JK Simmons says he has been around long enough to not have his head turned by success. Photo / FilmMagic
In the new espionage series Counterpart, Oscar-winner
JK Simmons plays Howard Silk, a lowly bureaucrat who learns a shocking secret: a parallel dimension exists right next to ours. He talks to Dominic Corry.
What attracted you to Counterpart?
My agent has learned that I don't want to know anything about a project going in, I just want to read the script. So I started reading it, they said they wanted me to look at the part of Howard, and I'm seeing this sort
of sad-sack character, and I'm really starting to empathise with him. Love the writing, it was really intelligent, deep and insightful and then the big bombshell moment comes and I jumped in my chair. Really mindblowing in the best possible way.
Your profile has risen considerably since you won the Oscar for Whiplash - how comfortable are you in the spotlight?
It's a mixed bag. Obviously, it's a very positive position to be in, for someone to want you to be the central character on a show. I look back, 10, 20, 30 years ago when I was trying to get a line on a soap opera, on anything, anywhere, and it's surreal to be in the position I'm in now. But I also have the benefit of maturity and having been around just on the planet for a long time, let alone in the business, to not have my head turned by it. If I'd had all the attention that Whiplash brought me when I was 27 years old, I can't imagine I would've handled it with any grace whatsoever.
