The following interview for Backstage’s on-camera series The Slate was compiled in part by Backstage readers just like you! Follow us on Twitter (@Backstage) and Instagram (@backstagecast) to stay in the loop on upcoming interviews and to submit your questions.
Andrew Rannells is a knockout in Ryan Murphy’s latest production project for Netflix, Mart Crowley’s “The Boys in the Band,” a reunion of sorts with his buzzy 2018 Broadway ensemble and director Joe Mantello.
Joining Backstage and managing editor Benjamin Lindsay for a recent Instagram Live interview, Rannells discussed revisiting the iconic, Tony-winning queer play onscreen, his full-circle moment in voiceover (from “Pokémon” to “Big Mouth” and the upcoming “Invincible”), his character-building technique across genres, and his best advice for aspiring actors.
How Andrew Rannells Went From ‘Scrappy’ to Star “The Boys in the Band” resonates differently than it did at its 1968 Off-Broadway premiere and in its 1970 movie adaptation.
“I first saw the film when I was still in high school. As a kid who was not quite out yet, it was a little scary, and it seemed a little dark. That original film is so brilliant, but it has a dark tone to it. What was fun about getting to do it now is that we got to explore [the characters’] love for each other in a different way. Things do get a little ugly, but they’re there because they love each other. I think we got to lean into some of that a little more.”
The first step in acting is to become friends with the person you’re playing.
“I was just trying to befriend the character. I try to find what I like about him, and how we are similar and different, and what makes [him] tick, and go from there. It’s much easier in a film or onstage because you have all the information. In television, it’s tricky, because there are twists and turns writers will throw at you, and then you think, I might have done that other episode differently had I known this was coming up!”
“Big Mouth” is hardly his first foray into voiceover.
“I started my career as a teenager doing voiceover. I did a couple animated shows while I was still in high school. When I came to New York, voiceover work was what kept me afloat. I always wanted to be on Broadway, but that’s what I was booking more. I embraced that, and for a few years I worked for a company called 4Kids, who did ‘Pokémon’ and ‘Yu-Gi-Oh!’, and that was my job. I did that for years. And then when ‘Big Mouth’ came about, I just loved doing it. The writing on that show is obviously super funny and smart, but because I’ve been doing [voiceover] for so long, it felt good coming back to that.”
Joe Mantello on Why His ‘The Boys in the Band’ Film Is Even Better Than its Broadway Run Don’t worry about others’ successes. Focus on your own.
“Keep your eyes on your own paper. Don’t be looking around to see what other people have that you don’t. I spent a lot of time in my 20s being jealous of people and what they had, and I regret that. It was a lot of wasted energy. You do what you do, you’re going to get what you get, and you shouldn’t be looking at other people and coveting their careers and their jobs. Put that time and focus into something else.”
Want to hear more from Rannells? Watch our full interview below, and follow us on Instagram: @backstagecast.
This story originally appeared in the Oct. 8 issue of Backstage Magazine. Subscribe here.
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