Craig Robinson is getting his shine in Peacock’s latest comedy series, Killing It. Robinson stars as Craig Foster, a man down on his luck fighting through a world filled with class and capitalism while on a quest to achieve the American dream. There’s also a lot of snake hunting in the series, something Robinson told Shadow and Act he’d never do in real life. Aside from the snakes, the show introduces characters that haven’t been featured as part of a prominent storyline on a show before.
One of those characters is Camille, the deaf ex-wife of Foster played by Switched at Birth star Stephanie Nogueras. Unlike in many big projects, the producers of Killing It wanted Camille’s character to be true to life, so they hired a deaf actress as the star. The show also stars Claudia O’Doherty, Rell Battle and Scott MacArthur as Foster’s crew who embark on this journey with him.
It’s been a long and glorious ride for Robinson. But, there’s a reason he has such staying power in Hollywood, and is a fan favorite in all of his projects while also being a director and writer’s dream to work with.
Shadow and Act recently spoke with Robinson, Nogueras, O’Doherty, Battle, MacArthur, Dan Goor and Luke Del Tredici.
Robinson says he is very similar to his on-screen character
“I think Craig Foster and Craig Robinson are both relentless and you have to be relentless to be in this business. They both care about their fellow man and maybe a little too much care sometimes,” he told us. “I think the difference is I probably wouldn’t hunt snakes myself or care even carry around a little nail gun,” he joked. “I don’t think I’m as vulnerable as Craig Foster. I probably am. But as far as showing it, I try to keep on a hard exterior.”
Nogueras was happy to showcase the beautiful reality of being deaf and functioning in the world
“I was very excited. I didn’t feel nervous at all. When I enter into a new project, I typically don’t get too nervous and I really honestly feel like it was an honor to be a part of this,” she said. “They’re such brilliant writers attached to this project, and I had such a great time working with everyone…It’s really important to authentically cast a deaf person to portray these roles because they can bring their experience to that particular role and deliver it authentically on screen.”
Del Tredici says the idea was simple: create something unlike what’s in the market.
“We wanted to make a show that was unlike anything else on TV, and that is increasingly challenging when there are five shows on TV,” he said. “So we thought that that tonally and subject matter wise, we just worked very hard to make this something that you can’t see anywhere else.”
More than anything else, Goor wanted to show off a different version of what fighting for one’s own American dream looks like.
“We sort of wanted to investigate the myth of the American dream. This idea that just anybody can pick themselves up by their bootstraps and make it, and that there aren’t obstacles that really make that very difficult for people,” Goor added. “And so I think that that it is ultimately universal because we’re all struggling on some level and struggling to succeed.”
Killing It is streaming now on Peacock.
Watch the full interview above.
