Zeljko Ivanek – Madam Secretary

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

A) Just before “Madam Secretary” (and actually a bit after) I did some episodes of “Suits.” I did the pilot of “12 Monkeys.” I also did another episode of “The Americans” fairly recently.

Q) How was your character, Russell Jackson, on “Madam Secretary” originally described to you?

A) I just remember he was Chief of Staff to the President. I think it was very clear that his loyalty, first and foremost, was to the President. That’s where the drama and Téa Leoni’s character would lie. They will have different interests at different times and he is clearly controlling, but all of that is in interest of serving his boss and not personal ambition. What I also liked when I read it was that there was some kind of humor in their scenes during the seriousness of the issues that were going on. He was really confident in his power. There were some nice, light moments to the scenes as well. I’m glad we are getting to explore some of that as we go along.

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

A) I don’t know. It was pretty determined early on that the humor would come through. I can’t really say. Some of it is obviously in the script, but it is something I wanted to emphasize. When I went in originally for the role I thought I would be reading for it,  but it turned into a meeting and that was my concern. My concern was that I didn’t want them to assume that I knew exactly what I was going to do with him and that it would just be this regular hardnosed guy in a suit that she goes up against all the time. I really did see a kind of lighter touch in there as well and there are lots of ways of pursuing power and there are lots of ways of maintaining power. They are not all just being a hard ass. I just wanted very much for there to be a fluid sense in there of what he is like. Very often they will be allies and very often they will be opposing each other. But there is a kind of easy rapport in there as well and I wanted to build on that as we go on.

Q) You have shared some great banter on screen with Téa Leoni. What is it like working with her?

A) She is great! She is fantastic! It is not that she is that character, but she is that smart and she is that funny. It just makes for a very easy working environment. She has the attitude that there is no point in doing this unless we can have a laugh and enjoy it. So, it’s been a real breeze and I look forward to it. It’s kind of astounding to think of the schedule she is working on and the schedule most of the rest of us are working on. She is practically in every scene so most of the time she is there from the beginning of the day to the end, day after day. So, for her to keep the attitude that she has had and to have an easy going sense of it, is pretty amazing to me.

Q) You often play these very strong, stern tough guy roles. What is it about these characters that really draws you to them?

A) I don’t know if I’m drawn to them or if that is at some point what people see me doing and that’s what comes my way. Kind of one of the first of those was the character I played on “Homicide: Life on the Street.” So, I sort of blame Tom Fontana for this. That led on to “Oz,” which he also wrote and produced. So, at some point, I think people get an image in their head and they think, “Who’s the go-to guy for hardnosed suits?” That just comes as kind of a niche, but it is also very enjoyable and they are usually smart, powerful, ambitious manipulative people. And all of those things are fun to play and explore. Like I said, what I like about Russell is that there is an added layer and it is not just a fist in a velvet glove that is going on much of the time. There is much more room (because it is an on going series) to explore how else do people maintain control and power and ambition and to what end.

Q) A lot of the cast has joined social media to promote the show. Will we be seeing you online anytime soon?

A) I think that is unlikely. I just kind of don’t get it. Maybe I’m older and I just didn’t grow up with that. When I have been exposed to it, I just find myself wary of it and wary of the exposure. It implies a certain contact and intimacy that I find when you read a string of people’s arguments and attacks that the tone can get very sour very fast. I know that it is a big part of promoting the show and it is a big part of business now to drawing an audience. I’ve yet to figure out my place in that. For now, I’m still sitting on the sidelines.

Q) What have been some of your most memorable moments from filming “Madam Secretary?”

A) Mostly, it is just incredibly enjoyable. We’re in a slightly odd situation and I find this amusing. We don’t have a set for the White House or the Oval Office. We’re constantly walking through the hallways shooting at the Waldorf Astoria and a mansion in Glen Cove and another mansion in Long Island. The poor President is always on the move. I’m looking forward to later in the season for them to hopefully find a stage space and build us a set. For now, it’s just kind of amusing to me that the man never seems to settle down and never seems to be in his own office. You don’t know where the scenes are going to be set and you have to have enough scenes to justify him going out to Long Island. The only thing we have built is the Situation Room. So, we have that. Everything else, we have had various versions of my office where it is an outer office and it will be nice hopefully down the line to start a scene in the Oval Office and go out in a hallway and go to my office. We’re always on the run. It gives the show a certain energy, but it slightly makes you wonder when the President is ever behind his own desk.

Q) What do you think it is about the show that has made it such a quick fan favorite program?

A) It’s been really nice to see that it has been getting such a positive reaction. I guess I think it is the mix of things. First and foremost, to a great extent, once people tune in it is Téa Leoni. They know her tone, humor, attitude and her brains. I think that is a large part of what will bring people back week after week. She, herself, is such an engaging actress and such an engaging character. In the overall sense, I think it is the mix of foreign policy and the bigger issues that are dealt with. And it is the office politics and the politics of Washington on another level and the family issues and how her work impacts the family and how her family impacts the work. I think that is a great mix. Watching somebody having to maneuver all of that who is new to much of it and having to kind of find her way and drag her family along with her is a really kind of great story. I don’t think we have seen that kind of thing before. We have seen political shows and Washington shows and there has been a good deal of that. I think that mix of family, politics and issues is a really good one and a really compelling one. I think that’s what people are responding to.