Exclusive Interview with Public Moral’s Cormac Cullinane

 

Talk Nerdy With Us had the opportunity to speak with Cormac Cullinane who plays James Muldoon on TNT’s new drama, Public Morals. Cormac talks about acting, music, what it’s like on the show and more!

Follow Cormac Cullinane on Twitter.

Check out our interview with him, below!

What inspired you to go into acting?

“Actually, I started playing a lot of instruments when I was younger. That sort of branched off into singing and then through singing I started getting into acting. It really just branched off from my previous experience. I found out that I really love it. Acting is now a huge passion of mine. It’s become my favorite thing to do. I love it so much. It’s great.”

You’re working on new solo music, is there anything you could tell us about that?

“Yeah, I’m doing some original stuff right now. It’s kind of a collaboration of Pop and Indie. It’s based on guitar and piano. Some of it is upbeat, but I’m still just working on it.”

Who are your musical inspirations?

“I really love Phillip Phillips. I think he’s great. I also love Johnny Lang, Buddy Guy and Ed Sheeran, too.”

Let’s talk about Public Morals. How do you relate to your character, James? Do you have any favorite quirks of James that you enjoy portraying?

“Me and my character James both have an Irish-American background. We both come from an Irish family and we both live in New York. That’s were the similarities end. [laughs]. James, he’s a really bad kid and I don’t think of myself as bad [laughs]. It’s definitely extremely fun to portray a bad kid, because that’s something I never really do. It’s something different for me. Playing James has helped me to expand my range as an actor.”

What’s it like working with Edward Burns on the show?

“It is phenomenal! It is so great. The first time I met him, he was just the nicest guy in the entire world. He shook my hand and welcomed me onto the team. It’s really great! He’s such an amazing actor. He’s very lenient with the way that you act, he kinda lets you be free. He lets you experiment, so that’s really good. It makes everything more genuine.”

Do you have any favorite moments from the set with the cast members?

“Timothy Hutton (Mr. O) and I were doing a scene where I had to ask my father (Terry played by Ed Burns) if I could touch a dead body since I’d never touched one before. We were shooting this scene, and just before it happened, Tim gives Ed a look. I was like, “What’s going on here?” So I do my lines and I lean in to touch Tim. He’s just sitting in the coffin. Once I reached out to touch Tim, he jumps out of the coffin and scared the crap out of me. [laughs]. That was a pretty fun moment. “

What would your dream acting role be?

“I’d love to play the lead in a movie, probably a drama. That would be really awesome, I’d really love to do that.”

Tease us the next episode in just three words?

“Stuff. Goes. Down. [laughs].”

If you could choose to do only one; music or acting, what would you continue doing?

“I’m not sure if I can pick [laughs]. Music has been with me since I was practically born. But acting, even though it’s new, it’s become a huge love of mine. I really can’t choose.”

What TV show are you currently “nerding” out about?

“I’m a huge fan of The Walking Dead. I Netflix binge it all the time. I love it.”

Do you watch Fear the Walking Dead too?

“Yeah!”

 

Tune into Public Morals, Tuesdays at 10/9c only TNT!