Read our exclusive interview with actor Philip Anthony Rodriguez, who stars as Dr. Evans in Tyler Perry’s upcoming movie ‘Madea’s Big Happy Family.’ The comedy-drama, which is being released into theaters by Lionsgate on April 22, 2011, is based on Perry’s 2010 musical play of the same name. The movie follows Madea as she helps her niece Shirley overcome a health scare. Rodriguez discusses with us, among other things, what attracted him to the role and what it was like working with Perry.
Shockya (SY): You’ll next be appearing as Dr. Evans in ‘Madea’s Big Happy Family.’ What attracted you to the role?
Philip Anthony Rodriguez (PAR): I was attracted to the role because of the awesome Tyler Perry! I’ve worked with Tyler Perry before, on one of his other projects, on his ‘Meet the Browns’ TV show. It’s a sitcom on TBS. I started a very good relationship with Alpha Tyler, who is one of the main casting directors. So when this role came up, people thought I would be perfect for it. It was just one of those things where they said, “Hey, look, would you have some fun with us?” I said “Absolutely.” It is always fun working for him. That was one of the main reasons why I wanted to do this project. The opportunity to work on a Tyler Perry movie, you’re always in store for a lot of fun, and you know you’re going to be working in a really cool place with very cool people. They were very welcoming and all that. That was a main reason, and I was glad I was asked to do it. Sure enough, I wasn’t disappointed. We had a great time shooting it.
SY: How was filming ‘Madea’s Big Happy Family’ different from shooting ‘Meet the Browns?”
PAR: Well, shooting the show is really a lot tougher. When you shoot the show, they basically crank out script after script. So when I do an episode, you basically go in early in the morning, you have a couple of rehearsals and blocking on the set. The show is sometimes shot before a live audience, other times it’s not, depending on what the schedule allows for. You go in there and block and rehearse. You have a little food, and later on, you tape some of the scenes and get some notes. There’s some switches in the script sometimes, and then you shoot it and you’re done. You’ve basically shot a whole episode, rehearsed it, blocked it all in one day. You have to be on your toes. There’s a little bit more pressure involved, but once you get used to it, it becomes second nature. That’s a lot different from working on a (movie) set, where it’s over the same of a few weeks, if not a few months. If you mess up, you get to say cut, or the director gets to say cut, and you get to try it all over again, and do it again. You don’t have the luxury of working on the TV show like that. A sitcom can be pretty, pretty pressured.
SY: The movie is based on the play of the same name. Did you see the play before you began shooting the movie?
PAR: You know, I have not. I only read the script, and saw a portion of the actual live play. It’s pretty much the same. It’s a pretty good transition from play to screen. But what I did get from it is that definitely it’s one of his most popular plays. It’s bound to be one of his most popular movies because of the humor, the storyline and of course, the usual methods and the message that Tyler puts out in some of his movies and stuff. Family, and the importance of it, and it’s all done with humor, affection and genuine love between family members, and how family comes together in very difficult times. It’s got everything. I think that’s why it’s one of his most popular plays. It was a no brainer that it was going to be his next big movie project transferred to the stage.
SY: How big of a role does Dr. Evans have in the movie?
PAR: It’s not a huge role. But it’s very pivotal, as I’m the family doctor, and one of the things I do in addition to all these laughs is that I give one of the family members a piece of not so great news. They have to deal with it, and find out what to do. It’s pivotal because I’m there to give that person guidance and also remind them how strong they are and their bond with their family is. I help the family get by this troubling situation in their lives. But I also get to do all this goofy stuff. But working on a Tyler Perry movie, you do a few pages from the script, and then a few scenes off the script. There’s a lot of improv and ad-libing involved, and you have to keep a straight face until Tyler yells cut. He’s one of the biggest instigators of it all. He’ll be off on the set, screaming and yelling directions. He’ll tell the actor to do this, and they’ll do it. It’s always funny stuff. We’re just crying tears with some of the stuff we get to do. But that’s what I’m basically doing in the movie.
SY: The Madea character has appeared in some of Tyler’s earlier movies and plays. Why do you think fans enjoy and like her so much?
