When an actor answers, “What do I want, and what am I willing to risk to get it?” Will Lyman submits, “That’s when the good stuff happens. If you get two actors that are both working like that, then you get some real games happening. You bounce off each other. That’s what an actor wants to do, and often there’s so little room for it, especially in television where they just want to make the plot points and tell you what you need to know to get to the next one.” 

Episodic TV has not been Will Lyman’s favorite environment as an actor. But the day he auditioned for Rod Lurie, writer/director of “Commander In Chief,” he found himself running to the airport - with barely enough time to buy socks and underwear - to audition immediately in Los Angeles for “the suits,” the Disney/ABC network executives. Cast as U.S. President Bridges who chooses Geena Davis as his running mate, Lyman dies, allowing her to become the first female President. 

In Lyman’s favor was the “voice.” As the narrator of PBS’s “Frontline,” he uses that gorgeous instrument to speak the brilliant truths written by producer Marty Smith and his reporters. That “voice” automatically makes him presidential.. 

President Bridges is “looking for love. If he doesn’t charm, he hasn’t got much.” Lyman mined his character’s social vulnerabilities. Actors bring the critical minutiae from their microcosmic view of the bigger story. How does his character feel about the Geena Davis character? “A pain in the neck. You need this, I need you.” Choosing her to run on his ticket was purely symbiotic. 

He says, “Geena is one of the most alive, in-the-moment people I’ve ever worked with. The energy that comes out of her face is just stunning. I really thought when we were doing the pilot that she was too open – because that openness connotes a naivete. As I watched her progress, her character maturing into the presidency worked perfectly. She definitely has the strength and the power to command. I think it may have been in her head all along but it’s beginning to come out now. One of the most interesting things in the show is how she’s developed from the pilot, become stronger and stronger, more sure of herself. She’s learning how to be that person, learning what it takes, what’s required of her to do what she does – because she’s also one of the producers of the show.” 

Lyman was directed on MYSTIC RIVER by Clint Eastwood. “It was one of the most incredible experiences. Clint never raised his voice. There is no shouting on the set.” Eastwood’s worked with his crew through so many films, there is a shorthand. “He’d finish a take and then say, ‘Okay, let’s turn it around.’” Ten minutes later, the set up is done and he’s onto the next take.” 

Lyman was directed by Todd Solondz in WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE, which was a chaotic, bizarre experience. He was struck by disbelief when told the film made the cut at Sundance, even more so when he viewed the film there and liked it. 

Will Lyman is a Screen Actors Guild rep for New England. 

Laura Bernieri is a writer/producer who works in development at Saint Aire Productions. She is a frequent contributor to IMAGINE.