He's best known to fans as Steven Simmons on Tyler Perry's 'If Loving You Is Wrong'. And, so far Ryan Haake has done an ...
He's best known to fans as Steven Simmons on Tyler Perry's 'If Loving You Is Wrong'. And, so far Ryan Haake has done an amazing job captivating the hearts of many viewers, keeping us at the edge of our seats, intrigued to find out more about his character. Fans often ask - Is Steven a good or bad cop? Who's side is he on? Well, Haake was on hand with Soap Opera Intel [Soap Opera News] to answer our questions. In this discussion he talked about his time on the show, his journey to acting, working with Tyler Perry, his character Steven and much more. Read below for the full interview!
Thank you so much for agreeing to do this interview. We must acknowledge how much of a talented actor you are. What drew you to acting?Ryan: Thank YOU for wanting to do an interview with me, this is fun! And thank you for the kind words, that is very cool of you.
I'm originally from LA, but I grew up moving around a lot. 9th grade was my ninth school and by then, I had lived in 4 different states. However, my grandfather and his creative partner created a show back in the day called Who's The Boss, so I found myself on set or around the industry at a very young age whenever I was in Los Angeles. My mother was also involved pretty heavily in theatre when I was younger, so I would find myself backstage, around for rehearsal or in the audience a fair bit. I also dabbled in commercial and print work in 3rd and 4th grade and some theatre as well as a teenager.
My early experiences around such amazing and creative people planted the seed for me to really pursue acting years later. Ideally, I want to make tv and film that people tune into to find inspiration/motivation or just to tune out and watch cool stuff to escape reality for a little bit. I think we all need that from time to time haha.
You started out with roles on a few shorts before you began acting on serials, how did you get the part of Steven on If Loving You Is Wrong?Ryan: I definitely had a slow start trying to find my way into the business when I came back to LA. It took me 7 years before I landed the roll of Steven. I guess Tyler and the producers saw that I could bring something special to that character and they gave me a shot. It started with just 5 episodes and not a lot of dialogue the first season and continued to grow as I proved capable. I was pretty dang green in the beginning, so it's been such a blessing to learn and grow while on set. Thanks Tyler! Haha!
What can you say about Steven? Do you guys share any similarities? What's been your most challenge playing such a character?Ryan: Steven is an interesting guy. All you get to see of him is the robot in the suit, but if you keep on watching, you'll see some layers start to reveal. We definitely share the similarity of staying calm and processing every detail. The hardest part has been to always be so serious, haha. I'm more of a happy and goofy guy off screen so keeping it serious can be a bit of a challenge at times. Playing a cop is much harder than people would think. But I love a challenge and it's a lot of fun to get to be somebody else when the cameras are rolling. We also shoot a lot of pages per day, so it can be quite stressful when you get the call sheet and see your character has over 40 pages of dialogue. But I learned a great approach from my friend and amazing cast mate, Malik Whitfield (Lushion): one scene at a time.
A lot of fans seem to think that is a dirty cop lol - what do you say about that?Ryan: Haha it's definitely hard to see which side Steven falls on, but if you keep watching, the truth will finally be revealed. It's been fun getting to play both sides, good and bad, and if people are still wondering, I guess I'm doing a decent job. So, thank you! Haha.
What's coming up for your character - can you tease? Any romantic developments, story twists, teasers?Ryan: All I'm going to say is that I can't wait for the episodes this fall to start airing ;)
Are you around for the long haul on this amazing show?Ryan: I'm here through next season, but after that, you never know. Tyler has such a wild and creative mind that who knows where the storylines will go. I'm just grateful for everything thus far.
You also have this amazing docu-series "Droned" where you play yourself - tell us more about that?
Ryan: Oh yeah that was fun! Myself and two partners created and filmed the show in 2015/16. It basically follows the drone company, Pigeon Vision, as its hired for cool jobs around the world and all the fun, drama and adventure along the way. The company was founded by my cousin and I happen to be a partner in it as well. We found ourselves filming in California, Vegas, Atlanta, Florida, Minnesota, Mexico, Canada, Bahamas and Barbados. It was a blast with such an amazing crew. We shot ten episodes which landed on Science Channel last summer/fall and it can now be found internationally in over 50 territories.
What keeps you busy outside of Television?
Ryan: I'm quite an active and busy guy. I'm either working out, surfing, snowboarding, doing some sort of adrenaline inducing activity, off-roading, riding motorcycles, watching movies, hanging with my dog Maverick or hustling our new tequila company, Nosotros Tequila. I am not a fan of being sedentary :)
Any projects on the horizon for you as an actor or otherwise?Ryan: It looks like I'll be doing stunts for a pretty major action film this summer. I wish I could give you more info on that, but I have to remained tight lipped, I'm meeting with a great agency on Wednesday, so hopefully that spawns a lot more work for me. I've been doing everything so far on my own hustle and relationships, so it'll be great having somebody going to bat with me and opening up more opportunities. I'm also really excited about our tequila company, Nosotros Tequila. We are a sustainable and socially aware company making a very tasty spirit. Check us out if you want to know more www.nosotrostequila.com
Thanks Michael Hope you have yourself a stellar Tuesday! And it being Tuesday, don't forget to tune in tonight to If Loving You Is Wrong!!
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