Sterling K. Brown Reflects on Getting to Help Bring ‘Paradise' and ‘Washington Black' to Life
"Everything happens in divine timing — exactly when it's supposed to. It may not be exactly what you are hoping for but it's always exactly what it's supposed to be," Brown, 49, noted during an exclusive interview with Us Weekly about Washington Black's release on Hulu.
Brown, who plays Medwin, said he was "tremendously proud" of his latest role.
"It's a beautiful story. It is told beautifully and shot beautifully. We got a chance to shoot in Iceland and in Nova Scotia and in Mexico. We got a chance to take this very melanated cast across the globe," he gushed. "And to see something with that level of expanse that has us centered [in it] gives me a tremendous amount of pride."
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While reflecting on his recent projects, Brown acknowledged his work behind and in front of the camera, adding, "By virtue of me being an executive producer, if that helped get the story get told then I hope to help get more stories like that told."
Brown has remained booked and busy since wrapping up his time on NBC's This Is Us. His most recent show, Washington Black, offered Brown a chance to partner with Selwyn Seyfu Hinds to produce a TV adaptation of Esi Edugyan's novel of the same name.
The 2019 book follows George Washington Black (Eddie Karanja and Ernest Kingsley Jr.) through past and present timelines as he is raised under the shadow of slavery before catching the attention of the sugar plantation owner's brother. A young Washington is recruited to help the owner's brother, leading to an adventure around the world. Washington in present day goes by Wash and lives in Nova Scotia, where he is taken under the wing of town leader Medwin Harris (Brown).
"Medwin is a small mention in the book. We definitely extrapolate it just so I could have something to do," Brown told Us of his character. "But it's interesting to see the difference in mentorship that Wash has throughout his life and him moving to place of, 'Oh, I don't need a mentor. Anything that I thought that I needed from someone else I actually have with myself.' Then it moves from mentorship to partnership. So I like to see how Medwin functions in that way and his ultimate evolution of Wash."
While Washington Black was just released on Wednesday, July 23, it was in the works for some time. It was even filmed before Brown's other hit Hulu series Paradise, which reunited him with This Is Us creator Dan Fogelman. The political thriller, which premiered in January, received critical acclaim and was renewed one month later.
Washington Black gave Brown a chance to elevate the stories he wants to see released. It also provided the opportunity for him to mentor several of the show's stars, who couldn't help but sing Brown's praises.
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"First of all, I feel like I kind of dragged Sterling into being a mentor. I just kind of asked him so many questions, like, 'Hey man, how are you doing? It's 1:00 a.m. but I need your help,'" Kingsley Jr., who plays adult Wash, joked to Us. "It was natural, to be honest. It was naturally built."
Kingsley Jr. pointed out how Brown "operates with vulnerability in such a powerful way," adding, "Sterling operates with a sense of power, and he encourages and incites it in you. It is this sense of, if you open up to that [kind of vulnerability yourself] then it will be held and cared for and loved. I feel like he spread that out across multiple cast members and across the crew."
He continued: "Just his presence was a mentorship and getting to see him every day. It was a blessing and a gift to have him on set. Also, just to have him in my life. Now he can't get rid of me."
Brown, meanwhile, attempted to play off the praise, quipping, "I paid them all. That's really the bottom line of the whole thing. I walked their dogs when they needed me to. I do special favors so they say nice things about him."
Washington Black is currently streaming on Hulu.
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