American actor Michael Rady sees reality television in a new light. Bibi Nurshuhada Ramli finds out why
THOSE who have watched the teen flick, Sisterhood Of The Travelling Pants, will find it hard to forget one of its male supporting characters, Kostas.
He was portrayed by American actor Michael Rady, whose cute smile and rugged looks were the perfect combination that left a memorable impression.
Shot in 2004 and released the following year, the filmmarked Rady's acting debut.
In an interview with NST, the 34-year-old says excitedly that the movie was one of the greatest things to ever happen to him.
"It's hard in this industry to get a big job, especially if you haven't had a big job before. I happened to be in the right place at the right time, with the right talent, and enough people who believed in me," he says.
Rady constantly thinks about the people behind the film. "I'm so grateful to them because I don't know what my life would be like if I were not part of that really fun movie," he says.
"I'm a lucky devil. It opened so many doors for me."
When he returned to the US after filming in Greece for the film, many offers came his way. Since then, Rady had done a plethora of films and TV shows, including the Sisterhood sequel, The Guardian and J. Edgar, and the reboot of the TV series Melrose Place, Emily Owens M.D., Jane The Virgin and The Mentalist.
The Philadelphia native's latest project is the second season of the TV drama series UnReal, playing Coleman Wasserman. Set against the backdrop of the hit dating competition show Everlasting, UnReal currently airs on Tuesdays at 10pm on Lifetime.
It is about Rachel Goldberg (Shiri Appleby), a supervising producer known for her skills at manipulating her relationships with, and among, the contestants.
This is in order to get the vital dramatic and outrageous footage that the programme's dispassionate executive producer Quinn King (Zimmer), demands.
What ensues once again is an eyeopening look at what happens in the outrageous world of unscripted TV.
Having already tackled relevant matters of gender politics in the first season, the series will stir up the drama in Season 2 when Everlasting casts its first-ever African American suitor.
"I had never seen the show before nor knew anything about it, but my agents said I had to audition. I was hesitant at first but they said, 'No, trust us! You have to go in for this!'" says Rady, laughing.
So he did a few auditions and read a few scenes with Shiri to see if there was any chemistry. He only watched the first season after he booked the part.
"It took me about two nights, and I was falling off my couch the entire time with nerve and excitement," he recalls.
"I couldn't believe it's so good. I've never been on a show that I'm a fan of before!"
Coleman was a documentary filmmaker before joining Everlasting's crew. He's also Rachel's potential love interest.
"He was brought in to get the show back on track because there was trouble at the helm. A few people have bristled at his presence, especially Quinn and Chet (Craig Bierko), the series creator who is on a quest to reclaim his full power on set.
"Coleman has had a lot of success in directing documentaries and it doesn't sit quite well with Quinn and Chet that this young baby-faced boy is taking over their show," explains Rady who used his past experience to portray Coleman.
"In Melrose Place, I played an aspiring filmmaker. The director for the series pilot was Davis Guggenheim, who has done several well-known documentaries.
"I got to spend time with him and that experience stayed with me till now. It became part of my process of figuring out who Coleman is. If I modelled Coleman after anyone, it would be Davis."
On UnReal, most of Rady's scenes were with Appleby, and the actor only had good things to say about his co-star.
"In terms of building her performance, she gave so many options, such a vast array of different colours for every scene or take.
That's always thrilling and invaluable to watch and be acting with," he says.
Working on UnReal has also changed how Rady views reality TV.
He says: "I think they have an undeniable natural appeal but I have such many mixed feelings about them. So much of it is ridiculous and inane. However, I love watching some competitive talent shows. These are inspiring."
He adds that it's hard to cast a broad judgement over all reality shows as some are better than others.
"Still, it's entertainment. If someone needs to step outside of their life for an hour to a world of romance where an eligible man is looking for his bride, go ahead and watch this," he says.
As for Rady himself, he will never look at reality TV the same way ever again.
"I'm always going to remember that there are two or three producers coaching people on what to say on camera.
"Since I've been in this industry for some time, it takes a better film or TV show to make me forget about what goes on behind the scenes."
UnReal also stars Josh Kelly as Jeremy, Everlasting's director of photography and Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman as Jay, a field producer whose ambitions run far beyond the show.
Everlasting's new suitor and an All-American football star Darius Hill, is portrayed by B.J. Britt.
QUICK FACTS
✇ Name: Michael Rady
✇ Date of birth: Aug 20, 1981 (age 34)
✇ Place of birth: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
✇ Occupation: Actor
✇ Zodiac sign: Leo
✇ TRIVIA: Rady lives in Los Angeles with wife Rachael Kemery, and their sons Ellington, 3, and August, 1.
For his role of Kostas in The Sisterhood Of Travelling Pants, Rady had only four days to learn to speak with a Greek accent, with help from a dialect coach flown in from London.
All his scenes were filmed in Greece and he had to fly there at less than 24-hour notice.
UnReal airs every Tuesday at 10pm on Lifetime (Astro Channel 709)