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The acting neophyte tackled an icon on HBO’s Lakers drama — and became a professional in the process.
By Lacey Rose
Executive Editor, Television
Casting Magic Johnson was never going to be easy. In fact, the casting directors for HBO’s Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty had already seen hundreds of actors before they stumbled upon an audition tape from Quincy Isaiah, a young Michigan native with no IMDb profile to speak of. Showrunner Max Borenstein has said, “It was immediately clear that he was the guy.” Now, with the show signing off after two seasons, the charismatic star opens up about his master class in fame and what comes next.
How did your approach to the character and to the show change from season one, where so much was a first for you, to season two?
It is one of those things where I know the ropes now, I’ve climbed this mountain, I can climb it again. Just showing up to set and understanding the professionalism that I need to bring beforehand, whether that’s knowing my lines, making sure my body is in tip-top shape, making sure that I bring a certain energy on this day where I can bring this type of energy because I don’t have as much to do that day emotionally as opposed to those days where I’m like, “OK, now I probably need to go sit alone and conserve my energy and emotions.” It’s just learning the ins and outs of acting — of being a professional actor.
What did the learning curve entail in season one?
I remember early on, maybe episode three, a producer, Rodney Barnes, came up to me saying, “Hey, I need you to pick the energy up. You got to do the thing.” And I’m like, “What do you mean? ‘Do the thing?’” And the thing was the Magic energy, whereas Quincy can be laid back sometimes and it shows on camera when I’m not fully energized. Finding that shift of, like, OK, there’s a different way of tapping into the character that I think I had to understand. And the way that I had to find it season one, it was there season two. I entered every scene with that shift of, like, “Oh, we’re not Quincy anymore. We’re Magic now.”
You’ve been open about how you went to therapy before production started to “get your head straight.” How has it continued to be helpful?
Going to therapy that first year or two, it was difficult talking about a lot of things that you don’t normally want to talk about with people. And now I’m at a point where I’m so much more comfortable with myself that I can move freely. I think I was just so worried about fame in a way that was unrealistic.
What were you worried about, exactly?
Just the invasion of privacy and people assuming they get to have a part of me that I wasn’t ready to give people. I just wanted to do the thing and not have to deal with all the extra. But the overwhelming support and positivity that I get [from fans] put all of that to rest for me, and I also know how to maneuver. I think it was just a fear of the unknown, and you hear stories about Hollywood and fame and you just don’t want to get caught up in that stuff. Like, allowing the fame to get to my head or something like that. But I think I’ve put the right group of people around me, whether that’s my representation, my friends, my family, my therapist or my relationships, all of it has been very calming for me in a way that’s allowed me to just focus on the work.
Your co-star, John C. Reilly, said of you, “I was really watching him like, ‘Is this kid going to make it through? Is he going to start becoming, like, a star and acting like it?’”
I’m so thankful to have those types of actors in my life who care so much about the art and the work, and they’ve done it on the biggest stages. I’d be a fool not to listen and pay attention to how they move and how they act and react to things. I can’t say this enough, I really got a crash course those two seasons on how to be a professional and how to have staying power. Honestly, it didn’t feel like anything went against what I wanted and who I already was. I had to grow, but I didn’t have to change too much.
What’s coming your way now?
I read a lot of really good scripts — a lot of them don’t get made, but the ones that do are usually really good movies. I remember seeing The Harder They Fall, there was a part in there that I read for, and Judas and the Black Messiah, I remember reading that and just those types of films. And even if I don’t get ’em, just knowing that I’m in conversations with people about them and people are thinking about me is incredible. And I did an independent film, Grassland, over the summer, which I’m also a producer on. Even that coming to me felt like fate. So, I’m just making sure I’m staying open to opportunities and not trying to chase something.
After season one, you said you wanted something that didn’t require you to smile so much …
Yeah. (Smiles.) What I think I was hoping for is just something that I’m able to give a full 360 view of a character, and I do think we were able to do that in Winning Time season two. It’s crazy, this is the first time I’ve been able to really talk about Winning Time …
What did that feel like?
It was tough. People might feel this or that way about the show, but the general consensus was that the cast is incredible and we couldn’t get out in front of it and support it and scream, like, “Yo, our show is back on.” And seeing people not even know that the show is on and we can’t talk about it and how good it was was hard, man. But you can’t wallow in that. And I’m grateful to get two seasons because there were rumblings we weren’t coming back for a second one.
How prepared were you for it to end?
Because the season one numbers were mediocre, they’d said, season two had to make a splash and people were saying they didn’t even know it was on. So, the writing was on the wall. By the time we got the phone call, I knew. My thing during that whole process was like, “I just want to know whether it’s coming back, I need to know what my life is going to look like after this.” Honestly, once I heard we were getting canceled, it was a relief. My shoulders went down. Because as much as I wanted to come back, it was like, “OK, now I know. It’s time to hit the pavement again.”
When people recognize you on the street now, what do they tend to say?
“Hey, Magic. What’s up?” Or, “Man, they did y’all dirty, you were supposed to get to season three. I signed a petition and everything.” It’s dope hearing that excitement in their voice. We left them wanting more.
This story first appeared in a December standalone issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.
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