Interview: Everything's Zen with Satisfaction's Tzi Ma

Tzi Ma as Satisfaction's Zen Master

The USA network’s nighttime drama “Satisfaction” has its first season finale tonight at 10/9c, and I had the chance to talk to series co-star Tzi Ma (“24,” “Rush Hour”) about the groundbreaking show. The series, which centers on Neil Truman, a 40-something family man who discovers he and his wife, Grace, aren’t as satisfied in their marriage as they thought they were. When Grace seeks her satisfaction in the arms of another man, Neil gets his own help by becoming a male escort (it’s a long story). He also seeks the advice of a wise and tell-it-like-it-is Zen master, played by Tzi (pronounced “tie”) Ma.

Celebrity Extra: You were working on “24: Live Another Day” when you got the call to come in to work for “Satisfaction.” How did you work that out?

Tzi Ma: It truly was a logistical nightmare. But thank goodness it all worked out, because I tell you, “Satisfaction” was on the brink of replacing me. I was supposed to be in Atlanta by the middle of May, and I was still in England (for “24”). I flew straight from London to Atlanta, and I was still on hold for “24,” just in case we needed to reshoot anything.

I had shot the first episode of “Satisfaction,” but by the time I was done with “24,” they were on the fifth episode. I went and did four episodes in a row. They waited for me. Sean Jablonski, the creator of the show, is so nice. He’s just so generous and so supportive and trusting. It worked out good. I’m so thankful that they waited.

CE: Tell me about the Zen Master.

TM: The one thing I liked about what Sean was, when we talked about the character, we didn’t want this guy to be your stereotypical Zen master who just sits quietly. We’re playing him as a pretty normal guy. And that’s what I appreciate. It’s hard to do these things. Once they say you are the Zen master, you can get stuck. It’s hard to break out of that controlled, stately idea of the character.

You’re supposed to be wise, and you’re supposed to be able to talk in metaphors, and everybody will just say, “Oh my God, this is so crazy and so wonderful.” That’s not how we approached this guy. We approached him as a true practitioner of Zen in that everything’s in the moment. He has no premeditated thoughts about why this guy is coming to him. That’s how we approached the relationship between Neil and the Zen Master. If it were just a regular Zen master, I may not have wanted to play the role.

CE: When you prepared for the role, how did you approach it?

TM: The one thing I asked from our directors was, “If there’s any time that you feel that I’m just reading a line, please let me know, because that’s what I don’t want.” We have wonderful writers on the show, so you don’t want to mess that up. They get paid the big bucks for a reason.

CE: We don’t get to see a lot of the Zen Master, but when we do, his scenes are always important. Will we get to see more of him?

TM: No, I’m never featured heavily. It wouldn’t work that way. It has to be that he’s the guy who comes in and transitions himself out. But there are some little twists in an upcoming episode where it comes out that he is not really using the “Zen” philosophy to talk to Neil about certain things.

CE: When the folks at “24” contacted you about returning to the series in the role of Cheng, what was your reaction?

TM: I was excited. (Writers) Evan (Katz) and Manny (Coto) called, and they talked to me about it. They said, “We’re thinking about doing this, but it’s going to be really intense. And we don’t want to tell you too much. We really want everyone to be surprised.” We didn’t know what the ending was going to be. But given what they told me, I really felt that this character was almost like a new character. The stakes were much higher because he had nobody to answer to, just like Jack Bauer. That parallel is very exciting.

CE: What was the reaction from “24” viewers concerning your return?

TM: The reaction has been great. The one thing about the fans that’s so cool is that they don’t come up to me and spit in my face, like: “Oh, I hate you! You’re against Jack Bauer!” It’s a love/hate relationship. It’s like: “I hate you. Can I take a picture?” I’m a character actor. I try not to be so visible out in public. To be recognized that way in such a consistent manner because of this show, it’s scary for a character actor. But the fans have been great. They’re writing stuff online like: “Oh my God, I can’t believe it! He’s back! Cheng is back!” I’m really enjoying it.

CE: What are your thoughts on Freddie Prinze Jr.’s statement that during his time on “24,” Kiefer Sutherland was unprofessional and difficult to work with?

TM: Look at what Kiefer’s done for “24.” He’s been in practically every scene, from beginning to end, for nine seasons. That should tell you something about this guy’s work ethic. I don’t know any actor who comes to the set more prepared than him. You can’t carry a show like this being an asshole. Everyone has his moments, even me. The fact is, he doesn’t compromise because he is trying to achieve excellence.

CE: Tell me about your new movie, “Million Dollar Arm.”

TM: It’s a simple movie about an American sports agent (played by Jon Hamm) who’s trying to revive his career because it’s going down the toilet. He wants to create a game show; it’s like “American Idol” but with baseball. He travels to India to find his athletes.

CE: You did a few episodes of “Nash Bridges” back in the day, with one of my favorite actors, Don Johnson. What was that experience like?

TM: I shot the 99th and 100th episodes of the show, so it was a big deal. Don is so generous. He took the entire cast and crew to Vegas for the shoot. We shot at the Mirage, the Bellagio — it was a ball. Don came straight up and said, “Brother, I’m so glad you’re on the show.” He’s another guy who’s really intense. Some people think he’s a diva, but he’s not. The guy is serious about what he’s doing. It’s a bum rap that guys like Don and Kiefer get in terms of being divas or being difficult. They’re not; they’re passionate and professional.

