Trying to find a cure for a mysterious virus plaguing the Governor of California's daughter. Getting the entire city of Los Angeles back online. Preventing a nuclear meltdown. This is just all in a day's work for the team of CBS' new hit drama Scorpion.
Based on the real-life story of hacker Walter O'Brien, Scorpion follows a group of cybersecurity experts as they help U.S. Homeland Security basically save the country — and sometimes the world — from oblivion. Sylvester Dodd is one of those geniuses. Known as "The Human Calculator," Sylvester is a stats wiz who also copes with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and anxiety.
The actor behind Sylvester, Ari Stidham, may not be as mathematically savvy as his character in real life, but that doesn't mean the two are complete opposites. Stidham spoke with T-Lounge over the phone about how he relates to his character, his hopes for Season 2 of Scorpion and reading "Mylvester" fan fiction.
Scorpion was renewed last month. What are you hoping to see for your character Sylvester in Season 2?
I hope Sylvester starts to sort of come out of his box even more. I'd like to start seeing him go places other than the garage. I'd like to see where he lives. I'm just curious for me, for my own selfish wants. I want to know what that's like, because in my head it's different than I think what the writers think it is. I want to see where everyone lives other than Walter.
Where do you see Sylvester living?
I don't know. Maybe he lives somewhere in the garage, but I don't know. Our garage seems to grow every episode, you know? So we'll see. I don't know. Hopefully some place cool.
In tonight's episode, Walter does an interview where he doesn't give as much credit to the other members of Team Scorpion as he maybe should. What can we expect from that?
You know, we've all got brains, and we all want the credit, and it's hard. It's hard. Being in a team is hard sometimes. Yeah, we deal with a lot of stuff. Tensions are high in the next episode, and we're in Mexico. It gets pretty heated.
What has been your favorite case or episode, either to film or to watch as a viewer?
I mean, I love acting with Camille Guatty [who plays Megan O'Brien], and I feel like that's the coolest part about Sylvester at this point is his romance with Walter's sister. I think it's like really cute and endearing and cool to see a guy like that fall in love for the first time. And I like playing it because love is nice, and it's not like being scared of a nuclear meltdown at any minute. It's not like something crazy and physical to play. It's much softer. So I like days when I just get to like be in love with somebody. Isn't that nice? I think I also like watching stuff like that. I like to see where Toby and Happy go. I feel that's a cool relationship, and I'd like to see that become something serious.
Speaking of Sylvester's relationship with Megan, have you seen any of the fan fiction online about "Mylvester," as fans are calling the relationship?
I've read some of them, yes. [Laughs]
And what do you think about them?
I mean, there's some pretty choice ones. [Laughs] I don't know if I'm allowed to comment on them.
Well, you're laughing so much, I've got to know now.
It's just dirty ones, and it's funny. It's like Sylvester and Megan, like, it's so sweet, what are you going to do? Like, how could you do that? [laughs] But yeah, I love that people are responding like that to our characters. I mean, it's fun to play them, so I hope it's as fun to watch them as it is to play them. It's a lot of fun.
How good are your tech skills and math skills compared to Sylvester's?
Not good. [Laughs] I am not good with those things. Next question. [Laughs]
How would you say you and Sylvester are alike?
High anxiety. High anxiety definitely. I am a highly anxious person. But that's about it. I feel like I'm a little bit cooler than Sly, which is not bad. It's nice to feel cool when I take off my costume. I like it. I take it off and look myself in the mirror and go, "Great, I'm not nerdy. Like, I'm not some dweeb that people push around. I'm like an actor playing that guy," and that's pretty cool. I mean, look, that was me in middle school, and that was me in high school, and like, it's just nice to be on the other side of it, and that's why I can play a guy like that.
Are you bringing in any sort of past personal experiences into playing your character?
Sure. I mean, everybody feels like an outcast at one point or another, and I definitely felt like an outcast a lot of different moments in my life, so I use that a lot. Just also anxiety, having anxiety attacks and not knowing what's going on inside your own body. All that stuff, I sort of lean into those memories when I play Sly.
What has been the biggest challenge for you in playing Sly and filming Scorpion?
The biggest challenge, probably all the action stuff, because it's so against my type and it's so against what I've ever done before, what I thought I'd normally be doing for work. I think I'm starting to get a rhythm and like I'm really starting to enjoy it. It's cool. All the action stuff is really cool.
How do you prepare for action scenes?
I mean, I just make sure I'm not going to hurt myself. It's going to be as safe as I can be. It's good. But I don't do the big stuff. Like, the jump off the boat, that wasn't me. That was my stunt double, Tom. He does most of my stuff. But yeah, the stuff where I'm like climbing up on a dresser, you know, that's the physical stuff I'm talking about.
Has being on Scorpion, a show all about cybersecurity, changed your outlook on using the Internet or technology?
