Malcolm-Jamal Warner Takes The Wheel

Malcolm-Jamal Warner is putting himself inside the cab of that famous white Ford Bronco in the FX series The People v O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story, portraying Al “AC” Cowlings, Simpson’s best friend and the man who notoriously led officers on a low-speed chase in 1994. This year, Warner is also planting himself firmly in the driver’s seat of his career, taking creative risks and honing his musical and dramatic chops. He spoke to Parade about all that and more.

You had worked with [American Crime Story creator] Ryan Murphy previously. How did you come back together on this project?

I had actually auditioned for the [prosecutor] Chris Darden role. It felt like a really great audition and then I didn’t hear anything back, so I thought, OK, well obviously I didn’t get the role. [laughs] A couple months later, out of the blue, I got a call from Ryan Murphy’s office offering me the part of AC, which I thought was kind of cool. It’s a great example of what I tell actors all the time, which is when you go into the audition room [you can’t] get attached to a particular role because oftentimes it’s not so much about role that you’re auditioning for. it’s about your look. You can come in and do great work but not be right for that particular role.

How do you prepare to play a real-life person?

What’s interesting is there’s not a whole lot of footage I could find on AC. There’s not a whole lot of articles about him, so it was really more about creating the friendship between AC and O.J., and on my part how it seemed AC felt about O.J. O.J. always looked out for AC and in return, AC always looked out for O.J. AC is really the one who kept O.J. out of trouble. So I likened it to the people I know, other guys that had that friend who always looked out for them. But sometimes even though that person is so loyal, that person doesn’t necessarily always look out for the best friend [in return]. There’s a story I found a few times on the Internet: There was a girl that AC was really into but he was kind of shy about expressing how he felt, so he asked O.J. to put in a good word for him. That woman turned out to be O.J.’s first wife. But AC still considered him his best friend. So something like that makes you look at the [complicated nature] of that friendship.

Do you remember watching the chase on television? 

I remember turning on the TV and thinking, Where are they trying to go? They cant be trying to get away. The fact that it was a low speed chase and there were helicopters and cameras all around–and at some points people were stopping in the street and waving at them–it was just really interesting. What is going on inside that Bronco? The scene that we do [on the show], obviously that’s a recreation. We don’t know what the actual conversation was, but it seemed like they were trying to buy time and AC was trying to help O.J. figure some things out; because this is a situation he knew they were not going to get out of. But AC was the cat who was going to help his friend. I’m going to buy some time to help O.J. try and get some clarity on this.

 What was it like to recreate such a historic moment?

Even though you know you’re shooting a TV show and you know there are cameras around and everything, there is still something very surreal about driving down the freeway and seeing 20 cop cars in that rearview mirror. It is a really freaky feeling. It was crazy.

You are a Grammy-winning musician and released a new album, Selfless, last fall. How did you get started in music?

The instrument(s) found me, but I’ve always been into music. My first name is Malcolm-Jamal. My father named me after Malcolm X and Ahmad Jamal, a renowned jazz pianist. So between growing up with my dad who was always into jazz and growing up with Mr. Cosby [with whom] we were constantly listening to jazz, music has always been a big part of my life. I was about 26 in the first season of [the sitcom] Malcolm and Eddie and I was just so stressed out; working on that show, working for UPN and everything that UPN stood for at that time. I needed a hobby to take me out of just caring about this show as much as I was caring about it and I figured if I picked up an instrument it would only be a hobby.

How did it become such a major part of your career?

I figured if I picked up an instrument, I would never record a CD, I would never start a band, I would never be one of those corny actor guys who want to do music, it would just be a hobby. Directing [also] started out as a hobby and became a career, so it turns out I don’t know how to have a hobby. [laughs] But in the music I just really found a different expression of myself. I found a voice and a way that I can express myself in a way that I can’t as an actor or director. You’re not interpreting somebody else’s words, you are expressing your own words and your own thoughts and feelings so it’s a totally different kind of fulfillment.

Would you ever make it your full-time job?

I love acting. I’ll never give the acting up and that fulfills me in one way, but when you’re writing and performing your own stuff it’s a whole different type of fulfillment.

What are you most looking forward to in 2016?

As an artist I feel like you’re always evolving, trying to grow and stretch yourself. I am going to be 46 [this year], which is crazy,. I’m looking forward to getting closer to the artist that I want to be. While I’ve had a good career, I’ve not reached where I want to be as an artist–as an actor–in terms of the craft. I feel like I’m getting closer to be the kind of musician I want to be, and I’m starting to recognize the truth of “you get out of it what you put into it,” so I am looking forward to having an even deeper relationship with my crafts as an artist this year.