Ed Weeks – The New Hugh?
by James Patrick Herman Photography by Jeff Vespa
Cheeky and charming, The Mindy Project’s resident Englishman, Ed Weeks, is like a younger, sexier version of Hugh Grant. And he’s not above sleeping his way to the top of the TV world—just ask Joan Rivers!
What’s the most English thing about you?
“Gosh, I don’t know. I guess I say ‘gosh’ a lot. My Americans friends are disappointed when they discover how un-British I am. Because I’m actually half-El Salvadorian, not even a full Brit.”
How is your day off from The Mindy Project so far?
“I’ve been drinking since eight this morning. There’s no rest for the wicked.”
Before we talk about Mindy, I want to ask about another funny woman: How is Joan Rivers in bed? I am referring, of course, to her online talk show: In Bed with Joan.
“Joan Rivers is marvelous in bed. She gave me a big glass of red wine as soon as I arrived. You know, it’s always advisable to get into bed drunk with somebody—that’s how most of the unions in this world happen. I was very nervous because she’s a legend, not to mention a hero of mine. But she could not have been nicer. She said: ‘Feel free to say anything—this isn’t network TV. It’s online, so you can be as dirty as you want to be.’ I felt weirdly relaxed because the interview literally took place in bed. I’m sure it wasn’t her real bed, just a prop, but because of that scenario—added to that the wine—I felt more loose-tongued than usual. It is a measure of her skill that Joan is one of the most famous women in the world, but she made me feel like I was chatting with a dirty-minded friend.”
You’ve also been a guest of hers on E!’s Fashion Police. Who is your style icon?
“David Bowie. But I could never really emulate him. I’m not flamboyant enough. I’m risk averse. My own style is kind of preppy.”
Is your own taste in clothes similar to the sharp-dressed doctor you play on The Mindy Project?
“They dress Jeremy as a rich, debonair Englishman: He wears slim-fit Burberry suits. I do love that kind of thing, but I, Ed weeks, am not James Bond-ian enough by half to pull it off. I’m also not a big label queen like Jeremy is. He dresses to impress. I am more slovenly, I’m afraid.”
Clearly you charmed Mindy Kaling into casting someone who is relatively unknown to American audiences. Did you go to bed with her, too?
“I went to a slew of awful auditions and then this part came along. It was written as an American, but as I was practicing and running through lines with my roommate, she was like: ‘I think you should do it in your own accent, so that you can really play up that sliminess and oiliness.’ I was like: ‘That’s very nice, thanks.’ So I went in and I played the character as British, which they had not heard before. I was brought in to read with Mindy that same day. There was a scene in the script that called for Jeremy to throw some birth control at her. So I threw a condom which I had brought directly at the casting director’s face—not at Mindy. I thought I made the right decision, but there was silence. For a moment, I was like: What have I done? Then Mindy said: ‘Is that a real condom?’ And I was like: ‘Yeah.’ And she said: ‘That’s hilarious!’ ”
I like that you always come prepared, Ed.
“It’s important to be safe. You never know what’s going to happen.”
So how did you prepare for playing doctor?
“I felt like I knew that kind of character. I also felt that I can be a bit like Jeremy: Very entitled, princely, caddish, spoiled, you know? Kind of young, dumb, overeducated and over libidinous.”
And as for the doctor stuff?
“There’s not a huge amount of gynecology happening on our show, but we did do a triple delivery at the end of season one that was surreal: There was a woman with a plastic stomach, a [prosthetic] baby all covered in goo and a medical consultant telling me where to put the forceps! But the part hasn’t called for any research yet. Or maybe I am just lazy: ‘Ed Weeks lazily did no research whatsoever.’ ”
I’ve heard we will get to see a whole lot more of your character this fall.
“In season two, you’re going to see the darker side of Jeremy. It’s not all fun parties, anymore. While Mindy is away in Haiti for a few months, Jeremy has taken over as managing partner. He’s in charge of the whole practice, which puts a lot of stress on him. He likes the perks of being a doctor, but he doesn’t particularly like having to work. So suddenly he has all this unglamorous responsibility of dealing with HR and people who have made complaints and someone took his parking space—all that bullshit. He’s having a tough time, which shows in his stress eating. He’s not your usual svelte, suave and gorgeous Jeremy—the past three months have not been kind to him because he’s not well-equipped to deal with life. One of the writers on the show summed it up brilliantly. He said: ‘Jeremy loves America, but it constantly disappoints him.’ He’s now living the dark side of the American dream.”
And speaking of the American dream, you’ve already sold a pilot to CBS—and made it look so easy!
“I guess it happened quickly for me in Hollywood, but remember, I’ve been doing this in England since I was 19. And it didn’t feel easy at the time. But yes, I sold a pilot script to CBS when I first came out to L.A. Then the acting thing kind of happened and the writing thing kind of fell away.”
What was your pilot about?
“I don’t think I can go into it because CBS owns it. I can tell you that it’s a romantic comedy—but clearly it wasn’t either romantic enough or comedic enough because it remains not on television.”
Do you aspire to become a Hollywood leading man?
“At this stage, my only desire is to keep on working. My career has taken such a strange path from graphic designer to writer to actor. We’ll see where things take me. Obviously, I would love to do bigger stuff, but leading man? I don’t know. I’d also like to write and produce.”
Let me guess: What you really want to do is direct?
“Directing is something that has never really occurred to me. My castmate, Chris Messina, just directed his first feature during our hiatus. I can see why he’d want to do it: He’s good with actors, he has a great theoretical mind when it comes to how shots work and he is a connoisseur of cinema. I always thought I’m more of a writer-producer type than a director type. The idea of dealing with all those people kind of scares me. I’d much rather be in a small, smelly room with a few other writers cracking sex jokes. That’s more my speed.”
How do you feel about the Hugh Grant comparisons?
“Flattered. I’ve always loved Hugh Grant ever since I saw him in Four Weddings and a Funeral. He’s such an underrated actor, actually. It’s hard to do light comedy, which he does beautifully. Also, he’s hilariously witty and dry on talk shows. So if I remind people of Hugh Grant, that’s pretty thrilling.”
Here’s some career advice: Don’t pick up prostitutes.
“Not on Sunset because it’s a very public thoroughfare.”
What would be your dream role?
“I’m a music geek as well as a huge show off. When I was a kid, my dream was to be a musician. I’m a guitarist and a pianist and I would write musicals back at Cambridge. My fantasy is me on stage playing for all my teachers and school friends who doubted me in the audience cheering. I’d love to hear people say: ‘That guy can act and play the guitar and the piano really well—let’s try and sleep with him!’ Yeah, that’s the reaction I want.”
What’s your favorite karaoke song?
“ ‘All Night Long’ by Lionel Richie. Next Question.”
What was your first job?
“I worked as a janitor at a dance studio in London. I joined a temp agency and it was the first thing they found for me. I read the job listing and thought it sounded sexy—I imagined all these young dancers and me in overalls with my toolbox. It turned out to be lots of 75-year-old women in a smelly office building.”
I envisioned Channing Tatum in Step Up until you mentioned the elderly clientele.
“It went from like Step Up to Cocoon. But I’m sure that 75-year old women are good in bed. They’re wise.”
No doubt your friend Joan Rivers would agree.
“Yes, that’s true. We did just talk dirty in bed, though.”