Interview with ‘The LA Complex’s’ Aaron Abrams
Aaron Abrams is a Canadian actor and writer. He has appeared in over 50 movies and TV series. Aaron is best known for writing and acting in the movie “Young People Fucking”. He recently portrayed bad cop Detective Boyd on ABC’s ‘Rookie Blue’, and you can now see Aaron as Ricky Lloyd on the CW’s ‘The LA Complex’, which he also writes and produces. Check out or interview with Aaron below, and be sure to tune into ‘The LA Complex’ every Tuesday at 9/8c.
How did you get into acting?
“I was that annoying kid who needed a lot of attention. A lot of “look at me, look at me.” So my parents had to get me out of the house because I was making everyone crazy-nuts. They enrolled me in acting classes when I was 8, and that seemed to take the edge off. It took the whole “look at me” thing and transformed it from an annoying character deficiency into a skill. I mean it’s still very much an annoying character deficiency, it’s just that now it allows me to also make a living.”
Do you enjoy acting or writing more?
“I only started writing to get myself more acting work. Now its been working to the point where I’m like “Ugh, I have to keep doing this I guess”. There isn’t a single thing I enjoy more about writing. Acting is visceral, social, and emotional. It doesn’t involve sitting alone with a computer for days getting a brain cramp. Acting is like painting, using any colors you want. Writing is like working a Rubiks cube, trying to get all colors to line up. There’s no comparison. Who’s like “Nothings more fun on a Friday night then getting a brain cramp with a good ol’ rubiks cube?” Weirdos. That’s who.”
More fun for you to play the “bad guy” or “good guy”?
“Good guys are usually a little simpler, and therefore, a little less fun. I’m lucky in that I’ve gotten to play both and when I get to be a leading man, those roles all sort of share some of the qualities. Charming, likeable, gets the girl, etc. But recently I’ve been on a crazy streak of dirtbags and douches and I think they’ve all been quite different. They’ve all got different secrets and duplicity to them, which are always fun things to play, but also their motives vary, and their intentions vary. Some mean very well like Ricky from ‘The LA Complex’ and some are just plain jerks trying to burn down the world. But, I mean, either way. If I’m a good guy or bad guy, if I get to chew some scenery or I get to kiss a girl, I really can’t complain. It’s all win-win.”
How did you get involved with ‘The LA Complex’
“Martin Gero was the show runner and he and I did a movie together called “Young People Fucking”, so he called me in to do it. I’d never built a TV show from the ground up before and thought it would be a great learning experience. My main thing was just to try and take TV clichés, tropes everyone is familiar with and then twist them, turn them on their ear a bit. I tried to pile as many things as I could that I hadn’t seen on TV before. My other main thing was to carve out a role out for myself, but no one saw me as Kaldrick King the infamous gangster rapper. So I was cast as Ricky instead.”
What is it like working with Chelan?
“Chelan is a lovely sweetie. It’s nice to go to work every day and love the people you work with. I’ve been fortunate to get that more times than not. I’ve worked with Russell Crowe and Chevy Chase, I guess both those guys maybe don’t have the best reputations but they were both super nice to me. Luckily, I haven’t worked with too many “don’t look me in the eye, I want my green m and m’s or I’m going to pitch a fit’ diva types. Except of course for Alan Alda. Ugh, that guy. I’m just kidding. Alan Alda is seriously the best.”
Will we see Detective Boyd back on ‘Rookie Blue’?
“If you look closely, I imagine you will see me in the eyes and heart of Andy McNally, as I’m sure I will be haunting her dreams.”
What has been your favorite role to date?
““Young People Fucking” was the first thing I was in that I also wrote and produced so that was a different. It was a more freeing environment for me to act in. And by “freeing” I mean: I didn’t have to listen to anybody. I also mean “freeing” in that I wasn’t wearing pants for most of it.”
Did you write the sex tape plot for ‘The LA Complex’?
“I just so happen to write a sex tape plot for my character on EVERY show I’m on. It’s just that ‘The LA Complex’ was the first one to give in. Apparently nobody was interested previously, I have no idea why. A Kanayo sex-tape seemed like perfectly reasonable storyline for Stargate: Atlantis. But now that I’ve scratched “play a dude who makes a sex tape” off my bucket list, I will have to move on to the next one. So now I’ll constantly pitch ideas for my characters to “pitch a no-hitter in the world series.””
If you could work with any actor dead or alive who would it be?
“Paul Newman, Peter Falk, Lee J Cobb, Jack Lemmon. I don’t know, there’s so many people that have passed on that I won’t ever be able to work with it’s difficult to name them all. Same with living actors. Let’s just say Tyrese. Because I think he probably knows where all the best parties are at. But any actor that’s super unpredictable is always the most fun to horse around with. I played Seth Rogen and Sarah Silverman’s brother in this thing last year and that was great, to get to say whatever you wanted whenever you wanted. Then there’s the unpredictable in another way, like with some actors it’s a Christian Bale/Mickey Rourke/Joe Pesci thing where you’re doing a scene with someone and you’re like “he’s going to laugh or stab me with a pencil?”
What is your dream role?
“I’d like to play the President of the United States and have someone take over my Air Force One, and then right before I punch him in the face I say “Get off my plane!”. Hopefully they haven’t made that one yet. Seriously though, I don’t know, the answer is kind of always “the next one”. I try and make the next one coming up that dream role, and then when it’s over, move forward. Still though, now that I’ve said it, it would be cool to say something badass before punching a dude in the face. I’ve never done that. Maybe that’s my dream role. Or let’s do like an A-Team movie with me, Joe Pesci, Sarah Silverman and Tyrese. And I don’t play by the rules or see eye to eye. Can you make that happen? Oh. Also, my character gets to pitch a no-hitter.”