Rodney Revealed: Chris Diamantopoulos Chats ‘The Starter Wife’
And we continue our long-running series of Starter Wife interviews here at Grrl TV with talented Chris Diamantopoulos, who plays Molly Kagen’s best friend Rodney.
Devoted fans know that funny runs in Diamantopoulos’ immediate family since he is married to Ugly Betty’s fabulous Becki Newton. But it’s more than just the actor’s comedic timing that attracts viewers to Rodney, a loyal and sincere friend that anybody would love to have all to themselves.
During the new season of the series, the interior designer extraordinaire gets to spread his wings when he comes into a hot, hot, hot storyline involving a hunky action movie star with a big secret.
If you caught the season premiere last week, you already know what I’m talking about. If you didn’t watch, however, you might want to skip the following Q&A until you’ve been brought up to speed because it definitely contains a spoiler or two … or three.
Will The Starter Wife the series be spending more time with Rodney in his business life and his personal life?
CHRIS DIAMANTOPOULOS: Yes, most definitely. Rodney gets himself into some hot water by making some personal choices that may not have been the most thought out. We definitely delve into that. Yes, again, Josie and Sara [executive producers Josie McGibbon and Sara Parriott] have done a really good job of expanding upon the ideas that they presented in the miniseries and making them full-fledged storylines, so it’s going to be great.
So, we hear that Rodney’s going to have, perhaps, an inappropriate love interest.
CHRIS DIAMANTOPOULOS: Yes, definitely. We pretty much jump right into the storyline. Rodney is asked to design the house of a famous action star and it turns out that this action star is closeted, and Rodney ends up having an affair with him. So, things get pretty tricky.
Rodney’s such a good guy. He comes from such an honest and ethical place that I think for him to be doing something like this, obviously, there’s the excitement factor, but he’s torn because he recognizes that this can’t end well, or at least that’s what he thinks. So what I like about the series, again, is that they’re taking the personality of Rodney, you know—
In the miniseries, he was very loyal to Molly [Debra Messing] and a really good listener and pretty much just always wanted to do the right thing, and they’re just showing that all people have a number of different sides to them and even those of us that have the best intentions can sometimes make the wrong choices. That obviously adds a nice level of drama and comedy to it actually.
That was an interesting way that you kind of qualified your statement that it couldn’t end well, or so he thinks.
CHRIS DIAMANTOPOULOS: Yes. I did because, well, you know, we’re looking at ten episodes of the first season of hopefully very, very many. So, yes, I think that it’s a natural reaction for Rodney to have when he starts an affair with somebody that’s in the public eye whose job is necessitated by the fact that he’s a straight, you know, that he’s a heterosexual guy. I think it’s pretty prudent to recognize that having an affair with a gay designer is not the smartest thing in the world.
Your character’s spent a lot of time in the miniseries being a shoulder for Molly to lean on as her best friend. Will we see some reciprocation this season as the character further develops?
CHRIS DIAMANTOPOULOS: Yes, that’s a really good question actually. The answer is an unmitigated yes. It’s funny, I think in the miniseries Rodney and Joan [Judy Davis] were kind of— I said this before, but they were kind of the devil and angel on Molly’s shoulder.
I think, this time around, it kind of mixes itself up. You know, in any given sequence or episode, Molly could be the angel on Rodney’s shoulder or Rodney could be the devil on Joan’s shoulder. I think the writer’s have done a really good job of allotting interesting and appropriate storylines to the characters that may have been a little more ancillary or satellite in the miniseries.
Are you happy to have your character expanded, in a sense, to give viewers a more in-depth look at Rodney?
CHRIS DIAMANTOPOULOS: Oh, I think so. I think they did a great job of outlining him in the miniseries and creating this loyal, funny, and interesting fellow. I think that in the series what’s great is that we’re getting more insight into who he is, how he runs his business, how he runs his social life and where his loyalties lie.
It’s always great, just for an actor, to see where the writers feel that the character should go. I’ve been asked before what story lines would I want for Rodney, and the answer is, especially on this show, I leave it in the capable hands of the writers because they’re just so great and they service all the actors appropriately. They give us great stuff to work with.
How do you find filming and just working on the series in general? Has that been different now that you probably have a bit of a different pace to it with the miniseries versus the series?
CHRIS DIAMANTOPOULOS: That’s a good question. The answer is I love this pace. The pace of the ten-episode series is spectacular. You know, we shot the miniseries in Australia, and we shot it more like a film and it was out of sequence. So, one day you’d be shooting a scene from episode one, a scene from episode four, a scene from episode three, and it was rather disjointed. It was fun. It was great. But this is much more organized.
Well, no, that’s actually not the right word. This is much more methodical, so we pretty much know what we’re getting. We get the episode ahead of time. We do a table read. We get the rewrites, and then we go right into it. Shooting in L.A. is just really lovely just because it’s familiar and it’s home. I was going to say it was perfectly convenient because my wife was shooting her show there. But, of course, as soon as I signed my contract to shoot the show in L.A., Ugly Betty moved to New York.
