so many crimes that just aren't told. So I'm glad that we were able to tell at least one of these.

[00:04:25] It really puts a great spotlight on this true story and also creates these really fascinating characters. I mean, Warren has this very dynamic character arc. Even though he's making bad decisions, he's in the midst of crime and violence.

[00:04:41] You still feel a lot of empathy for him and you get to know his backstory. What did you find the most challenging about interpreting these different sides to Warren and bringing all these different perspectives about him onto the screen?

[00:04:55] You know, in the beginning it was trying to find a healthy balance, which I felt like was pretty hard to do because it's somebody who ended up ending somebody else's life, you know.

[00:05:04] So it's to find that balance of, you know, keeping the charming side of him and then, you know, also keeping the tough side of him as well was pretty tough for me. You know, I really dive deep into this character though. I did so much research.

[00:05:19] I did so many things to make sure I was mentally and physically prepared for this. And it definitely took a toll on me when I was able to find the right balance later on.

[00:05:28] I mean, I just felt like the pieces were there and I was able to deliver exactly how I wanted on screen. Yeah. And talking more about that balance that you mentioned, I'm curious, when you're telling

[00:05:39] a story about heavy subject matter and you're immersed in that mindset, is it easy to find moments of kind of levity and more lightness on scene in between scenes? Yeah, for sure.

[00:05:53] You know, I had a lot of moments where, you know, I was able to have fun with the cast and all of that, you know, because when you're locked in on a character for so long, it starts to mess you up a little bit mentally.

[00:06:04] So you have to switch it up. You know, you have to have those lighthearted moments off camera. I mean, I'm just so glad I was able to be part of this series. It came together so well. I mean, better than I expected. That's really great to hear.

[00:06:17] And speaking of the cast, you are part of such a wonderful ensemble cast, including Riley Keough, who plays Rebecca Godfrey. We get these very, very compelling scenes between Rebecca and Warren, especially in the last couple of episodes, given how both of their backstories kind of relate in some

[00:06:36] way. Could you talk about working with Riley on those character dynamics? And what did you learn from her on set? Yeah, Riley is super talented. I'm glad I got to share the screen with her. She's very talented.

[00:06:49] And, you know, working with her, we had a lot of great moments for sure. My personal favorite was when we were tripping on acid. We had a moment. I don't know. I don't think it got cut into the movie, but I mean, it was 20 minutes of us. Wow.

[00:07:05] Added. I mean, like we just kept it rolling to get that like perfect moment. But I just felt like every time I was acting with her, like my chemistry was like with her was was very good.

[00:07:15] You know, I felt like we had a really good dynamic together and I felt like we were able to do our jobs good on camera together. Well, it definitely came through on screen. You both had really terrific chemistry.

[00:07:26] And speaking of chemistry in a different way, you have terrific chemistry with Isabelle Leon as well, who plays Samara. And again, through their relationship, we see another side to Warren that just adds to a complex character.

[00:07:41] What was it like working with Isabelle and finding that particular chemistry together? Yeah, no, working with her was great. You know, it was it was a lot of just like learning about her in the beginning.

[00:07:51] We had a lot of moments where we would hang out and got to know each other because that was the most important part for me is the acting. It can be good, but if it doesn't feel real, it just doesn't matter. You know what I mean?

[00:08:02] So we got to we got to talk a lot off camera. And I feel like that made us very close to the point where we were able to, you know, really execute that on camera. Music also plays a big role in the show.

[00:08:14] The use of rap and hip hop. I think it gives a lot of insight into the the influences around the characters, like artists like Biggie Smalls, for example. And I'm wondering what was it like for you kind of stepping into the 90s era?

[00:08:28] Did the music become influential for you in playing the character? Ah, endlich Urlaub. Bald sitzt du entspannt am Strand, aber erst mal musst du morgen früh pünktlich zum Flughafen kommen. Relax. Starte deinen Urlaub stressfrei.

[00:08:44] Buche deine Fahrt und komme jederzeit pünktlich zum Bahnhof oder zum Flughafen. Auf Nummer sicher gehen. Klick jetzt auf Spanner und buche deine Fahrt. Bequem und günstig fahren mit der Uber App. Uber vermittelt Fahrten und ist kein Beförderer.

[00:08:57] So that's like kind of the way I grew up. You know, I grew up on super 90s and 80s music. With like Goody Mob, Outkast, Warren G. Growing up like that, it just felt very natural.

[00:09:08] And I felt like I was able to just kind of snap into it as far as that aspect really quick. In addition to the acting, which is going incredibly well, you're also professional boxer and you've started from a young age.

[00:09:21] Do you take kind of similar approaches when you're stepping into the ring versus stepping onto a sex? I imagine it's that same kind of work ethic where you kind of involved in wanting to do your best in both both roles. Yeah, it's a similar work ethic for sure.

[00:09:37] You know, for acting, there's a lot of tough days. So you got to be mentally prepared for that. And mind game for both of them. You have to be very strong. But as far as boxing, there's really nothing like it.

[00:09:49] Yeah. I mean, there's there's days where you're in the gym. It's just blood, sweat and tears. And you're giving it your all. So when I'm stepping into the ring, it's definitely like I'm ready to do whatever I

[00:09:58] have to do to win. You know, I'm ready to, I mean, put it all out there. It's a different feeling. You don't get the same butterflies in the acting world like you do with the boxing. The butterflies are there in the boxing world.

