Get Ready to Get Even.
 

So reads the tagline for TNT’s third scripted drama Leverage, which follows a group of modern-day Robin Hood’s who thrive on stealing from the rich and giving to the poor.

The series stars Academy Award winning actor Timothy Hutton (Ordinary People) as Nate Ford, a former insurance investigator who heads a group of grifters, thieves and hackers in often elaborate heists on big businesses and the tycoons who control them.
I sat down with Hutton and co-star Gina Bellman (Coupling) to discuss the series, the city and their excellent tastes in television.
 

Boosh Magazine: I understand the pilot was filmed here Chicago, how was your experience in the city?
 

Timothy Hutton: Yeah, it was great to film here in the city. It’s a visually spectacular city and the energy is just great, which always helps the filming of a show or a movie. We actually wanted to film the whole series here, but we couldn’t.
 

Gina Bellman: A lot of the cast and crew are local to L.A., so one of the nice things about being on location for the pilot is that everyone gets to hang out more, go out after work and get to bond. On a series like this, where you’re part of a team, it’s important to have that chance to bond and stay out late and things like that. In L.A. you work fourteen hour days and just go home.
 

TH: Being in Chicago, we hung out and dinner every night. In Los Angeles, being together for four and half months and filming twelve one-hour episodes, we never hung out. 
 

BM: Where did you guys hang out in Chicago?
 

GB: [laughs] One place. Tavern on Rush.
 

TH: One of the reasons the show works so well is because of the chemistry between the five of us.  I really think the time we spent in Chicago helped with that.
 

BM: What drew each of you to the script?
 

GB: Well working Timothy was a huge draw; his career has always been something I’ve admired. But I’ve never been interested in those technical, procedural dramas. The thing about Leverage is that each episode can stand alone and are very cinematic and ambitious.  We get to wear different disguises and use different accents. For an actor, that’s a dream part.
 

BM: You both had to relocate to LA for this series, how did you ultimately decide to make the move?
 

TH: Well, you have to make the move. Have to. But I did it happily; it’s nice to be in Los Angeles as long as you’re working.  It may not be an ideal place to be in when you’re not working [laughs]. Over the years, you get to know a lot of people [in L.A.], so seeing those people again was a nice.
 

GB: You were a hermit!
 

TH: [laughs] Yeah. Well as for cons, I have a 21-year-old son in college, back East, and a 7-year old son. Being away from family, home, it’s pretty difficult. If the show does get a second season, it won’t be filmed in L.A.
 

BM: Well as for the show, it’s being compared to Oceans  11 and Mission Impossible. Do you think those are fair comparisons?
 

TH: Well I don’t personally like comparing things. It’s a nice handle to give people a point of reference or to say “The show is in the vein of…”, but I really think Leverage does its own thing. Five dysfunctional people come together and work as a team and the thing is they don’t trust one another so as the series goes on you start to wonder if they will stay a team. Things don’t always work out well for them, they always have to revert to Plan B or C or D and the fun is in watching them figure it out.
 

BM: Is there conflict between the characters, or do they all get along pretty well?
 

TH: There is conflict, which develops as the series goes on.  And it’s conflict between very unlikely characters which, again, makes you wonder if they’ll make it as a team by the end of the season.
 

BM: How do the team members respond to your character’s alcoholism?

TH: Well when you first meet Nate he’s living in his car, doesn’t have any money, his marriage has ended. He’s just lost his son. There’s this great line in one of the episodes where someone says, “Nate, you don’t need rehab-you need revenge.” In fact, he does need rehab, he needs help. His characters’ drinking, for the team, isn’t just something to be concerned about but they’re also annoyed at it. His self-medicating is putting the rest of them in danger.
 

GB: The thing about the team is that each member has always worked alone so trust is a huge factor amongst them. [Timothy’s] character behaving erratically is a real testing ground for all of them.
 

BM: [directed to Gina Bellman] You’re quite well known for your hilarious role as Jane on Coupling. Do you get a chance to showcase some of your comedic talents on this series?
 

GB: [laughs] Is that show very popular amongst the college set? I knew it had sort of a following there. Jane was my all-time favorite character. I don’t think I’ll ever feel as much affection for a character as I did for her but I did a lot of dramatic work before Coupling. The great thing about Leverage is that it balances both comedy and drama. All of us have some great comedic scenes as well as emotionally dramatic moments.
 

BM: Well it sounds like a fantastic show. What television shows are you two watching these days?

TH: Mad Men.  It’s great.
 

GB: Mad Men, also. And Californication.
 

LEVERAGE - Trailer

Leverage premieres Dec. 7 on TNT