Actor Orlando Jones on the Future of Content Creation: “I don’t believe the gatekeepers are in control, anymore”
The Comedian and former star of ‘American Gods’ sits down with FilmSpeak to reflect on the union strikes, studios crumbling and his new independent film, ‘Til Death Do Us Part’.
Orlando Jones in Til Death Do Us Part (Photo Credit: Cineverse)
It’s been said before, but it bears repeating - comedians are almost always intensely intelligent people, at least those who have made a mark for themselves in the professional world of entertainment. Regardless if they are Carrot Top, Gallagher, or the crew from Jack-Ass, or regardless of what you may think of their comedy, there is still an aura of intelligence within each of them. Except Logan and Jake Paul. Even if you consider them comedians, there’s no redemption there.
This bears repeating because audiences still to this day are surprised when seasoned comedians often shed the not-always-proverbial suspenders and tackle drama, and more surprisingly, not only give a good performance, but a great performance. Far away from the giant mallets smashing watermelons (pause to allow younger Millenials to look up that reference) you have stars icons as Jim Carrey, Jamie Foxx, Bill Murray, and of course Robin Williams who just knock certain dramatic roles out of the park. Comedians are avid people watchers. They understand humanity and its facets better than arguably any profession out there, so another statement that bears repeating is this: stop being surprised when those who started in comedy transfer well to other genres. Period.
And Orlando Jones’ name to the list. Arguably best known for his scene-stealing role as Mr Nancy in the first two seasons of STARZ's ‘American Gods’, Jones has worked his way through so many parts of the Hollywood system, predominately within television. A tenured member of the WGA, he began his career writing for the breakthrough comedy ‘A Different World’ as part of the must-see-TV line up on the late 80s and 90s. Continuing to break ground in his next gig, he joined the initial cast of Fox's "Mad TV", which continued to push the boundaries of inclusion and comedy. This lead to Jones co-starring with David Duchovny in Ivan Reitman's ‘Evolution’ in what would be one of the Jones' largest roles to date. In his later roles, Jones has taken a darker path, costarring in ‘Sleepy Hollow’, and eventually in American Gods. He now comes to ‘TIL DEATH DO US PART’, an independent thriller which follows the dark story of a honeymoon night gone wrong. After bailing on her wedding, a former bride-to-be must fight off her ex-groom and seven angry killer groomsmen in order to survive the night, in this hilarious mix of action, gore and comedy.
“I don’t believe that the gatekeepers really are in control of the gate anymore. I think there’s incredible opportunities for artists who might have otherwise not had the chance to find themselves being able to do this for a living. So for me as an artist, that’s exciting. If you’re a gatekeeper, I guess that’s bad news.”
When asked about the interesting crux between Horror and Comedy, including the likes of his fellow MadTV alum Jordan Peele, Jones could summarize it very succinctly. “I think human beings are multifaceted creatures” Jones says, “When we see a one-dimensional human being, we tend to put them in a box. But when you get to see different elements of that human, you can kind of piece that human together a little bit differently, right? It connects you to the person in a different way. I've always tried to infuse that in any of my work.” That aforementioned work as brought him from comedic writer, to comedy trend setter, to large summer blockbusters, to his newest project Til Death Do Us Part, a purely independent outing. Jones’ more recent foray mirrors that of colleagues like Peele, where darker and often horror-filled scripts and movies are the direction he’s going in. For Jones, it’s not so much about it being locked into a genre. “I ask myself, are the components right? Do you have a storyteller that has a story to tell that you have characters that, you know are interesting and compelling? And do not feel like they fit in the same boxes I've seen before? Is there a narrative structure in some way that breaks the norm so that there’s more comedy? So to put all those things into [the project] and to find yourself being compared to Quentin Tarantino movies, or John Wick movies, for our little independent movie is a pretty awesome compliment.”
you can watch the full interview, below, or continue to the article:
While Jones’ brothers and sisters fight on the picket line for their fair share they deserve from larger studios, it’s crucial to note that a film like this represents renegade filmmaking, and more importantly, this film is not a union project. Representation for the film assures FilmSpeak Til Death Do Us Part is both a non AMPTP project and distributor. The film is a complete Indie, which is refreshing and perhaps a mere glimpse into the future of the industry. Independent films have always terrifying to make because if a filmmaker threw thousands of dollars at a project, there was no guarantee they would ever see that money again. For every success story such as Kevin Smith and Clerks, there were hundreds of small films no one ever saw. Jones has always been outspoken about the future of content creation, and was once again not scared to say why he believes there is going to be a very different future for the film and television world, and why these strikes may be the initial spark to make that future inevitable.
Jones in American Gods (Courtesy of Amazon Prime)
“Independent filmmakers have the ability to tell stories that are in many ways, more interesting, more compelling, and, frankly, done for a much cheaper price. They're done from a place of passion and not done from a place of commerce to come from a place of the desire to tell this story as an artist. So the final product often feels that way, too. It feels more like it is an artistic creation, and it doesn't feel like a commercial. In the world of commercials trying to sell you something consistently and in a world where corporations only speak to you to say ‘watch’ and ‘buy’, there is an opening in a world where people are saying to you, I don't care about you're watching and buying, let's talk about what we love as fans. Let's talk about escapism”. This has obviously been the case for indie films since their inception, but Jones recognizes the tides of change. He is an avid proponent of the guilds. He is a tenured member of the WGA, and that close relationship came in handy when Jones had a rather public dismissal after the second season of American Gods. The WGA ended up fighting for Jones’ rights and contributions for the show as Jones had written so much history for his scene-stealing performance as trickster god Anansi, and bibles for several other prominent characters within the show. The guild was stepped in to represent Jones and ensure he got a much deserved producer credit on the show. Coincidentally here we are, with these guilds striking across America, fighting for the rights of their members, and not necessarily for established actors and tenured members such as Jones, but for the creators that reflect who Jones was thirty years ago.
“I look at all [these] components, and I look at where we're marching towards. I don't believe that the gatekeepers really are in control of the gate anymore. I think there's incredible opportunities for artists who might have otherwise not had the chance to find themselves being able to do this for a living and not have to take a day job. So for me as an artist, that's exciting. If you're a gatekeeper, I guess that's bad news. But I'm an artist and a fan, so for me, it's awesome.”