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Interview: Katherine LaNasa, a Woman in Charge

Fans know and love Katherine LaNasa from her role of Sophia on “Deception”; from when she played (and stole every scene as) Will Ferrell’s wife, Rose, in “The Campaign”; and from her various featured roles in shows like “Two and a Half Men,” “Big Love,” “Lie to Me,” “Longmire” and “Judging Amy.” Now we can see the lovely actress weekly in the new USA network drama series “Satisfaction,” which airs Thursdays at 10/9c. Katherine plays Adriana, the hard-edged, high-end madam who lures unhappy husband and father Neil Truman (Matt Passmore) into becoming one of her male escorts. I spoke with Katherine recently about her new role, and she’s thrilled to get to play this interesting and multifaceted character.

Celebrity Extra: Tell me about the character of Adriana, whom I love, and what drew you to her and to “Satisfaction.”

Katherine LaNasa: A lot of my fans from “Deception” will really like Adriana. I think a lot of women really like those types of characters that I play. It was definitely really outside the box, so I liked that about it. I knew how the part read, but I had this feeling that I could really do something different with it. It’s always nice when you take it in a different direction, and they say, “Yes!” When (writer/executive producer) Sean (Jablonski) saw my take, he told me he just knew that I was the person.

CE: Did something similar happen for you with playing Sophia on “Deception”? These types of characters seem like so much fun to play.

KL: Yes, the same thing happened with Sophia. It’s fun in these serial soaps to have a character like Adriana or Sophia, but I think that the writers want there to be something not pushy about them. I seem to be able to manipulate most of these characters in that way. I always feel like I take a nod from the Barbara Stanwycks of the world. I felt like those ladies really knew how to do it. They were complicated, strong and dark characters in the forefront, and it was a lot of fun. I’ve been lucky to get to play those types of characters in these past few series.

CE: Tell me about the differences between Adriana and Sophia. How do you make each of these characters different and your own?

KL: It’s been an interesting balance to play Adriana versus Sophia. For Sophia I came up with that weird accent that she had — it just felt really right to have this fake sort of British accent. Everyone I’ve known who has that accent is from the Midwest. I’ve known three people from Kansas with that accent. I’m like, “That’s what I’m doing, dude.” Like I’m doing it on purpose.

With Adriana, I kind of modeled her after women I met in the art scene, the fancy art and music scene that I was in with (first husband) Dennis Hopper when I was in my 20s back in the late ’80s in New York. Before and after that, I was a professional ballet dancer, and I was traveling the world when I met him. The life I had with him — I give him credit for that — there are things you know because you get to go to those places, which you wouldn’t have known know if you hadn’t gone, if you haven’t been in those social circles. I think I was able to bring that to this character and feel like there’s something about a lot of those ex models. There’s simplicity with their style. Adriana’s a woman who doesn’t try too hard.

CE: How difficult has it been shooting “Satisfaction,” with Grant being busy with “Devious Maids”?

KL: Well, it’s always fun to be in New York and to shoot in New York, but I have had a surprisingly enjoyable and pleasant time here in Atlanta. It’s really nice that Grant’s show, “Devious Maids,” shoots here as well. I have this funny feeling that if our show gets picked up, it might even just shoot at the same time next year, which will be amazing. This year we overlapped [our shooting schedules]; it’s better if they are overlapping — if we’re both out of town together — so we just both work in Atlanta, and then we both go home.

CE: You were about five months pregnant when you shot that love scene in the pilot episode, and, by God, you looked fabulous!

KL: Thank you! I was about four-and-a-half or five months pregnant when I did that love scene. By the time we got to the art-gallery scene, I was about five-and-a-half months pregnant.

CE: I did notice judicious placement of large handbags during the gallery scene.

KL: Those bags are by Hayward Luxury, designed by Dennis Hopper’s daughter, Marin. She’s been working on them for years, but they’re now at this level where they are going to have their own store and everything.

CE: How is it working on the set of “Satisfaction,” and how are the cast and crew?

KL: It’s one of the best sets I’ve been on. It’s really happy, and the people are really nice. Everybody is just really nice and down-to-earth. I’m probably the most “Hollywood” of them all — and half the time I’m either pumping or nursing my baby on the set. It’s a really family-oriented environment. Matt (Passmore, Neil Truman) and I are usually joking around, laughing or talking. He’s a really terrific actor. He’s one of those people where you don’t necessarily see all of what he’s doing when you’re working with him, but when I saw the pilot, I was like: “Wow. This guy’s a really complicated actor.” He has an incredibly rich inner life.

CE: And that’s what made him a fan favorite when he starred in “The Glades” as well.

KL: Exactly. He just plays those characters so well. It’s funny, because Neil Truman is such an everyman, and Adriana’s such a worldly, complicated person. It’s not that he’s stupid, but I don’t think he’s come across a person like Adriana before, and he just really plays it so well. I was watching one of our scenes the other day, and I just thought: “Oh my God. This poor guy.” He does not know what he has gotten himself into. It’s like “Alice in Wonderland” — and I am the Mad Hatter, and he is Alice.

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