Parade Magazine intervew with Michael Weatherly

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Michael Weatherly on What He Learned at NCIS That He Is Bringing to Bull
September 27, 2016 – 10:07 AM – 0 Comments
Paulette Cohn
By Paulette Cohn @paulette49


When the time is right, the time is right and after 13 seasons playing very Special Agent Tony DiNozzo on NCIS, Michael Weatherly decided it was the right moment to exit the role and try a new experience. He didn’t know at the time, but CBS wanted to keep him in the family, which is what happened when Weatherly signed on to play Dr. Jason Bull on the new Fall Tuesday night entry, Bull.

“NCIS was an extraordinary, unique ride,” Weatherly says. “Thirteen years, it really felt like a circle that had gone all the way around, and I really felt happy with the resolution of the character and my time on the show. When that book was shut … it’s like finishing War and Peace, and then getting War and Peace — Part 2.”

Bull is loosely based on Dr. Phil McGraw‘s life as the founder of one of the most prolific trial consulting firms of all time — before he met Oprah Winfrey and became a TV personality, eventually landing his own show.

“Jason Bull isn’t Phil McGraw, so it’s not a real person,” Weatherly says. “My job, when I get on the set, is: How do I make this guy seem real? And I have to say, it’s also a relief not to have to wear a gun every day. For 13 years, I had a gun, and it was plastic, and every time I sat down, I would think, ‘Oh, God. Do I have to have the gun?’ So he doesn’t wear a gun, which is nice.”

In this interview, Weatherly also talks about the comparisons between the two roles, what he learned at NCIS that he is bringing to Bull, the advice he got from Dr. Phil, what he learned from his children that he brings to work, and more.

How would you compare DiNozzo to Bull?

I think the DiNozzo that is in Bull is that he has a twinkle in his eye. He appreciates human behavior. People are fascinating. I think Tony always had his own predictive thing. He always thought it was the wife. But Bull’s a little bit more expansive in his thinking.

But what it really comes down to is DiNozzo required this framework, where there was somebody above him. He needed Gibbs [Mark Harmon] to sit on him, hold him down, and mentor him. He needed that approval and validation and that inclusion. He needed that family. Bull has this team. They have a family dynamic and he’s a leader inside it. Unlike Gibbs, Bull is not coming at it from a place of ruling by fear or intimidation. He rules with a more inclusive, Kumbaya, up with people [attitude].

What did you learn at NCIS that you’re bringing over to Bull to make it a really good working environment?

That’s really a critical thing. One of the most rewarding and wonderful aspects of NCIS was going to work, loving all the people that I got to know so well and that I miss every day, and really trying to take that apart and understand what made it so good and how can I apply that to this environment?

It doesn’t happen overnight. It’s like children. You don’t get a 7-year old without going through the first six years. You’ve got to change some diapers. You’ve got to have some long nights. You’ve got to put in the work. And I think, just like being a parent, you have to put yourself at the service of the greater thing, the family, in this case, the show. Being No. 1 really means not acting like you’re the guy, but instead you have the voice to say, “Hey everybody, we’re in this together.”

What made the NCIS set so good?

We had time. We had a lot of veterans. David McCallum and Mark Harmon have had massive careers. I had worked enough and Pauley Perrette worked enough. When we came together, everybody knew what they were doing. We were free and loose and none of us wanted to play any other character. There was no envy and that meant, as a working environment, when you’re blocking scenes, everyone is having fun, collaborating and helping each other. I’m really trying to foster that as well at Bull.

Is it at all scary to be carrying the show? You’re going from a hit to an unknown.

You know what’s fascinating is, I think, ten years ago, or even eight or seven years ago, I would not really have had the same approach that I have now. My four-year old son and my 20-year-old son have taught me an extraordinary amount about what it means to be a leader, what it means to be in charge, how to have patience.

NCIS was really crucial and instructive, but in terms of being front and center, it’s only scary in the way that fatherhood is scary. It’s an amazing challenge and every day I don’t even use an alarm clock to wake up. I wake up at 4:30 and I’m ready to go at the Bull.

What was it about Bull that appealed to you?

When I was getting ready to do the show, I looked at The Rockford Files. I looked at Columbo. I looked at The Mentalist. I looked at a lot of different shows that had charismatic leads that were conflicted a little bit.

James Garner never wants to get into a fight on Rockford, but he always gets pulled into the fight. Columbo does this studied underplay to create a low expectation from whoever is talking to, and then he’s got one more question and it’s always the zinger. So for me, that’s what I want from Bull. I want to create a dynamic, interesting character that audiences can have fun watching but that feels somehow familiar.

That said, does it have a throwback feel to it?

For me, my biggest inspiration in the pilot was, believe it or not, Marcello Mastroianni in 8 ½, which I watched on a loop the whole time because Mastroianni is playing Guido, who is trying to direct a movie but it hasn’t quite come together for him, so he’s faking it a little bit. I love the idea that Bull knows he’ll know the answer, but he may not know it yet.

Did Dr. Phil give you any advice?

There’s a couple of key questions that I asked Phil that I can’t get into now, but they were really instructive. One of them in particular, he just stared at me for a couple of seconds, and I saw more in that nonverbal moment about Bull and about what it means to do what Phil does, which is: How do you get to the heart or truth of somebody’s emotional life?

There’s the factual life, there’s the résumé you have, there is the Google search that tells who you are, but how do I find out who died and how that affected you? To me, that’s when you get to know people is when you find out the stuff that makes the molten lava in them. And that’s the show.

Bull airs tonight at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.



Dr Jason Bull: Don't give up on people, they're all we've got.