Tawny Newsome On Her Amazing Friendship With John Malkovich - Exclusive
Tawny Newsome has been on an incredible hot streak as of late. In addition to co-hosting the podcast "Yo, Is This Racist?" with Andrew Ti, she's also appeared in a slew of television roles over the past few years. From "Bajillion Dollar Propertie$" to "True Story," she's cropped up almost everywhere, to the point where it doesn't matter what kind of streaming service or television provider you have. If there's a will, there's a way for you to find Newsome on your screen.
But arguably her most prolific roles to date have to deal with outer space. She landed into the great, wide yonder with the role of Beckett Mariner on "Star Trek: Lower Decks." Her character there is a bit hard to get under control, but when she's passionate about something, you can be certain she'll find a way to accomplish it. She also appeared across two seasons of another space show — "Space Force" — as Angela Ali.
"Space Force" allowed Newsome to work face-to-face with some of the most iconic actors of our era, including the incomparable John Malkovich. In an exclusive interview with Looper, she spoke about her time on the series — which was sadly canceled too soon — as well as what it was like working with Malkovich.
John Malkovich is always up for a phone call
On "Space Force," John Malkovich plays chief scientist Dr. Adrian Mallory. He frequently finds himself at odds with General Mark R. Naird (Steve Carell), as Adrian wants to use space for the pursuit of science while Mark merely wants to prove he has the wherewithal to command such an operation. It often leads to hilarious situations, and even though their characters may have gotten off on the wrong foot throughout the show, it seems like everyone was friendly when the cameras weren't rolling.
This is supported by Tawny Newsome's account of working with Malkovich on the show. In fact, he was always up for a chat with Newsome, as she recounted, "John Malkovich is a wonderfully strange but kind man ... I like the fact that if I text John Malkovich, he suggests we get on the phone and have a phone call." Newsome admits it may go against her millennial image of never wanting to answer the phone, but when John Malkovich calls you, you better believe you pick up the phone.
She went on to say, "You've never had a phone call until you have one with John Malkovich, especially one where you weren't expecting it. You thought you were sending a quick text, and then he responds, 'Why don't I call you?' And you're, 'Whoa, what am I in for here?' Because the answer is: some wildness for sure." We can only guess what kind of crazy conversations went on between the two.
"Star Trek: Lower Decks" arrives on Blu-ray and DVD today with over an hour of bonus features, including exclusive featurettes, animatics, and Easter eggs.