Archive for Cast
The Wire’s David Simon takes on Post-Katrina New Orleans in Treme – TCA Report
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If there was anyone working in TV today who could create an accurate, in-depth portrait of post-Katrina New Orleans, it’s David Simon. Many people call Simon’s previous HBO series, The Wire, one of the greatest dramas of all time, and they do it for a reason: it has rich characterizations, well-examined stories, and it gives viewers a real feel for the underbelly of Baltimore.
So, with Treme, debuting on HBO in April, Simon tries to examine the lives of ten people who are trying to pull things together three months after Hurricane Katrina flooded out New Orleans.
“New Orleans, to me, represents a place where it’s a triumph of American urban culture,” said Simon. It’s what – it’s the best that an American city can be and also the worst in a lot of ways, as I said before, but it has created a culture that has gone around the world.”
Wendell Pierce, who played Bunk on The Wire, is on board as musician Antoine Batiste, who tries to reconnect with his family while struggling to make a living in the devastated city. At the time he was offered the part, he was also in line to take the role in Men of a Certain Age that ended up going to Andre Braugher.
But the New Orleans native knew he had to take this role, and he thinks Simon’s depiction of NOLA is the most accurate he’s seen on TV in a while.
“You know, a lot of times, you see, you know, bad TV movies about New Orleans and it’s Mardi Gras every day, and everybody is dressed up, and outside the window, you see a parade going by<” said Pierce. “I knew that David and Eric (Overmyer) had a unique ability to find the specificity in a culture and depict it in a way that was authentic. And so that’s happening, and that’s evident, and I’m happy about that. New Orleanians are very protective about their culture, and I think they would be happy about the specificity in the show.”
Yes, there’s lots of good and bad aspects of New Orleans that the show can depict, but strangely enough, in the months after Katrina, the more unseemly aspects of the city — the rampant crime, especially — wasn’t there.
“The truth was the crime didn’t come back for several months, until the spring of ‘06,” said Simon. “Crime dropped
dramatically in New Orleans. So at the point at which certain initiatives show up, to the extent that they affect the lives of our characters, of our 10 major characters, we wanted to deal with them.” As time goes on, they’ll deal with the education problems, the crime problems, etc. But for now, it’s about a community trying to rebuild.
Oh, and they shot the show in the city. Even close to five years after the flood, there are still areas that haven’t recovered. “It’s a little embarrassing that, you know, it doesn’t take that much art direction to make it look like three months after (Katrina),” said Pierce.
Online Episodes: Watch or buy any previous The Wire episodes you may have missed by clicking here.
Wendell Pierce
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Wendell Pierce is recognized by film audiences for his extensive work for such directors as Woody Allen, Spike Lee, Brian De Palma, Barry Levinson, Sidney Lumet and Paul Schrader, among others. Most recently he appeared in Volcano, Bullworth under director Warren Beatty and Spike Lee’s Get On The Bus. His filmography also includes Sleepers, Waiting to Exhale, Hackers, Bye Bye Love, It Could Happen To You, Manhattan Murder Mystery, Malcolm X, Husbands and Wives, A Rage in Harlem, Bonfire of the Vanities, Causalities of War, Family Business, Ishtar, Patty Hearst and The Money Pit.
Equally accomplished in the realm of television, Pierce appeared regularly in the CBS series Gregory Hines Show and Maloney, and can currently be seen on the new Brian Benben Show. Previously a guest star on New York Undercover, I’ll Fly Away, and the pilot Hollywood Division, Pierce’s credits include the ABC mini-series Advocate’s Devil, the CBS telefilm Never Give Up: The Jimmy V Story, the HBO projects Strapped and Vietnam War Story: The Pass, A&E’s Avenue Z Aftemooif’ and the BBC miniseries With Two Lumps of Ice. Appearing in episodes of Law and Order, The Equalizer” and other series, he also lent his talents to pilot episodes of The 413, The Last Days of Russell, Medicine Show and Crime and Punishment.
Heralded for his work in the world premiere of Queenie Pie at the Kennedy Center, Pierce includes among his Broadway stage credits roles in The Piano Lesson, Serious Money and The Boys of Winter. He has appeared in such off-Broadway productions as The Good Times are Killing Me, Psychoneurotic Phantasies for Playwrights Horizons, and Tis a Pity She’s a Whore, Cymbeline and Two Gentleman of Verona for the New York Shakespeare Festival.
John Doman
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John Doman was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on January 9, 1945. He was featured in a cameo role in the Clint Eastwood film, Mystic River, as well as a guest appearance in an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. He is best known for his role as Baltimore Deputy Police Commissioner William Rawl in HBO’s critically acclaimed police drama, The Wire.
William A. Rawl is the Deputy Commissioner for Operations at the Baltimore Police Department. He is one of the most ruthless and demanding officers on the team, with a particular distaste for insubordination. Because of this, he has an ever-growing resentment towards Jimmy McNulty, who goes around the chain of command to get things done. Since majority of Baltimore’s population is African-American, he cannot achieve commissioner status, and his current position may be the highest he can possibly have.
Dominic West Biography
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Date of Birth: October 15, 1969
Dominic West is one of seven children born to George and Moya West of Sheffield, Yorkshire, England. His father owned a successful plastics manufacturing plant and his mother was a homemaker who loved theater and influenced her son to start acting at age nine when he began appearing in community theater productions.
As West grew older, his focus shifted from acting. After he graduated from high school he ventured off to Argentina for a four-month stint as a cattle herder. The trip was an odd venture for a young man with such a bright future, but West claims he was “just trying to be different.”
When he returned from Argentina, West continued his education at Dublin’s Trinity College. He graduated from the school in 1993 with a B.A. in English literature. But soon after, he realized his passion was for acting, so he enrolled in the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
After graduating, West began appearing in small roles in films like Richard III (1995), Surviving Picasso (1996) and The Gambler (1997). His early credits also include brief appearances in Spice World (1997) and as a palace guard in Star Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace (1999).
West considers his big break to be the role he played opposite Sandra Bullock in 28 Days (2000). After that, West landed prominent roles in Rock Star (2001), Chicago (2002), Mona Lisa Smile (2004) and The Forgotten (2004). In 2006, he took a villainous turn in Zack Snyder’s graphic novel adaptation 300. West has also had success on the small screen, starring in the critically acclaimed drama The Wire.
FILMOGRAPHY
Punisher: War Zone (2008)
Hannibal Rising (2007)
300 (2006)
The Forgotten (2004)
Mona Lisa Smile (2003)
Chicago (2002)
Rock Star (2001)
28 Days (2000)
Star Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace (1999)
A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1999)
Spice World (1997)
The Gambler (1997)
True Blue (1996)
Surviving Picasso (1996)
Richard III (1995)
Wendell Pierce
Posted by: | Comments Most Recent Role: Captain Bill Schroeder on Women’s Murder Club
Gender: Male
Birthday: 12-8-1962
Pierce was born in New Orleans and raised in a neighborhood next to Lake Pontchartrain. His mother was a teacher and his father, a WWII veteran, worked as a maintenance engineer. He attended the New Orleans Centre for Creative Arts high school where he graduated as a Presidential Scholar. Pierce attended the Juilliard School and began appearing in small film roles by 1985. He has made his living as a full time actor since 1985. He continues to work as a stage and TV actor. Pierce is best known to TV audiences as Detective William “Bunk” Moreland in the highly acclaimed series The Wire. Prior to The Wire, he is most recognized from his role in Waiting to Exhale.
