Exclusive interview with Charley Koontz

With his memorable part on "Community" as Fat Neil, on whom one of the best episodes of season 2 (#2.14 Advanced Dungeons & Dragons) is focused, the career of young actor Charley Koontz took off. In this exclusive interview he talks about his acting roots and the life on set of "Community".

Foto: Charley Koontz - Copyright: NBC Universal
Charley Koontz
© NBC Universal

1. How did you get into acting?

I did the classic parochial school Christmas plays as a kid. I played the North Star when I was 10, which I still believe to be my greatest role. It's all downhill from there. Then of course some high school acting classes I took originally for an easy credit and I just fell in love with it. And it was in college at Loyola Marymount University that I met some amazing professors and mentors that encouraged me to pursue acting and pushed me to work hard and most of all to be honest on stage. Acting to me is about preparation and opportunity, and I've been very fortunate to have met a lot of people in my life at just the right time to help me with both of those things.

2. Your first appearance was in the web series "Free Rent". Can you talk a little bit about how this project came along and what you learnt from this experience?

Free Rent was amazing. It was created and written by a good friend I went to college with, Steve DiUbaldo, who is an amazing writer who I have worked with a lot since "Free Rent". We were still in school and doing plays together but we really wanted to start teaching ourselves how to be in front of the camera and explore some more contemporary scenarios with improv. That was one of the first times I got a real taste for improv and getting to create a character without all of the parameters and restrictions. It was just a lot of fun, which was a great place to start, because if it's not fun what's the point?

3. You play the role of Fat Neil on "Community". In the DVD audio commentary Dan Harmon and Megan Ganz talk about how the character was created from a joke and that they kept him only because you portrayed the character so well. How does that feel for a "newbie"?

Well, I suppose they have to say SOMETHING on the commentaries! That really feels amazing, especially coming from such amazingly talented people. Megan is such a fantastic writer! I owe a lot of what I have now to everyone at Community and Dan Harmon especially. It's so hard for young actors to get real credits with the little experience that I had and he really took a chance on me, which I am so incredibly grateful for. I've been incredibly lucky to have such positive people around me who are willing to let me stumble around like a fool and figure out what I'm doing.

Foto: Gillian Jacobs, Charley Koontz, Joel McHale - Copyright: NBC Universal
Gillian Jacobs, Charley Koontz, Joel McHale
© NBC Universal

4. "Advanced Dungeons & Dragons" was your biggest episode so far. How do you feel about Neil becoming a part of the study group? Can you tell us something from the shooting and working with the lead actors?

That was an amazing and intense experience. The second I sat down to the table read for that episode (my first table read for a show ever) and flipped through the script and saw how much I was in it I felt like I was going to pass out! Looking across the table and seeing Chevy Chase and Joel McHale was like being in a dream! They were all so great and welcomed me right into the group, which is what I needed because it gets hard being made fun of and berated for 5 days of shooting. Chevy was so amazing in that episode and so against anything I'd seen him do before. There were a handful of takes where I had to sit back and say "Damn, that got really real for a second!" My favorite part about the D&D episode is the character development of both Jeff and Pierce. The writer's for Community are so good at taking these high concept stories, which could easily become outlandish, and ground them so hard in reality and character that you care so much what happens to these people! And Joel and Chevy played those moments beautifully which made my job easy as pie!

5. The fans appreciate very much that on "Community" the supporting characters are vital parts and belong to Greendale as much as the main characters. How do you feel about that on set?

Dan Harmon has said before that Greendale is like a live action Springfield, which I love and completely agree with. It's not just 7 people in a room telling jokes, it's a whole world to get lost in and the supporting characters are as real as the regular cast. Especially with Fat Neil, that world was created with such amazing detail that it felt real. The feeling on set for everyone is that we really don't want to let the fans down because they love the show SO much and they are SO smart that if you're not giving everything you have they'll sniff it out. Garrett (Erik Charles Nielsen) and Leonard (Richard Erdman) are my favorite supporting characters. AND Jim Rash as the Dean is a vision in short sleeves!

6. The epic paintball finale in season 2 probably was a huge challenge for everyone. Neil was out quite early though, would you have liked to participate more or were you relieved?

