Posted in: Showtime, TV | Tagged: Shameless

Shameless: William H. Macy Reflects on Finding Frank Gallagher's Voice

William H. Macy (The Deputy) spoke with us about his legacy on Showtime's Shameless, finding Frank Gallagher's voice, and much more.

While William H. Macy is far more well-known for his time in film, he's made the most of his TV roles, creating such enduring characters. Among his standout starring and recurring roles are ABC's Sports Night, Showtime's Out of Order, NBC's E.R., and his biggest TV role to date as Frank Gallagher, the alcoholic family patriarch, always looking for a get-rich-quick scheme in the Showtime dysfunctional comedy drama series Shameless. While promoting his latest in Well Go USA's crime drama The Deputy, Macy spoke with Bleeding Cool about when he reached his epiphany about finding Frank's voice through a round of minigolf, and being mistaken for a homeless person; and a preview of his upcoming NFL Hulu drama series The Land from Dan Fogelman (Paradise, This Is Us), which features an ensemble cast including Thomas Q. Jones, Andrew Conaway, Mandy Moore, Christopher Meloni, Chace Crawford, and Michael McGrady. The Paul Abbott-created series, which ran for 11 seasons from 2011 to 2021, follows Frank, a single father of six on Chicago's South Side, who spends his leisure time drinking at bars since his wife left him and the family, while his children take after him with their own schemes.

Shameless Star William H. Macy Reflects on When He Knew He Became Frank Gallagher

Bleeding Cool: A couple of roles I remember you had in your career stood out to me. I know you've predominantly worked in film; I think back to your run on 'ER' as Dr. David Morgenstern and, of course, your character Frank in 'Shameless.' I was wondering if there were a few standout Frank moments from that show?

Macy: When I thought, I've got it. Two of them- Mark Mylod, who directed the British version and our version, at the end of a week of rehearsal, he sent the whole cast out with a pocket full of money to a batting cage and a miniature golf course. I said, "Wait a minute! What is this?! Is this an improv?!" And he said, "No, just go play miniature golf and hit some balls." I said, "In character?" He said, "No, just go," and I thought, "I'm too old for this shit. I don't want to do this," but I went, and Emma Kenney was there, and she was in front of me for miniature golf, and she hit it wrong, and it went out.

They said, "Do over! Do it over!" She hit again and missed. She did it again and hit the windmill that popped out, and she went five times and couldn't even get the ball out. I finally pushed her out of the way, and I said, "I'm playing through," and I pushed, I shot, I putted my ball, and passed her, and I was in a grumpy mood. I got to the second hole, and I thought, "I think I just found Frank" [laughs]. The second thing was when we went to Chicago for the first time to shoot exteriors. I'm standing on the sidewalk drinking some coffee, waiting for the shot, and a woman dropped a quarter in my cup. I thought, "I'm Frank."

Is there anything you can say about your new upcoming show, 'The Land?"

Yes, it's going to be big. I saw the first three episodes, not completed, but an assemblage of them. They're magnificent. Everybody's acting their bejesus out of it. The football's really great. The cast is great. It's Shakespearean. It's so complex and so many stories. It's really good. Yeah.

The Deputy, which also stars Duke Nicholson, Tiffany Haddish, Stephen Dorff, Billie Lourd, and Julia Fox, is available in theaters, digital, and on demand. Shameless, which also stars Emmy Rossum, Justin Chatwin, Jeremy Allen White, Cameron Monaghan, Ethan Cutkosky, Christian Isaiah, Shanola Hampton, and Steve Howey, is available to stream on Netflix.

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