When I first did a U.S. pilot season, there were very few British actors schlepping around town trying to get into television. That was 1999.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
I did some commercials and a couple of B movies, then a few pilots that didn't go anywhere. Eventually I did the pilot for Beverly Hills, 90210. The rest is history.
There was so long from when we did the pilot and then when the show was eventually picked up by Comedy Central - and, in fact, we had to shoot the pilot twice.
There are actually quite high profile British TV star cameos in it that you probably wouldn't even notice, that the British wouldn't even notice, let alone the American audience.
British actors used to be scared of the multi-year options that U.S. TV shows demand. That has changed, because the same is now happening in the U.K.
I've heard that George Clooney did something like nine pilots before 'ER' was picked up, way back when he was doing TV. It's just the way the business works. There are a lot of pilots that we've never seen. It's protocol.
I was going to move to New York after college and had no interest in pilot season. I'd seen what happened on TV shows because of my dad, and I didn't want to open myself up to that. But 'Pretty Little Liars' had a very early audition, and my agents encouraged me to go even though I didn't think it would be my thing.
I was only 11 when we filmed the pilot. The idea of a rapper being a star on a sitcom just wasn't heard of.
I guess at the age of 15 was the first time I made a goal of wanting to be on television, and I didn't get a series until I was 23, which was 'The West Wing.'
I don't know why British actors are getting big parts in American TV shows. Maybe it's because we're cheap.
The first thing I did for TV was a pilot for CBS.
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