Mehcad Brooks in the new ABC series THE DEEP END
Whether you know him from his stint during the second season of Desperate Housewives playing the son of Alfre Woodard or his turn as hunky (and often shirtless) Eggs Benedict on True Blood last summer, Mehcad Brooks is making a name for himself and not only because of his stunning good looks and ripped up physique but for his acting.
After high-profile roles on two very hot series, Brooks is now one of the cast members of the new ABC legal series The Deep End, which premiered last week on ABC. If producers of the new dramedy are smart, they’ll utilize both Brooks’s acting skills and, of course, find reason to talk about the legal case of the week while, say, working out in the gym or taking a steam. I chatted with the charismatic and friendly Brooks last week about his new role as well as the wild ride on True Blood and his thoughts on playing gay.
Mehcad ran a triathalon last year to benefit foster children.
Jim Halterman: What kind of character is Malcolm on The Deep End?
Mehcad Brooks: I kind of look at him like a young Barack Obama meets Jeremy Piven from Entourage; a loveable douche bag. He’s very wry, he’s very witty. He doesn’t sugar coat the pill and he also doesn’t care how you feel about him as long as he’s right. But, at the same time, he does have a softer side. He’s actually raising his twelve year old brother because his parents passed away in a car accident two years ago. He’s a complicated character and I think he’s afraid just like the other people are but I think he’s learned how to have that protective layer and not to show it as much.
Time to cut loose, Mehcad!
JH: The Deep End has been referred to in the press as Grey’s Anatomy in a law firm. Do you agree and is that selling your show short?
MB: I don’t think you can sell a television show short if you’re referring to it as Grey’s Anatomy. That’s a wonderful show and we’d love to have a portion of the fan base. I take it as a compliment and I take it as flattery because if you look at Grey’s, it was one of these under-the-radar type of mid-season replacement character-driven dramedies that people really fell in love with because of the characters so if they’re saying they look at us and are reminded of that that’s a great thing. I love that show myself and it’s done really well and it’s done well because people get invested in the actors playing the characters. It’s quite flattering and a huge compliment. I’m not sure if tonally it’s accurate. I would say it’s more Boston Legal meets Entourage.
JH: You grew up in Texas – do you miss that part of the country? I lived in Austin for awhile.
MB: Good for you! Awesome! I definitely don’t miss it because I’m actually shooting there. We shoot the show in Dallas so being in Dallas a lot is close enough to home to where I can get home a few times a month and my folks have actually come up a couple of times. It’s been a nice reversal. Normally, I go home twice a year and this time I’ve been home like eight.
JH: What took you from Texas to Hollywood?
MB: I actually went to film school at USC and I had it in my head that I wanted to an actor at fifteen. My mother said ‘you can be an actor but you have to go to school for something else.’ So, I got into a bunch of schools, Yale being one and Vassar being another and I had a bunch of scholarships so she figured since I had these scholarships and I got into these schools on the East Coast that I’d do one of them but then I chose USC and she was like, ‘Great.’ [laughs]. So I came out here about ten years ago with about 300 bucks in my pocket and started to make it happen.
JH: Being a model and known for your good looks, does that ever work against people taking you seriously as an actor?
MB: Good question because I don’t know what people think I look like. That’s all subjective. One person thinks you’re good looking and the other person could think that you’re hideous. Especially in talking about yourself, if you look in the mirror all you really see are the flaws. I don’t know if it’s ever worked against me and I hope not because it’s a horrible discrimination but I just think that if you focus on what it is you’re trying to be good at it then you can continue to get hired that way.
JH: True Blood obviously did a lot for your career and you had good dramatic moments and some much crazier stuff. How was shooting that show?
MB: It was just insane. It was weird. It was crazy but it was actually kind of therapeutic and great for an actor. It’s the type of role that you dream of. You’re able to have the dramatic moments and have these dramatic storylines and arcs but at the same time you get to devour heart pie! One moment you’re having an orgy in the middle of the woods and it’s 45 degrees outside and you can see your breath. You’re actually discussing Kafka and Puccini between pelvic thrusts. And you’re pondering how it is you’re being paid for this and trying to make it seem real.
JH: Do you realize you have a gay following?
MB: I wasn’t particularly aware but I’ll take what I can get. [laughs]
JH: Would you have any issue with playing a gay role down the line in your career?
MB: That’s something I’d have no problem doing it. You know, as an actor you get to portray people who are in the world and their circumstances. There are a lot of gay people in the world and if I was presented a role that was homosexual I don’t think that that would stop me from playing that role accurately and playing that role how it should be played. There’s no problem there.
JH: Your fitness regimen – hopefully it’s not all genetics or we’d have to hate you – but it’s obviously working for you. You did a triathlon last year, right?
MB: I finished, which was amazing!
JH: Had you done something like that before?
MB: No, it was actually my first one and it was to benefit foster children. It was more about that than it was for the exercise. How I trained for the marathon was overeating and drinking in New York every day. I crawled to the finish line.
JH: Who in the acting world are your idols?
MB: So many. George Clooney, Clint Eastwood, Denzel Washington, Will Smith. Wesley Snipes without the tax trouble. It sounds like a joke but he’s an amazing actor. There’s so many great people to model yourself after, borrow from or sometimes steal from but at the same time you have to make it your own. Jack Nicholson but I’ll go my own path and see where it goes.
JH: Are you single? Dating?
MB: I try my best not to talk about any of that.
JH: Fair enough but what about having a family? Kids? Do you see yourself having that down the line?
MB: Most of the time. I feel like, yeah, but perhaps some day that answer might change. But I do want the family and kids down the road sometime.
The Deep End airs on ABC before Grey’s Anatomy on Thursday nights at 8/7c.
Jim Halterman spends his days interviewing the top tier of talent and creative forces in the television world and then, because he's that kind of guy, he brings it all to YOU! And, because we all like free stuff, check back often for giveaways!! 