PAR: I think there’s always been a history of people being really attracted to funny characters and men in drag. It’s always been historically on top. Milton Berle was famous for doing it, and Dustin Hoffman in ‘Tootsie.’ There’s so many of those iconic actors, people who donned a dress and makeup and a wig, and it’s just really funny. But what Madea so fun is that she’s got all of these idiosyncrasies that she does. She’s no-hold bar, she tells it like it is. She doesn’t have a filter when she talks to people. She tells them what they’re doing wrong and what they’re doing well. She has all of these Madeaisms, like hell-yer, instead of hello, and hallelu-yer instead of hallelujah. It gears people to her because of that funny, unique quality that she has. But people also relate to her because as Tyler has said, he modeled her after two of his family members, I think his mother and his aunt. He sort of combined them in a way. So that character has universal themes of things to say. A lot of people can relate to Madea and say she reminds me of my mom or my grandmother or my aunt. With that familiarity and the universal qualities that she has, people can relate and be attracted to her. I think that’s a big part of it, and why she’s so successful. Madea’s very funny. Tyler becomes Madea, and it’s like a different person. We like seeing her and her antics.
SY: Have you seen the Madea movies before you began shooting?
PAR: Oh yes, I’ve seen quite a few of them. The latest ones I’ve seen are ‘I Can Do Bad All By Myself’ and ‘For Colored Girls,’ which is a pretty different departure from what we’re used to seeing. Of course I’ve seen the first one, that kind of put him on the map, ‘Diary of a Mad Black Woman.’ I thought that was great. It’s interesting, before I started working with Tyler, my girlfriend was a real big fan of his movies, so she kind of introduced me to him. I was like, this is really funny stuff. So yeah, I have seen a bunch of his movies.
SY: ‘Madea’s Big Happy Family’ also stars some actors who have appeared in Tyler’s earlier movies, such as Loretta Devine. Did they embrace you when you arrived on the set?
PAR: Absolutely, that’s one of the great parts, like I said, about working with Tyler on the set. A lot of his movies are about family and things like that. When you go to work for him on the set, you get the very same vibe, the very same welcoming vibe. It goes down to the staff to the crew to the other actors. It’s not just because that’s how the people are normally. They’re very welcoming. It’s something that Tyler stresses. He wants the people who work under him and for him to be like that, very welcoming, very sweet and polite. It’s one of the most polite sets I’ve ever worked on! Whenever I work with him, it’s always Mr. Rodriguez or Ms. Devine, that sort of thing. You’re always well taken care of when you work with him.
SY: Would you consider working in another Tyler Perry movie?
PAR: Oh my gosh, absolutely. It’s such an honor and a pleasure to work with somebody of his caliber. The popularity and his track record and his success, it’s an honor to be asked to work once with someone like that. It’s great to know that you’re part of his family. So absolutely, if the call came to work with Tyler again, I would. In all fairness, he does do that with actors that he likes and works with on all of his projects, whether they’re doing the same role or a different role. He likes working with people he’s worked with before. So in that respect, it’s kind of nice. You’d like to think you’d be asked back. You don’t want to assume so, but it would be a welcome treat to be asked back to work for him again.
SY: You’re always known for portraying Ruben Enriquez on the ABC Family television show ‘The Secret Life of the American Teenager.’ How is shooting that show different from shooting ‘Madea’s Big Happy Family?’
PAR: You know, it’s not that different in the sense that it’s a great place to work. With ‘The Secret Life,’ we’re talking about a show that just began shooting its fourth season. We’re really excited about that because a lot of shows don’t last very long these days. But this show’s very popular, it’s doing very well, we’re starting our fourth season. We have a sense of family and a sense of community over there. It’s a great place to work. I love working with my cast members and my crew and the creative staff is just wonderful people to work with. It’s not always easy for an actor to say that because sometimes you do work on sets that aren’t very good and the actors are sometimes very troublesome or the people just don’t get along or things don’t happen the way you like. That’s not the case with ‘Secret Life.’ It’s just a wonderful, professional place I get to work in, and that’s why it’s so similar to the Tyler Perry experience. It’s very fun, and I’m glad I get to be a part of that. I read for Brenda Hampton, who is the executive producer and creator of the show and she has a really big track record (she served as the creator, writer and producer of ‘7th Heaven’) with shows, producing, things like that. It was a real honor for me to be asked by her to join the cast. I couldn’t be happier.
Written by: Karen Benardello
