00:00You feel very at home in the Taylor Sheridan universe.
00:04You know, how did your experience on Yellowstone prepare you for Tulsa King?
00:07First of all, you know, to be so blessed to be in not just one, but two Taylor Sheridan
00:12shows, I don't take that lightly.
00:16I'm one of those actors who likes to swing for the fences in everything that he does.
00:20There's no fear.
00:21There's no, maybe I should, can I, how about if I, no, it's just, you know, in real life,
00:27I'm much more of a shy, more introverted type of person, but when I get a character, I
00:32can be anything I want and no one can judge me for it.
00:34So there's that fearlessness that I think Taylor really likes with my acting approach that really
00:40works so well on Yellowstone, you know, to work with Kevin, you know, certain things have
00:45been said about Kevin as of late, you know, because of Horizon or because of this or that.
00:50I'm just going to put the fact out there that Kevin Costner might be the greatest screen
00:53actor of all time.
00:54I just watched Horizon for the first time a few days ago.
00:57And it's kind of remarkable how little he does and how much he says.
01:03And that's why I love watching Kevin so much.
01:05And I steal from Kevin because he's that guy.
01:07And I love watching Kevin Costner work.
01:10So the two of us together in Yellowstone was just kind of a blast.
01:12And we'd already done the Guardian together.
01:13So we'd known each other pretty well.
01:16So I wish nothing but success for Kevin Costner moving forward.
01:19So to bounce from Yellowstone, which was this crazy, maniacal character, you know, that were
01:27the Beck brothers, to come into this really polished, well-to-do Oklahoman, as Cal Thresher
01:37is, were two totally different characters.
01:39But now I get to go, you know, nose to nose with Sylvester Stallone.
01:43Again, when you talk about a talented guy, he knows exactly what to do in front of a camera.
01:47He knows, he knows, he's so prepared with his character, with his dialogue, with everything.
01:52When it comes to hanging out or acting with huge superstars like those two guys, again,
01:57there's no fear there.
01:59It's enjoyment.
02:00And I can't wait to get to the set and play.
02:02It's like being in a big sandbox with, you know, some of the, you know, a fifth grader
02:07and the two fifth graders are going to go nose to nose and have a blast.
02:10And that's how I approach my characters for Taylor Sheridan shows.
02:14Let's get in that sandbox.
02:16Let's kick some sand at each other and let's make some great television.
02:18And you recently said that Cal Thresher was one of the most misunderstood characters
02:22that you've played in a long time.
02:25Can you elaborate on that for me?
02:26Well, I think he came out so hot right out of the gates when I was nose to nose with
02:31Stallone in that very first scene that as time progressed, you know, he was trying to
02:37be that tough guy and he is that tough guy because he's got, you know, billions of dollars
02:41at his fingertips that he can do basically anything he wants.
02:44However, as the season progressed, he was like, you know what, this whole marijuana business
02:49is, yeah, I don't think I'm really cut out for this.
02:52I'm cut out for something different.
02:53And then Rave and I were talking about it at the end of the season, season two, I didn't
02:58think I was coming back.
02:59And then we were with David Glasser one day and Rave said, tell David Glasser your idea.
03:03I'm like, he doesn't want to hear my idea.
03:04No, it's a great idea, honey.
03:05Tell him.
03:06I said, David, I want to come back next year and I want to be the governor of Oklahoma.
03:10He stares at me and he didn't really say anything.
03:12He's like, that's interesting.
03:13And then he goes back to doing his stuff.
03:17Three weeks later, I get a call.
03:18Congratulations.
03:19You're back on Tulsa King.
03:19Here's the first script.
03:20And it says Cal Thresher running for governor.
03:24So I got to thank Rave for getting me season three and season four in Tulsa King.
03:29And we had a blast, you know, to go from rough gangster guy like I was as Malcolm Beck to such
03:37a polished, kind of gangster, cool dude like Cal Thresher is something they're so totally
03:43different.
03:44They look exactly the same.
03:46They kind of speak the same, but their intentions are so vastly different.
03:49And I love playing with the minutia of characters and to do it opposite Salon was just a blast.
03:55I think Cal is so interesting.
03:57You know, while he wants power, like a lot of characters do on Tulsa King, he doesn't want
04:02it at all costs.
04:03You know, in season two, he knows a partner like Jackie Ming will get him.
04:07So he gets out of that arrangement.
04:09You know, why do you think he set his sights on the governor's mansion?
04:13There are two reasons for it.
04:14You know, you could say the altruistic reason of I just want to help out my great state of
04:18Oklahoma.
04:19That is part of it for sure for Cal Thresher.
04:21The other part of it is I want to amass as much power as I possibly can to do whatever
04:25I feel like doing, especially to Dwight Manfredi.
04:28That's kind of the simple approach to it.
04:30And that's the approach that I took to it.
04:32I'm going to prove to everyone, show everyone that I'm that great polished guy and I can give
04:36you a great 30 seconds and shake hands.
04:38And isn't Oklahoma great?
04:39Let's go and make a great state.
04:41That's the fun part for Cal.
04:43But the great part to Cal is, you know, I wish that they had filmed.
04:49You know, there's a scene later on in the season, which I can't really allude to.
04:53Something happens.
04:53And it's this great thing where I'm just, this seemed like this all American fantastic
04:57guy.
04:58And I don't know if they cut to it or not, but at the end, as I walk away, you see this
05:02very mischievous look on my face of kind of like that cat with the mouse in his mouth.
