Keith David – Greenleaf

By starrymag | July 27, 2016

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

Q) What are the recent projects that you are working on?

A) Right now, I’m working on a Joe Williams and Bill Withers project – singing wise. I’ll be in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles.

Q) What made you want to be a part of “Greenleaf?”

A) I got a call from Craig [Wright] asking me if I would read it and if I was interested. I did read it and, of course, I was wonderfully interested. It was a great script, one of the best scripts I’ve come across in a very long time. I immediately identified with the character of the Bishop and loved the story. I used to want to be a minister, myself. Being a father, I was very interested in the family element of it. It is a family drama, but it just happened that the family business was the church.

Q) Was there something you added to the role that wasn’t originally scripted for you?

A) When you are reading a pilot, it’s only the one day in the life. So, I was also anxious to find out more about his life as it unfolds, as the character develops and as Craig and the writers get to know me more. I’m a singer and I get to sing in a couple episodes and I get to preach, which is great.

Q) Had you worked with Lynn Whitfield before?

A) I have known Lynn for a very long time. We did a reading together of The People of Clarendon County written by Ossie Davis. We did that a few years ago, but we’d never worked together so I was looking for a chance to be able to work with her. It is wonderful chemistry and I’ve always loved her work and she is just fantastic to work with. She is dedicated and just so smart. I’m so impressed with how her mind works as an actor.

Q) Tye White mentioned that sought you out for acting tips. How does that make you feel that up and coming actors look to you for advice?

A) All I could ever pass on to anybody is the benefit of my experience. So, we talk. If I have anything to offer, I think that is great. You learn from every actor that you work with, sometimes what not to do and sometimes what to do. Sometimes you learn how to do it better. It’s always a nice thing.

Q) What were some of your favorite moments from behind the scenes on “Greenleaf?”

A) One of my favorite moments is when we did the first reading to go over what the story was going to be for the week. How excited everyone gets about that is really kind of nice. To see how it changes from the time we read it to the time we get to play with it…Once it gets read, we get to talk to about it, the writers go back and revamp and then we get to see what the changes are. I love being a part of that creative process.

Q) What part of Bishop Greenleaf’s character development have you enjoyed the most?

A) I have loved which we just showed in episode five when Grace (Merle Dandridge) and I finally get to talk in the car. She asks me why I didn’t do anything when she first told me and why didn’t I believe her. I get to tell her that if I thought anything she had been talking about was true did she think he would still be alive or still be around? That rang very true to me because sometimes things happen within a household that you are just not aware of for whatever reason. You believe them all because you are too busy or not paying attention. But to ask your child and they can choose to tell you the truth or not. In this case, she chose to not tell me the truth and I believed that because I wanted to believe. In reality, if I had known, things would have been very different.

Q) You often do a lot of dramatic work. Do you have a preference for drama over comedy?

A) I like to work so it doesn’t matter the genre. If it is funny on the page, I’ll find the funny. Sometimes even when it is dramatic there is something that can be funny about it. So, I try to find the humor in it. I look for that and I try to discover what is the humor. It’s a process to find where the Bishop’s sense of humor lies. I try to find that out and seek out those places.

Q) Is there someone you haven’t gotten to work with yet that you would like scenes with or someone you would like more scenes with?

A) I haven’t had a big scene with my youngest daughter yet, Deborah Joy Winans. We haven’t had any real scenes yet and I look forward to that.

Q) What do you think it is about “Greenleaf” that has made it such a fan favorite show?

A) It’s because of the way it resonates with the truth. Anybody who goes to church knows that just because we are functioning in the house of God doesn’t mean that lots of human elements don’t fall into place. There are all kinds of politics and personalities and people are not always as they appear to be. All of that stuff rings true because that’s how life is. Those are some of the things that ring true to me with the series because there is a lot of truth on these pages.

Q) You are a part of social media. Do you enjoy the instant fan feedback you receive to the show?

A) I enjoy that. I really am enjoying that very much. It’s great to see that fans are participating and I like being able to react to them.

Q) You were recently nominated for an Emmy for your voiceover work a feature about Jackie Robinson. How does that make you feel?

A) Any time anybody recognizes you for doing your work is always a wonderful thing. “Jackie Robinson” was a wonderful project. I grew up dreaming about Jackie Robinson and knowing about him. It was great to be a part of this wonderful documentary because it was more than just one or two things that you got to learn about him that people generally didn’t know – one of which was his politics and how active he was in the Civil Rights movement.

Q) Is there anything else you want to be sure fans know about “Greenleaf?”

A) I think it is really fantastic writing. It’s a great show. Please watch it. You’ll enjoy it!