Yeah, I would have loved to stick around for both episodes and keep playing with those paintball guns! I was actually really honored to get to be in the opening scene of such an epic episode. I'm glad they had the confidence in me to get the two-parter started off with a bang! That was the closest to being an action star I may ever get in my career and it was awesome. Plus, getting to do a scene with Anthony Michael Hall in a moustache? AND getting shot by Alison Brie!? Give me a break, it was the best!!

7. Can you tell us when you are going to be back as Neil and what's going to happen?

That's an excellent question! With the midseason hiatus coming up I'm not sure when exactly the episodes will air, but I do know they WILL air so we all have to be patient for a little while. I just shot a nice little part in an episode centered on Troy and Abed's relationship. TV's most epic bromance! So don't worry, Community will be back soon! and Neil will return!!

8. How do you all get along on set, who do you like to work with the most?

It's like a big family, which was intimidating when I first started. The group is so brave with their comedy and their work that it's important to keep that circle of trust strong. But when you get in there more and more and learn more about the cast and crew it is really an amazing place to be.

9. What do you think sets "Community" apart from most of the other comedy shows?

The writing. The writing. The writing. It's absolutely amazing. It's so smart and airtight. Granted it does take a little paying attention but the payoff is well worth it. And the cast. It's a great cross section of generations and genres and talents. Especially when you have a legend like Chevy Chase and veterans like Joel McHale and Yvette Nicole Brown who bring so much experience in comedy its like taking a masterclass. And then Alison, Gillian, Donald and Danny are all energy. Every department on Community is really at the top of their game. The art department and the set designs are amazing. One of my favorite things to do between takes is walk around and look at all the flyers and bulletin boards around the halls. I saw a sign for "Occupy Greendale" the other day haha. And it's safe to say that if you have geniuses like Jim Rash and Ken Jeong on the same show, there isn't going to be anything like it on TV.

10. You landed a part in the new NBC show "Awake" that you shot already. Can you tell us a little bit about it?

Yeah! I'm excited about Awake! I got to play a rape/murder suspect which was awesome. The show is really interesting, it's not like most hour long cop procedurals. it has a real personal family element to it. The loss of Isaac's character's family and his coping mechanisms inform the cases and police work in a great way. I was really happy to do some dramatic work with such high stakes. And I am a huge fan of Jason Isaacs, so to get to do an intense dramatic scene opposite him was great. He was so good in the Harry Potter movies and an incredible flick called GOOD set in WWII Nazi Germany is great too.

11. The film "Wrong" is gonna be featured at the Sundance Festival. Can you tell us a little bit about the film and your part in it? Are you gonna meet up with Alison Brie at Sundance, whose "Save the Date" will be featured, too?

WRONG is the best!! It's the second film I've done with French director Quentin Dupieux (aka musician Mr. Oizo). Rubber was the first, which we took to Cannes in 2010. It's about a guy named Dolph (Jack Plotnick) who loses his dog and goes through a very surreal journey to get him back. William Fichtner is amazing in the film as the villain. With Quentin's films you really have to see them to be able to wrap your head around them, and it's amazing that we keep getting the opportunity to show people these great, strange little films on some big stages like Sundance! I can barely contain my excitement, I can't wait for people to see it. And I would love to meet up with Alison out there, I was so happy to hear about Save the Date!! It's a small town I'm sure we'll do some rabble rousing while we're out there. Sundance is a great party.

12. Since myFanbase is an online magazine about TV series, do you have a favorite show?

Aside from "Community"!? I really love "Mad Men". That's another show with an amazing cast that is really fleshed out and interesting. And of course "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report" are nightly staples for me. And who could forget "Extreme Couponing"? Those people are insane.

Thank you, Charley, we wish you all the best for your future!

Thank you so much! I really enjoyed it!

Cindy Scholz - myFanbase

Note: © myFanbase 2011 - The interview is exclusive to myFanbase and may not be published on other websites or the like. You may share the first 2 questions or up to 160 characters if you link back to this site. Translations other than English and German may be posted with full credit including the writer's name and link to this site.