J.K. Simmons chats about Counterpart season two

This smart and twisty spy thriller is back and now is the perfect time to get into it.

There are two kinds of people in this world – the ones who have never seen Counterpart and the ones who can’t stop advocating for it.

The twisty and smart spy thriller returns for its second season on SBS this week – and not a moment too soon because this under-the-radar series was just cancelled by its US network.

So now is the time to get into this rewarding and critically acclaimed series, and hopefully some other American broadcaster or streamer will have the good sense to pick it up for a third season.

Because it really is great – this story of an alternate reality where the world as we know it duplicated itself in the late 1980s and now a closely guarded “crossing” between the two dimensions exist under a nondescript office building in Berlin.

Each person has a “counterpart” on the other side of the divide with the series centred on the intrigue and spy games between both worlds.

Counterpart works in large part because of the performance by its lead star, J.K. Simmons, who plays two versions of Howard Silk – one a meek apparatchik in a dead-end job and another a forceful and dynamic super-spy.

But both have much more in common than they initially thought.

J.K. Simmons, who plays two versions of Howard Silk on Counterpart.

Simmons is a prolific character actor that most Australians would see and exclaim, “oh yeah, I know that guy!”. He’s been in Oz, Law & Order, The Closer, guest spots on dozens of TV shows as well as in films such as Juno, Spider-Man and Burn After Reading.

For his supporting role in Whiplash, Simmons won the Oscar, BAFTA, Golden Globe, SAG and a bunch of other critics’ awards, as the rage-fuelled jazz conductor Terence Fletcher.

To promote the second season of Counterpart, Simmons chatted with news.com.au about the show, his favourite directors to work with and working with Australian actors.

What did you think of the reactions to season one? Were you surprised by how much people loved it?

It struck me from the very first time I read it that if people took the time and energy to invest in it and pay attention – because it gets pretty complex – that it would find a loyal following. The people who’ve become fans of the show are rabid fans.

Now that you’re going into season two, and you know that season one was so well-received, do you feel like the pressure is off a bit or do you feel like there’s more pressure now because there are certain expectations from your fans?

I - whether this is wise or not - never felt pressure of any kind. I just follow the work I find interesting and some things find success and some things don’t. Obviously I feel optimistic when it’s a project I’m proud of and is really intelligent and well done, as is the case with Counterpart.

JK Simmons is known for playing Juno’s father in Juno.

But anyway, I just blithely try things on in my career without feeling pressure. Fortunately, by the time I settled down and got married and had kids to feed, I was making money so I never really felt any extreme financial pressure like a lot of actors do, trying to feed their families in this crazy business.

Can you tell us what to expect in season two?

Without giving away any spoilers, we meet the characters shortly after we left them and they’re still trapped in each others’ worlds and that’s as far as I want to go.

When you were approached for this role at the beginning, was it playing two versions of the same character in these different worlds that attracted you?

It wasn’t initially. I read the script without knowing there were two versions, I didn’t know the concept was. I knew I would play this character called Howard Silk and I was reading it and loving the character before we got to the point in episode one where the big reveal happens, where there’s a portal to this other world. After that I’m playing two leading characters instead of just one, which was an exciting bonus that I discovered.

After the success of Whiplash and the Oscar, you must be getting so many opportunities. What do you look for in a role or a project that makes you go “yes”?

The first thing I look for, honestly, is geography - I like to work at home where my wife and kids are. We have one more year before the empty nest.

The first thing I look for creatively is whether this is different from whatever it is that I’m currently doing or just finished doing. One of my goals is to not repeat myself endlessly.

And then, there’s a two-pronged set of criteria, the first is “do I personally find it to be good and exciting, is it going to be a good project?”. And second, “am I the right guy for this?”.

Because I read many scripts that people involved on the production end say “this is really good” but it’s just not speaking to me as a role that I feel right for. Not that it has to be something right in my wheelhouse, I do like to challenge myself and step out of my comfort zone once in a while but if there’s not something for me to connect to right away, then I move on.

Counterpart is a smart and twisty thriller.

Fortunately, as you said, since the attention of a few years ago with Whiplash and all the awards, I do have many more opportunities as a result and a lot more work.

You said you’ve got an empty nest in a year – do you think you’ll go further afield geographically for some projects?

We live in LA now and have for 15 years or so. But we have one kid in college in New York and another kid looking at colleges on the east coast so the first thing we’ll probably do is relocate back to NYC and become bicoastal I guess – but keep the kids’ childhood home in LA.

We will be less tied down to being responsible for our kids’ day-to-day lives like we have been for the past 20 years. So it will open up, but yes, it will open more possibilities for places that maybe my wife and I will both find interesting, like Australia for example. It’s never worked out for me to shoot in Australia and I would love to do it someday.

You’d love it.

I think I would. All the Aussies I’ve worked with have been really good solid people. My recent movie, The Front Runner, was with Australia’s own, Mr Hugh Jackman. He was fantastic in it. It didn’t quite get the level of attention I believe it deserved but Hugh’s portrayal is absolutely spot-on and brilliant. Just by the way there.

Now is the perfect time to check out Counterpart.

The Front Runner is the seventh time you’ve worked with director Jason Reitman – is it your preference to keep working with the same directors again?

I feel like the directors that I’ve worked with multiple times - Jason, Sam Raimi, the Coen brothers, my wife Michelle Schumacher, Damian Chazelle - they’re all people I just click with, personally and professionally.

And there’s obviously a confidence level that’s mutual. Any time the phone rings and it’s one of the people on that list calling, I’m definitely going to sign up.

(Interview edited for clarity and length)

Counterpart season two is on SBS and SBS on Demand now.

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