05:08And it's, that was the season for me.
05:11So it was such a power play and slowly etching away at the power and who's going to be the
05:16power person in this room.
05:18And finally, of course, it's Cal Thresher.
05:20So I look, I look forward to everyone's, to watching this season because it won't let
05:26you down.
05:27That's for sure.
05:27I don't think Cal is vulnerable very often, but the one character we see him consistently
05:33put his guard down around is Margaret, especially that scene in episode four, when they meet
05:38to speak about his campaign.
05:39What is it about her that disarms him?
05:42Well, I think that, you know, like he calls her, you know, the mobster's mall, you know,
05:48he knows that she has Dwight's ear.
05:52So he has to really kind of tippy toe around things without offending her or saying exactly
05:57how he feels until, until he does, uh, because he doesn't want to tip the boat.
06:03He doesn't want to, to have Cal and Dwight be at odds with each other, at least until he
06:09gets elected.
06:09So he needs to get elected first.
06:11And once he's elected, things can, he can do whatever he wants at that point, but he
06:15needs to get elected first.
06:16So he knows he has to play by the rules and be a good boy for a while until he doesn't
06:21have to.
06:22You know, Margaret offering to hand him the keys to the governor's office in return for
06:26Cal selling her back, her ranch is very savvy.
06:29Dwight doesn't know I'm here.
06:31What do you want?
06:32My ranch.
06:34You sell me back.
06:37Your share.
06:37Ten cents on the dollar.
06:39And in return?
06:40I will hand you the keys to the governor's mansion.
06:43You know, does Cal respect this move or do you think he's sort of hurt by her manipulation
06:49of him?
06:50Oh no, he expected it.
06:51I, I, Cal walking into it knew that there was going to be a price that was going to have
06:55to be paid to, to get her on his side.
06:57And she is so well connected in the political scene.
07:00And it's someone that I want to have on my side for the political side of Oklahoma, but
07:06also for the mobster side of Oklahoma, because she knows both very, very well.
07:10So I need her on my team to give me information without her knowing and build my campaign until
07:16I get to the point where I am elected.
07:17And then, well, then I can do whatever I feel like.
07:19He comes from money.
07:20He's respectable.
07:21He would make an upstanding partner for Margaret.
07:25Do you think Dwight should be a little jealous of Cal?
07:28Yeah, of course.
07:29You know, Cal's a very put together guy who comes from everything that Dwight didn't come
07:33from.
07:34You know, there's parts of, of Cal that wishes he were more like Dwight, that he could say
07:38exactly how he feels.
07:39And he doesn't, you know, if it doesn't go his way, he can just beat somebody up.
07:43Well, he can't really do that.
07:45You know, so how can he beat people up?
07:48He can use his brain and he can use his money to create power.
07:51And that's what he's doing in season four.
07:53That's a lot of fun.
07:54So is Dwight intimidated by Cal?
07:57Of course he is.
07:58You know, when he says certain things to belittle me at times, I know he's saying things about
08:04me and I get it, but I know why, because he's intimidated by Cal Thresher to a certain
08:11degree.
08:11He won't admit it, but I know that he is on the page.
08:14So that's something that I get to play with as well and turn the screws up at times when
08:19I feel like it.
08:19So this season was quite a lot of fun for me.
08:23That's for sure.
08:23I feel like in most projects, there's always a comment made about your eyes.
08:29In Tulsa King, Dwight refers to Cal as having x-ray eyes.
08:32In Justified, Raelynn compares Quarles' eyes to those of a husky.
08:37Are those written into the script or are they improv'd on set?
08:40And how do you feel about that?
08:41I think the writers are just, you know, they're smart.
08:46I'm not the best looking dude in the world, but for some reason on camera, I've got these
08:50eyes that just pop.
08:51You know, if I'm evil, they can be icy, cold blue.
08:54But when I'm happy, they're like, you know, light blue, you know, beautiful skies.
08:58So it's just my thought process.
09:00And, you know, it makes for a great character, good guy or bad guy.
09:06You look at Last Rodeo, you would think there isn't an evil bone in Joe Wainwright's body.
09:10What a great guy.
09:11I want him on my side.
09:12He'll fight for us.
09:13And he's that all-American guy who has his heart on his sleeve.
09:16And then there's Malcolm Beck.
09:19You know, it's, you know, I wouldn't want to be in an alley with Malcolm Beck.
09:22He would, I think he would scare the heck out of anybody.
09:25And he has, he had zero fear.
09:28I mean, like zero fear.
09:30And I loved playing Malcolm.
09:31I wish to goodness that there was a way to bring Malcolm Beck back to the new Yellowstone
09:36and wreak havoc.
09:41I would, I would, I would, I would.
09:44We never met.
09:46Yeah.
09:48I bet you do.
09:49We talked about it before, but it's something that I think would just be a blast for the viewers
09:54to see Malcolm Beck come back, you know, in a cane.
09:58And one leg is completely gimp.
09:59One arm doesn't work anymore.
10:00Or maybe half his face doesn't work and he's going to come back and he's, he's going to
10:04take rip and he's going to destroy his life.
10:06That would be fun.
10:07We can manifest.
10:09We can manifest.
10:09Yes, we can.
10:10I love the heck out of Cole Hauser.
10:11He's just one of the dudes that is just, you know, to play in the sandbox with Cole is
10:16we've done it so many times and it's, he's, he's, he's a pound for pound champion.
10:21And I love that guy.
Comments