Terry Crews (INTERVIEW)
Terry Crews
The “Blended” Interview
with Kam Williams
Crews Contro!
Since retiring from the NFL, Terry
Crews has traded in his helmet and cleats to pursue an acting career while also
becoming the ultimate family man and fitness enthusiast. Over the past several
years, omnipresent Terry has been seen almost everywhere, whether as the
pecs-popping pitchman for Old Spice, portraying the overworked dad on “Everybody
Hates Chris,” a tough guy in “The Expendables” film series, the loveable
goofball in “White Chicks,” Will McAvoy’s bodyguard on HBO’s “The Newsroom,” or
randy congressman Herbert Love in “Arrested Development.”
2014 has been a busy year for Terry,
who has already appeared in Tyler Perry’s “The Single Mom’s Club,” and in “Draft
Day” opposite Kevin Costner. And later this year, he will be starring with Sly
Stallone in “Reach Me,” and reprising the role of Hale Caesar in the “The
Expendables 3.”
Terry is currently a series regular on
the Golden Globe Award-winning TV sitcom “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” playing Sgt.
Terry Jeffords, whose ripped exterior belies a sensitive and beleaguered
interior. Crews also just added author to his resume with the release of his
first book, “Manhood.” And it was recently announced that starting this fall he
will be serving as host of the game show “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?”
Here, he talks about playing “Nickens”
in his new movie, “Blended,” co-starring Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore.
Kam
Williams: Hi Terry, thanks for the interview.
Terry Crews:
Oh, you got it, Kam.
KW:
Congrats on the Golden Globe for your TV show, Brooklyn Ninety-Nine.
TC: Thank you! It blew me
away when we got that Golden Globe. What an honor! I had no idea. It’s an awesome show and one of the best
things I’ve ever done.
KW:
And you get to play a complex character in Sergeant Terry
Jeffords.
TC: That’s the best
thing, that [scriptwriters] Mike Schur and Dan Goorhore created real people
everybody can recognize. That’s real cool!
KW:
I loved Blended, and I’m not a fan of Adam Sandler’s lowbrow brand of humor. But
this one is different and kept me laughing non-stop.
TC:
That’s great! And it touches your feelings along the way,
too. That’s the thing. What’s so good about the Adam-Drew [Barrymore] collaborations
is how she tempers him. It’s the real deal. Their 50 First Dates was the first
comedy that I ever caught feelings on. I was like, “Whoa! I’m feeling the
romance here. I want them to get together. Why do I care so much?” And I got
emotional about it. That is what they bring, a magical combination that works
every time.
KW:
I liked the two of them in The Wedding Singer, too.
TC:
They’re a great combination. My wife does that for me. By
myself, I’m a hard pill. But, wow! My wife makes me look real good, because she
smoothes my rough edges. That’s why I say, “Take your wife everywhere. It’s a
good thing.” [Laughs]
KW:
You provide the comic relief throughout this movie. Just
when we’re about to forget about Nickens, he pops up again with that Greek
chorus.
TC:
You know what’s wild?
Adam called me up and before I’d seen a script, he said, “Man, I wanna do this
movie with you that we’re shooting in Africa.
Are you down, brother?” I had no idea what was going on, but I was like, “Let’s
go! This is awesome!” I’m a card-carrying member of the Happy Madison
Productions family. Adam put me in The Longest Yard, Click and The
Benchwarmers. Every time he calls, it leads to nothing but great things. That’s
why I just said, “Let’s do it!” We didn’t really have this character all
straightened out. We sort of figured it out as we went along. He came up with a
great idea. He said, basically, “Let’s make him the South African Tom Jones.”
Once we had that, we were off and running.
KW:
Had you been to Africa
before?
TC: No, that was my first
time, and I loved every minute of it. I traveled all over South Africa. I
was in Cape Town, Soweto,
Sun City and Johannesburg.
I would’ve visited Durban,
too, but we just didn’t have the time. We met the most beautiful people and ate
the best food! And we went on safari in Madikwe which is near Botswana. It
was amazing. Some people say Sante Fe is spiritual, but you haven’t experienced
anything until you’ve been to Africa. You know
the world is bigger than you are after you see Africa.
KW:
I was surprised that they shot the film in Africa at all,
since it’s a romantic comedy that could’ve been made in Hollywood, not a drama that called for an
exotic location.
