Tamala Jones on Castle
Tamala Jones has become a key part of the hit crime show Castle as its witty, snarky mortician Lanie.
While she might have been a comedy girl for some time, Tamala’s taken to drama like a duck to water, winning a new army of fans in the process.
We talked with the brilliant actress about her role on the show, her relationship with the fans and a little video called Sherlock Homeboy.
Castle started as a mid-season replacement and has just kept growing and growing, what’s that been like for you?
It has been absolutely fantastic. I have learned so much about being a medical examiner working on this show (laughs). And the fans! On twitter or anywhere else, I feel like I’ve just developed with great relationship with them so it’s been a great experience.
You talk with the fans so much, how did that start?
Just the whole tweeting thing. Nathan first got us on Twitter when we all started the show, he was telling us it was just something we had to do. So we’d get into conversations with all the Twitter fans and then it gets personal and you form relationships. They just seem like an extended part of my family at this point. I love that Nathan did that. I have new friends all over the world because of him.
Lanie’s unlike anything you’ve played before, what made you go for her?
It was time! It was time to get away from playing that crazy girlfriend who wrecks your apartment or flattens your tyres. I was looking for more of a challenge and I’d never played a doctor of any kind so when this came up I fought to get into the audition. When I booked it, I was just so happy!
What was the medical jargon like to get your head around?
Oh my God, that was so hard! I probably used up a lot of the tape when we were filming, but we have a great cast and they’re so patient. No though, I’ve got it down but before, you just don’t use those terms as a regular person, so it was very difficult.
Is it true that it was your performance that made them make Lanie a regular?
Yes, it was so crazy! We shot the pilot and Lanie was just a guest star with a possible recurring slot. So I continued to audition for other shows and I was getting ready to go in and test for another Jada Pinkett Smith’s show Hawthorne and we called ABC to let them know (if you’re going to recur, you have to let them know if you’ve got another job) and they said “No, don’t go that that, we’re going to make you a series regular, we want you on our show”. It was so exciting.
You’ve got such a great cast on the show, what’s it like on set?
It is miraculous on set. It is very rare that you met a crew and a cast and fall in love with them. On every other job I’ve had a great time, but this job is such a different vibe. It’s so open, clean and humble. We love each other so much and we really express that to each other on a daily basis by doing special things like each other like getting an ice cream man up there or a coffee truck. We have fun! Nathan’s a major prankster so we’re always laughing because he’s always playing tricks on people. It’s a wonderful environment.
So, what it like being a part of Sherlock Homeboy?
You saw that! That was the best ever! It was these young guys who put together this little sketch show and they reached out to my manager and I’m good for helping anyone good and fresh and young in this business. So when they sent the script over, it was just a few pages and I was like “I’m in!” We followed none of the lines when I got there. It was all ‘Here’s the subject, now just go’ and I had the best time ever with those guys. I really hope they take off and become something major because they’re so talented.
Finishing up, what’s the future got in store for you?
I am doing lots of independent movies. In fact, Jon [Huertas, fellow Castle cast member] and I did a cinematic short called The Box. It’s a historical story within a love story and we just saw the rough cut and it’s amazing. We are close to getting funding to do the entire feature. I’m getting a lot more into producing and hopefully directing. I want to get into behind the scenes a little bit more.
Want more Castle conversations? Check out our interview yesterday with Stana Katic right here.
Castle Series 2 starts on Channel 5 on November 9th.
Click here to buy Castle: Season 1 - 3 Box Set
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