[00:10:11] For sure. And just talking more about that kind of work ethic and dedication and the sense of reward after accomplishing something, was there a particular scene from under the bridge that you found most rewarding to do or even a standout?

[00:10:29] Yeah, I think as far as most rewarding was the court scenes. You know, when you're working on a show for six months and you're coming to the end of it, it's like those days hit you the hardest. Those are those are tough days.

[00:10:42] So the most rewarding was completing my court scenes. And those are very tough on me. Those were hard scenes because it's just hard to wrap your mind around. And it feels like you're in that moment when you really lock in.

[00:10:54] So it's like, I mean, it takes something out of you for sure. Yeah, and you did such a wonderful job in those scenes as well. And going back to that kind of character building, how helpful was the book for you by Rebecca Godfrey with regards to Warren's character?

[00:11:11] The book was pretty helpful, for sure. You know, I read the book right after I got the role. And that was when I learned a lot about just Warren in general. But, you know, a lot of my learning from this character had to have been from stuff that

[00:11:27] I was sent, you know, confidential stuff, more of like Warren's cases and what happened to him, what he was about and all that kind of stuff. Was it easy to kind of find that that research on Warren? Because I know it was kind of an older case. And.

[00:11:40] No, it was really hard. Yeah. I was looking at it as far as like Reddit and like things like that, like just to see if anybody has ever talked about it and all of that.

[00:11:49] And I definitely found a few things, but it was more stuff that was sent to me from under the bridge that was more, you know, confidential stuff that I got to learn a lot about Warren from.

[00:12:01] And just with your performance as well, you bring so much to the role as well with all of the complexities about this character. As I said, you know, you really feel for him in so many moments and what he's going

[00:12:15] through. And overall, when viewers watch this series, what message do you hope that they will take away and what do you want them to remember about under the bridge? What message I hope they take away is really just awareness of bullying.

[00:12:30] You know, it can be taken so far and in such a short period of time without people realizing. And it happens so often. You know, one day you're friends with somebody and the next day, I mean, God knows

[00:12:43] what happens. So it's like selective of the group you hang around, awareness of bullying in general and really just justice for the Burke family. Absolutely. And as we reach the end of our time here, we at Next Best Picture would

[00:12:56] love to know what you're working on next, if you're able to tell us of any upcoming projects or any genres that you're looking to explore in film and television. Yeah, I really like to stay with more of the dark drama as far as that.

[00:13:11] I feel like that's where I'm going to succeed at. You know, I love the deep roles that just test me every time I want something to always test me. I got a few things cooking right now that I can't really talk about yet.

[00:13:21] And as far as boxing, I'll be back in the ring very soon, you know, going to get a big knockout from the next fight and it's going to go great. I'm just excited to be back on that big stage in the boxing world.

[00:13:31] Yeah, for sure. How do you find that balance between the two, between acting and boxing? You know, it's really tough. It's really tough. There's certain times where I'm like, OK, I'm going to focus on acting for a second.

[00:13:43] And then other times where I'm like, I need to focus on boxing, you know, because I love both and that I can do both, you know, and it's possible. It's just you got to be ready for that because, you know, I'll finish an acting project

[00:13:55] and hop right into an eight week camp, start cutting weight and preparing for a fight. And that's not easy to do. No, for sure. Yeah. And it really I mean, that dedication that you bring to both really

[00:14:07] comes through. And just as a final wrap up question, is there any actor that you would really love to work with that you haven't had a chance to work with yet? I would love to do something with like Leonardo DiCaprio or even De Niro.

[00:14:22] Those are top dogs right there. So I'd love to test myself a little bit and and work with those guys for sure. We look forward to that. Definitely. You did such an incredible job again, Javon, on Under the Bridge. Your performance was truly fantastic.

[00:14:36] I hope that you get the recognition for it as well. It's such a terrific performance of this character. Congratulations on the show and all your endeavors. It was really great to chat. Yeah, it was awesome talking to you. Thank you so much for your time.

[00:14:50] Hey, everyone. Thank you so much for listening to Nadia's interview with one of the stars from Under the Bridge. Jovan Walton here on The Next Best Picture podcast. Under the Bridge can now be streamed in full on Hulu and is up for your consideration

[00:15:05] for this year's Emmy Awards in all eligible categories. You have been listening to The Next Best Picture podcast. We are proud to be part of the Evergreen Podcast Network. And you can subscribe to us anywhere where you subscribe to podcasts.

[00:15:18] Be sure to leave us a review on Apple Podcasts and let us know what you think of the show. We really appreciate your feedback and your support, which you can also lend on over at Patreon for one dollar minimum a month.

[00:15:29] You'll get some exclusive podcast content from us. Thank you all so much for listening, as always. And we will see you all next time.

[00:16:23] Hello and welcome to Novel Conversations, a podcast about the world's greatest stories. I'm your host, Frank Lovallo. And for each episode of Novel Conversations, I talk to two readers about one book and together we summarize the story for you. We introduce you to the characters.

[00:16:38] We tell you what happens to them and we read from the book along the way. So if you love hearing a good story, you're in the right place. Our ninth season is coming this fall.

[00:16:48] Tune in to hear from some of the all time great authors, Charles Dickens, Jules Verne, F. Scott Fitzgerald and more. Subscribe to Novel Conversations wherever you listen to podcasts.