An Interview with Robert Gossett (Commander Taylor, The Closer)

July, 2007

A New York man through and through, Robert Gossett knew at a young age that acting was in his blood. From performing in a street theater group in New York to the sound stages in Hollywood, Robert took on role after role in pursuit of his dream. He hit the jackpot when he landed the role of Commander Taylor on TNT's wildly popular series The Closer.

I had the pleasure of speaking with Robert about his role on The Closer and found him to be one of the nicest and most laid back actors in the biz. I'm sure we can expect several more seasons watching Commander Taylor and Brenda Johnson constantly butting heads -- maybe one day those two will actually be friends. Nah, that's what makes great TV!

Q: What made you decide to pursue acting?

Robert: "I think at the point when I pursued it, it was more of a social responsibility, a quest to speak about some of the issues confronting African-Americans. It gave me a voice as a young African-American in the 60s and 70s. I started in a street theater group founded by the actress Geraldine Fitzgerald and a man named Brother Jonathan called the Everyman Street Theater Company. It was funded with what they called at the time anti-poverty funds. We did street theater in the streets of New York City. It was a way of expressing myself. My cousin is Louis Gossett Jr., whose star was rising at that time, so acting was familiar to me as a profession."

Q: You've had many great roles in your career, which role was your favorite?

Robert: "There was a small movie I did called Jimmy Zip. We won the Hollywood Film Festival and it was awarded Best Film. I played a guy with Tourette's Syndrome, he was homeless and he took this boy under his wing. That was an interesting character."

Q: How did you land your role on The Closer.

Robert: "The usual process, it started with an audition. I've known Bruce Newberg, who is the casting person on the show, for many years - He's been a favorite casting director of mine, and I think I've been a favorite actor of his because he'd always have me in for several projects. He called and said this was something I'd be right for and I met with producers James Duff, Michael Robin and Greer Shephard and evidently also thought I was right for the role."

Q: What is the basis for your character's animosity towards Brenda?

Robert: "There's a culture that exists within the police department that requires all appointments come from within. There's a real animosity towards the people who come from outside the department. So, that's part of it, coupled with the fact that the person coming from outside the department is a woman just amplifies it."

Q: It seems your character is softening up towards Brenda, is this heading somewhere?

Robert: "I think within cultures of law enforcement, there's a respect for people who get the job done and you can't argue with the fact that Kyra's character Brenda gets the job done. You have to give credit where credit is due, no matter how much you dislike the person. Brenda gets the bad guys and the bad girls."

Q: What's ahead on The Closer?

Robert: "In the previous years, it was about new people coming into the department and I think what you'll see this year is us coming together more as a family. I think we're starting to see in these episodes how we are relying on each other and how our lives are intersecting: Gabriel dating Detective Daniels, myself helping Kyra bring down that child molester, her (Brenda) coming to me more for help - we're coming together as a family unit."

Q: How does the cast get along off the set?

Robert: "We honestly, truly like each other. We all hang out together and we party together. There are impromptu parties on the set usually on Friday nights if we're not on location. The electricians' put up lights, props bring out tents and we all just party into the night! There are a couple of other shows that film on our lot and sometimes they come over and party as well. This has been such a great experience for me."

Q: Do you have any projects in the works?

Robert: "Not right now. There was a movie I did last year in New York and God only knows where it is, I thought it would be out by now. It was directed by Michael Bergmann and is called A Spring in Her Step. I enjoyed going back and filming on the streets of New York."

Q: What advice do you have for aspiring actors?

Robert: "Do it. Just do it. And when I say do it, I mean theater. There are a lot of people who do this profession because they're seduced by the fame or what they think is the glamour. But if you really love this profession, you'll do theater. You'll do it for no money, live in a little hole in the wall, with six people in the audience. If you can do that and still love it, you're probably in it for the right reasons. The agents will find you if you do theater. I didn't have to look for anyone, they found me!"