But I still do love shooting in L.A. We have eight days per episode to get an episode done, and we do what’s called four in, four out, which means four days in the studio and four days out on location, and that’s a really nice mix. So, just when you’re getting sick of the studio, you get to go to a location, and right when you feel like you’re done shooting in the valley, you get to go back into the studio. So, it’s really quite nice.
What’s your favorite fantasy sequence that you’ve filmed for the series so far?
CHRIS DIAMANTOPOULOS: Oh, there have been some really great ones. I have to say that my favorite one was the Tomb Raider/Lara Croft fantasy sequence. Oh, it’s awesome. Debra is Angelina Jolie and I’m Daniel Craig. It’s like, when I was a little kid, that’s pretty much what I wanted to do is swing down ropes and play with guns. So, I got to definitely live out a little childhood fantasy.
Which episode is that?
CHRIS DIAMANTOPOULOS: I think it’s nine.
Your bio reveals you have quite a musical background. Is Rodney going to end up singing for us on the show at any point?
CHRIS DIAMANTOPOULOS: That’s a good question. I’m always singing for Debra when we’re shooting, so I don’t know. We do a musical fantasy sequence of Hello Dolly in, I think it’s the third or fourth episode, and we all get a chance to sing a little bit; but that’s more sort of tongue-in-cheek singing.
We talked about it— The writers and I kind of talked about it, and I think we’ve yet to find a reason that Rodney can sing, do you know what I mean? It might just be weird if he were able to break out into perfectly pitched song. So, I don’t know, maybe in a fantasy sequence. I think the fact that the show has these tremendous fantasy sequences, it lends itself to doing things that are outside of the box that most shows couldn’t do. It would be fun. I love singing.
Has the dynamic between the groups of friends been different since Miranda Otto [Cricket Stewart] wasn’t able to return for the full series?
CHRIS DIAMANTOPOULOS: We loved working with Miranda, I love working with Miranda, and she really added a lovely touch. She was just terrific to work with, so it was great to have her in the miniseries and we definitely missed her in the series. But Josie and Sara, the writer/creators, did a great job of adapting the friendship between Molly, Rodney and Joan, making it tighter, and introducing new characters as well.
Danielle Nicolet plays a new character who’s the wife of a famous ballplayer and she’s sort of brought into the fold. I think they’ve had an opportunity to expand the Joan character and the Rodney character because of the fact that it’s, I guess, the terrible trio support as opposed to a foursome. But yes, we definitely loved having Miranda. It was great working with her.
If you could play any other character on the show who would you play?
CHRIS DIAMANTOPOULOS: Well, I mean, look, I love the role I have. I joke with Debra that we already feel like an old married couple, so playing Kenny’s kind of out of the question because I already feel like I’ve been married to Debra. My wife jokes with me too and says that too. You know, Debra and I just have this really great rapport.
I don’t know. I think that all of the characters are really well written. I love the role that Danny Gerroll does, Joan’s love interest this season, David Shea. I don’t know if it’s so much the role that I love or if it’s the actor that I think does a great job. I think both. I think it’s really well written and I think Danny just shines in it. So, that would be fun. I love characters that kind of can go out there and really sort of— I’ve got to say I do love chewing up the scenery, so it’s fun.
I’m really lucky because I get to work with people that I enjoy. I think the writing is really good. I feel very safe that these producers are watching what we’re doing and making good choices and helping us to make the right choices. So, that gives you an opportunity to really take chances and have fun, and I think that’s what it’s all about; we’re really lucky to be able to do that.
What do you think it is about the show that makes The Starter Wife so appealing? What aspects leave viewers wanting more?
CHRIS DIAMANTOPOULOS: I think it’s a few things. First and foremost, above everything, it’s Debra Messing. If you’ve ever met her and had a chance to spend time with her, she’s just so bloody lovable and so earnest and so amiable and just such a joy to be around. She’s so damn funny. Professionally, I know she’s got a real fan following, and it’s warranted.
Debra delivers, she’s amazingly funny in the funny moments, funnier than anyone on TV, I think. She’s so heartfelt, and her dramatic work is really, really stellar. I think Debra Messing is probably the key reason that people should tune in and will continue to tune in, because she’s captivating.
Other than that, we’ve got a stellar cast of course. Judy Davis is great. All of the players do a really, really good job. I think that I would say that it’s equal— I’m so sorry, Debra Messing being one part, but the exact equal other part is Sara and Josie, the writers. The writing, especially for the series, is just really clever and really current, and they just do a great job of communicating what’s happening in that Hollywood world and adding their little spice on top.
I would say that the writing and the acting are really, really great. I would also say that it’s just shot beautifully. Kenneth Zunder was our director of photography, and I think that he’s a genius. He managed to light everybody so well, and the shots were set up so beautifully, there’s always something very, very interesting to watch. It’s a really, really good show and it comes at a really, really good time, and I think people are going to fall in love with it. I really hope they do.
Watch The Starter Wife Fridays at 10pm EST on USA Network.
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