Oh yeah, I'm just far more terrified. You know, Google your name and the word address, and see if you can sleep. But that's the game right now, I guess, the world we live in, and you know, we'll be OK.
Yeah, so you just kind of have to live with it?
Yeah, I mean, I'm not going to move to a ranch somewhere. I have to keep moving forward, get as much protection as I can, I guess, I don't know. It freaks me out. I'm just a normal person. I don't know. I hope I'm on the real-life Walter O'Brien's radar as someone he would help out in a terrible situation.
Yeah, I think even if you're not a celebrity, people are very concerned about it.
I wouldn't call myself a celebrity yet.
Well, you're on a big-time show now.
Yeah. Yeah, it's cool.
Are you still getting used to the whole fame thing?
Yeah, you know it's weird. I enjoy working, and so when I'm not working, I guess like, I just wasn't ready for the world to become like a place where I could get recognized for being on TV, you know?
Have you had like any memorable fan encounters? Are people recognizing you on the street yet?
Yeah, sometimes when I'm walking, like I was walking in Hollywood the other day, and this dude was honking his horn, and I was like, "What? Is he honking at me?" And he rolled down the window, and he was just like, "SYLVESTERRRRRR!" And he like drove away as he was screaming "Sylvester." You're like, "Pretty cool." Those are the moments I go, "Well, that's awesome." I mean, like, I'm glad that they watch the show. I'm glad that they like my stuff, because I've never been part of something like this before, so I really enjoy it. But I don't know. I hope I stay on the enjoyment side of it.
You're really kind of new to the whole TV/Hollywood business. I mean, you were on ABC Family's Huge a couple of years ago, but have you had to adjust at all to being on a big network show?
Yeah, it's been fine. It's just new. I'm still the kid that lived above his parents' garage six months ago. I don't feel much different except that I'm working a lot, which is great. I think that I'm just like growing up, and having this job while I'm growing up is just very cool, and it's just going to change the stroke of things drastically than what I thought they would be. And that's just happening now for me, so I don't know. I'm open to everything. It's great. It's like, nothing is bad about this. It's all very cool and awesome, and I'm just like smiling about it. But it's definitely new, and I do not know what tomorrow brings, hence the anxiety.
Some people have criticized Scorpion's portrayal of this group of intelligent people as stereotypically nerdy. So what's your take on that? How do you respond to that criticism of the show?
I mean, honestly, like what would make them happy, you know? What would make them happy? Would they be happy if we had like a narrative-based, plot-driven Imitation Game weekly? That's not the type of content CBS makes. We're making a serialized adventure show because that's what people like. And so what? Sometimes our characters can be a little bit caricature-y. I'm playing a dude with OCD. There was a show called Monk where the main guy had OCD, and he solved mysteries. So what? It's television. We're doing it so people can enjoy it and like leave their everyday lives, you know? If we're being criticized for being too big or too on the nose or, "Oh, they're just playing a bunch of smart nerds." Well, people like smart people, and if you have a problem with it, that's great. There's like so many other shows that you can watch that I bet you will like really like. Like, check out Manhattan. I mean, that's a show about a bunch of smart people. [...] There's other shows. You don't need to watch Scorpion if you don't like it. I never understand that like criticism stuff. It's like, look, we just made it so people would enjoy it. And if you're not a fan of the show, OK. We know the show that we're making, and it's a really cool show. I'm pretty proud of it, so. I don't know.
Yeah, of course, you can't please everyone. And no matter what you do, there will be criticism.
Yeah, absolutely. But it's like I don't know what I'm supposed to do with that, you know?
Music is also a big part of your life, and you make music under the name DRTV. Have you been able to focus on that at all while working on Scorpion?
Absolutely. I carve time out more at night. But I'm working on an EP with these guys called Monomaniac. And they're really talented hip-hop producers, so it's sort of the same vibe that I've been doing before, which is kind of beachy and surf-rocky. It's that mixed with like well-produced beats sort of in the vein of Discovery or Passion Pit. It sort of has a Frank Ocean, songwriter feel to it too. It's really cool and new and we're releasing that in April. It's called Thickness. And that's what I've been working on mostly.
I know your song "WonderBread" was featured in an episode of Scorpion earlier this season. Can we expect to hear any more of your music on the show?
I hope so. I mean, I don't know. I think I just have to keep pressing people if I want music to get in there. Well when Nick Santora [the creator of Scorpion] first heard the song, he was like, " I didn't know you had this in you," and I was like, "OK." I just need to set my sights a little bit higher than this, and hopefully more songs get out. Who knows? It could have been a flash in the pan.
Have you talked about a potential duet or collaboration with your Scorpion co-star Katharine McPhee?
I mean... maybe (he says in italics). I don't know how much I'm allowed to say about that, so that's where I'm at. Maybe is what I'll say.
