INTERVIEW WITH RAY ROMANO ('Harold'):
There are differences between this character and your TV character, but not big differences. How much did you have to worry about that?
That was almost not a conscious effort, but I knew that this was one of the reasons I thought this was a good idea to do this film. I wanted to do something different, but it's a weird transition you're making here. You're trying to get the audience to come with you. This audience is used to seeing you every day for 8 years, so that's your audience that maybe is coming to this movie. You don't want to shock them and do something totally opposite, but you also want to play a different character. This was kind of a good mix between the two. I mean, he's not much different than my TV character but I think he is a different guy.
Can you relate to this character?
Yeah, I think so. It's hard for me - I'm not very decisive; I'm very insecure. I know that. So in that sense I can relate to him.
Why are you insecure when you have one of the top-rated comedy shows?
It's the other way around. I have the show because I'm insecure. It's my insecurity that makes me want to be a comic, that makes me need the audience.
Why is insecurity so important to your style of comedy?
I don't know. It seems to be a common denominator with a lot of comics, this low self-esteem thing.
Do you think comedy is about self-analysis?
It depends what kind. The comics that are just conversing with you up there and drawing on their own life, yeah, I guess so. I guess some do political humor, some do topical humor, but the ones that I like, the ones that are appealing to me, were guys who were just talking to you about their life. That's kind of what I did when I did my standup. [I just took] what was happening in my life and [tried] to make it into an act.
Do you feel the need to create new characters in movies while you’re on hiatus from your TV show, just to show you can do different characters so that down the road, you won’t be pigeonholed?
Yeah. If I'm really considering doing film from now on then that is the smart thing to do, or you can go either way. You can just do the same character over and over again and make a different comedy like over and over again. But I want to try to do different roles. I don't know if I can, but I would like to try it. When I'm reading scripts now, I don't read thinking, “Well, this is not far enough from Ray Barone.” I just read the material and if I really like the material, then I consider it.
What percentage of scripts do you get that are Ray Barone?
Well, not so much Ray Barone but just kind of broad comedies. I get a lot of that. Kevin James [“The King of Queens”] and I want to do a film and we got this script that is a little dark, and that is a big concern. People are going to see both of us and think it's an Abbott and Costello kind of thing. It's not an easy switch. It's not an easy transition from TV to film. A lot of people can't do it. So I don't know, there is no guarantee.
PAGE 2: Ray Romano on the End of "Raymond," Movies, and Working with Gene Hackman
ADDITIONAL "WELCOME TO MOOSEPORT" RESOURCES:
Interview with Maura Tierney
Interview with Christine Baranski
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