After five years as criminologist D.B. Russell on various CSI series, Cheers star Ted Danson, 68, settles into The Good Place, the new “afterlife” comedy premiering September 19 on NBC. He plays Michael, the middle manager in charge of the “heavenly” destination for recently departed folks—like the one played by Kristen Bell.
How would you describe The Good Place?
It’s a comedy, but at the same time the conversation around this funny portrayal of the afterlife is about what it is to be good and what it is to be bad.
Who is Michael?
He’s waited 700 years to get his first neighborhood to design and make sure that literally every blade of grass is perfect. In the pilot, we’ve had a clerical error, and all of a sudden I’m in way over my head.
What are you most proud of?
I’ve been really blessed with great writing. It was perfect to be a bartender [Cheers] with a bunch of rowdy, funny people in my 30s. It was fun to be a grumpy doctor [Becker] in my 40s and early 50s. It was fun to be hanging around with Jason Schwartzman and Zach Galifianakis [Bored to Death]. And I really love The Good Place.
How did you get involved with the organization Oceana?
I grew up in a scientific community. My father was the director of a museum in Flagstaff, Arizona. I think that sense of stewardship rubbed off a little bit. I got involved with oceans because I moved into a neighborhood that was trying to keep oil wells from being drilled in Santa Monica Bay.
How did Cheers impact your career?
Everything I’ve done is because of Cheers. I walk around and people smile at me because they’re remembering something funny that I was part of on Cheers. I’m forever grateful. It was an amazing 11 years of my life.
How much does The Good Place coincide with your idea of heaven?
You know what? I’m such a Pollyanna. I’m living my afterlife right now, I swear. I have such a blessed life.
You go back and forth between comedy and drama. How do you decide what’s next?
I do like them both. I think if I had to give up comedy forever, I’d be very sad. There’s something quite wonderful about hanging out with incredibly bright, funny people who usually have a really wonderful outlook on life that matches mine perhaps a bit more. It’s fun to go to work and laugh.
Does the size of the role matter?
I’ve learned to not worry about the size of the part or the money, or whatever, just find really creative people and see if you can play together. That holds true for comedy, drama, whatever it is. My favorite kind of comedy is something that has human sadness in it. My favorite kind of drama is drama that has funny in it. I thought Damages was one of the funniest things on TV.
What keeps you and wife Mary Steenburgen working instead of retiring?
From the day it first hit us when we were young, we were madly in love with acting. We love going to work. We love film crews. We love actors. I still kick myself driving through the gates of the studio. I can’t believe it. The older I get, I sometimes almost feel guilty like, “Is it still OK that I’m doing this?”
Any chance Mary might guest star on The Good Place this season?
That would be lovely. She actually is off to do the third season of The Last Man on Earth with Will Forte. We kind of crisscross. I don’t know if she’ll actually get there, but I’d love that.
As much as you love working in Hollywood, you have another home in Nashville, Tennessee.
The reason we go to Nashville is not to get away from Hollywood. We go to Nashville because Mary has a publishing deal with Universal Music. She’s a songwriter. When she’s not working, she’s down there every six weeks writing with these amazing writers, who have become our closest friends.
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