TC: I think the
moviegoers are tired of always seeing L.A. and New York. Come on! I
think you can only do but so much here. It’s about time that the rest of the
world is represented in entertainment. Africa
is a huge continent. The world is gigantic. We get a little insulated. New
Yorkers never go anywhere because they think everything’s already in New York. You can to
Disney World or watch Mutual of Omaha’s Wild
Kingdom, but you have to travel to Africa to have the real experience. And if you ever do
go, it will change your life. I was changed. It was one of the best things I’ve
ever done.
KW:
What do you think about the 300 schoolgirls kidnapped in Nigeria?
TC: Oh man, what can I
say brother? I have four daughters. I consider myself a feminist. My whole life
has been about standing up for women, for anybody really, who’s been abused.
So, I’m outraged about the way they kidnapped and are mistreating those young
ladies. That’s sick! All I can think about is what if someone took my daughters
from me. It hurts. My heart is still breaking. You can post or tweet about it,
but it’s not going to rest, until we find them and get them back home safe and
sound. But nothing will change, until really righteous men stand up and say,
“This is wrong! Females cannot be treated this way. Women are not property.
Women are not second-class citizens.” Women all over the world deserve pay
equal to men, a voice equal to men, education equal to men, and to be
respected. We’ve got to realize that we’re all the same.
KW:
Since you’re a former pro athlete and you live in L.A., I also have to ask you
what you think about the L.A. Clippers. Should the owner be forced to sell the
franchise for what he said?
TC: Wow! This is what I think
about Donald Sterling. We need to forgive him.
KW:
Forgive him?
TC: Let me tell you why.
We’re all guilty of what he did. I’ve said things about my wife which would
make people think I was a horrible person, if somebody had recorded me. You say
things in anger that you’d never normally say. If someone secretly records you
in your own home, you’re going to offend somebody. Taking Donald Sterling’s
team away from him, because people don’t like what he said doesn’t make any
sense to me. I don’t know Donald Sterling. I don’t like him. We’ll never hang
out. But let people vote with their dollars. You have to recognize that this is
a dangerous precedent. If you don’t forgive, you’re setting yourself up to be
judged forever. And as soon as you say something somebody doesn’t like, they
can take what you own away from you. I know a lot of people disagree with me,
but I just don’t believe in a system that doesn’t allow you to apologize,
change and move on.
KW:
That’s an interesting take. You surprised me. Food for
thought.
TC: It’s the new
McCarthyism. It’s just not right. What I’m saying is that everybody has done
it. You might not have said something about black people, but you might have
said something worse than what Donald Sterling said, something horrible about
your wife, your kids, your best friend, or someone else. If you can’t turn
around, say “My bad. I’m sorry,” and be forgiven, then what do you do now? Are
we going to hold everybody to that standard? People like to throw stones, but I
say “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” We have to give mercy to
get it.
KW:
Attorney Bernadette asks: What advice would you give your
teenage self just coming of age, if you could travel back in time?
TC:
I would say, “Terry, behave like a king.” Because, when I
was young, I spent a lot of time behaving like a fool. And fools get mad when
people try to give them good advice. They actually get angry at ‘em. [Laughs] Because
by being a fool, you start messing up everything, and all of a sudden you want
to blame everybody else. You’re a victim! It was my mother… It was my father… It
was my wife… It was society… It was my being a black man… It’s endless. But
when you behave like a king, you make no excuses, because it’s your court, your
world, and you’re responsible for everything in your circle. That’s what I
would tell my younger self. “Dude, behave like a king, and know it’s up to
you.” That’s the deal. And I say it to young men now.
KW:
The Harriet Pakula-Teweles question: With so many classic films being redone,
is there a remake you'd like to star in?
TC:
Wooooo! Kam, that’s a big question. There are so many. I wanna
be Radio Raheem, if they ever remade Do the Right Thing. [Chuckles] Yeah, I
would love to play Radio Raheem. [Laughs some more]
KW:
The Anthony Anderson question: If you could have a superpower, which one would
you choose?
TC:
Wow! What superpower? Flight! It’s gotta be flight, because
I love to travel.
KW:
Is there any question I haven’t asked you that you wish I had?
TC:
No, I’m good.
KW:
Then thanks again for the time, Terry. Good luck with Blended
and your many projects. And I look forward to speaking to you again soon.
TC:
Oh, thank you, Kam. You got it, my man. Take care.
To see a trailer for
Blended, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_w168vuhjRo
To see several Old Spice ads featuring Terry,
visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCl5uyn5K7k
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