Beloved for
series such as Homefront and Early Edition,
Kyle Chandler scores a touchdown as Coach Eric Taylor
on NBC’s critically acclaimed Texas-set high school
football drama Friday Night Lights, now in its
second season. An Emmy nominee (for playing a doomed bomb
squad leader on Grey’s Anatomy), this
good ol’ Southern boy really blew our minds
with the news that a group of crazy gays helped shape
him into the man he is today.
Are you surprised to find out that you have a big gay following?
Well, I hadn’t thought about it, but I
don’t see why I shouldn’t. I
didn’t do anything to y’all! [Laughs]
Actually, I told a friend of mine that I was doing
this interview, and he said, “What gay people
follow you?”
We tend to follow handsome men. Do you work hard to look good?
Not as hard as I should. I’m 42 now, and
I find myself slowing down a little bit. Doing the
show and flying back and forth from Austin to Los
Angeles takes it out of you. And I’ve got a wife and
a couple kids, so I have to deal out all my attention
and time there. When the show shuts down,
that’s when you get to reinvent yourself, recuperate,
get back in shape, and get ready to do it all over
again.
Was the big 4-0 a difficult milestone?
No. I don’t worry about age. I figure
every extra year is a good thing. I’ve got
enough things to worry about it in life than getting older.
I like living.
But is it a bit depressing to be surrounded by a bunch of
20-year-olds in their physical prime on Friday
Night Lights?
Hell, yeah, it’s depressing! Bastards.
Especially that Taylor Kitsch, showing himself off in
all those damn muscle magazines and everything.
Meanwhile, I’m counting my extra gray hairs every
morning. But it’s neat to see those guys do
well. I was there at one point, so I know where they
are. They’ve got great years ahead of
’em.
You couldn’t be in those magazines?
Hell, I guess I could. As long as it’s from the
neck up or the ankles down.
Is it a very “boys will be boys” atmosphere
on set, particularly during those locker room scenes?
Yeah, they’re usually smacking each other
with towels, pulling the towels off of each other,
bragging about their virtues here and there -- you
know how it is.
You paint a beautiful picture, Kyle.
[Laughs] And those shower scenes that are not on
film sure have sparked some curiosity on the set.
The show has dealt with racial tensions but no homophobia
among the teammates. Since you have freedom to
ad-lib, you should throw that topic out there.
Maybe I’ll do that this afternoon. I’m
gonna tell Smash Williams that I think he’s gay
today and see what he says. [Laughs]
But seriously, what might happen if a player came out?
I think it would make a pretty interesting story
line, but it’s a rough time to be bringing that
up seeing as though we’re in the middle of a
strike. Now you call me and suggest it!
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