by Kevin Gaussoin, Editor-in-Chief

Not only did we run into Tim Jo at Comic-Con 2012 as shown in the photo above, but we had the privilege of getting an in-depth voice interview with him as well. Tim Jo plays teenaged space alien “Reggie Jackson” on The Neighbors Wednesdays at 8:30/7:30c after The Middle on ABC.

In the 70s we had The Coneheads and Mork and Mindy. In the 80s we had Alf. In the 90s we had 3rd Rock from the Sun. Since then, we haven’t had a live-action sitcom about space aliens on TV until Dan Fogelman and ABC corrected this oversight and brought us The Neighbors. It’s a goofy, funny, family-friendly half-hour comedy worth adding to your list of shows to watch. For more about The Neighbors and the rest of our interview with Tim Jo, read on…

ComicsOnline: I ran into you briefly at Comic-Con…

Tim Jo: I love that picture, man.

CO: Yeah, I know, it was just real quick. It was kinda weird because I’m walking by and I’m like “What the hell is this booth?” and then the rep was there and saw my press badge and he was like “Hey, that’s the guy!” and so I got a quick snap with my phone. I continued talking with the rep and asked “What’s this all about?” And he tried to tell me but it really didn’t come across, and it wasn’t until today when I spoke with Angela that I was like “You know, I should probably actually watch this show.” So I watched four episodes today and it’s damn funny.

TJ: Hey, you watched four. Thank you!

CO: Yeah.

TJ: It’s one of those shows where I always wanna tell people, if you’re gonna watch it, don’t just watch the first one, watch two, at least two so you get a full sense of it. And by Episode 4 if you’re not feeling it, then yeah, move on, but I think by episode 4 you should have a good sense of the tone and the humor that we’re trying to do.

CO: Yeah, by Episode 3 I liked it, and by Episode 4 I got some more Reggie Jackson. Your character is kind of one of the more eye-catching.

TJ: Yeah, it’s the hair, man.

CO: Is it?

TJ: Yeah, it’s the hair. It’s this tall… It’s a Jason Priestly in 90210, slash Edward Cullen in Twilight, slash Elvis kind of ‘do, right?

CO: Yeah.

TJ: Slash Dragon Ball.

CO: Oh yeah, and Dragon Ball, exactly. No kidding. So you’re on a lunch break from filming now? What episode are you on now?

TJ: We are on Episode 14 right now, and it’s a big deal for us because we originally got thirteen episodes to film. We just got news that we’d be able to move on to Episode 14 two Mondays ago. We were given the good news that we received a “back 9” order, so we have a full twenty-two episode season. So I think people are really starting to get it and putting us in their rotation on their DVR.

CO: Yeah. You know frankly, I didn’t want another show, but I watched this today and I thought “Dammit, I’m gonna have to watch this now.”

TJ: This last Wednesday’s is a really good one. It’s “Fifty Shades of Green”, did you watch that one yet?

CO: No, I just watched 1 through 4 today.

TJ: Okay, “Fifty Shades of Green”, that’s a really strong one. I think you’re going to enjoy that one. That one I said on my Facebook has at least one laugh out loud moment.

CO: All right.

TJ: I guarantee at least one.

CO: I know you have been involved with a comedy before, but how did you get involved with The Neighbors?

TJ: Like they say, you just have to be in the right place at the right time, and this character really spoke to me. I played him really grounded and extremely real. I knew he was an alien. The original audition sides had me saying things like “Why do I have this hair growing in the most unnecessary of places? I want to be back in the fields of green goo, father.” And I just played him really dark; I played him really angry. I just went back to a part of myself when I had moved. I used to live in Europe, and when I moved back to Texas–rather than when moving to Europe–moving back to the States was when I felt the most miserable. I just went back to a time when I knew exactly how this kid felt, and really just grounded him, and I think that’s what got me the role.

CO: You what’s kind of funny? As a teenager I moved from San Diego to Dallas, Irving actually…

TJ: Oh yeah? I used to live in Plano.

CO: Oh, right on. Yeah so I’m like 40 now, but this was in high school, and I really felt like a fish out of water at that point.

TJ: Dude, I can’t imagine. San Diego to Irving.

CO: Yeah, coming from San Diego where it’s all cosmopolitan, you know my two best friends were a black guy and a Vietnamese guy and I go out there and they’re like, “No, you can’t do that here, we’ll kill you.”

TJ: Yeah.

CO: And that was the 80s. I thought that they would be beyond that, but no.

TJ: I grew up in Mesquite, Texas, and I was the only Asian kid. There were times when… My mom told me this funny story of when we were at McDonald’s, some kid was making fun of my older sister, so my mom said she found me cornering the kid in the ball pit, squinting my eyes, pulling at them with my fingers and singing “Chinese, Japanese…” teasing him, being his bully. He wasn’t even an Asian kid, he was a white kid, but that’s how kids made fun of me, so I thought that’s just the way you make fun of other kids.

CO: Oh, weird.

TJ: So it’s sort of a trip, you know? She looks back on it with some humor. But you look at it and it’s a sad thing–it’s sort of sad.

CO: Yeah.

TJ: It’s funny, all this comes full circle in the way I get to approach this character: An alien fish out of water.

CO: When it comes to comedy, who are your biggest influences?

TJ: It’s hard, because I think I read somewhere in an interview that our producer and our creator said that it’s interesting that we’ve got this comedy, but the actors that he cast come from really strong dramatic backgrounds. I know the actors that play my parents and Lenny Venito who plays Marty Weaver, all of them were doing crazy theatre and drama. So I think all of us, the way we approach comedy is to make sure that it’s grounded, and leave the rest of it up to the brilliant writers.

CO: Did you have any favorite comedians growing up?

TJ: Growing up? I don’t know. When you asked me about influence, I don’t know who influences me, but I do know who I just love watching. And that’s people like Steve Carell because I think he is so brilliant with his details. I think he is so meticulous with his performance and it’s so subtle. So I love him. Other comedians? I love watching things like Louie. I’m not influenced by him, but I love Louie’s comedy. I do listen to a lot of comedy podcasts, so there’s just a lot of people that I follow.

CO: What are your favorites?

TJ: I like the Nerdist. It took a while to get into Nerdist, but I like the Nerdist, and I like the Nerdist Industries. There’s a bunch of really cool podcasts. I mean there’s one called “Making It” by Riki Lindhome who is in a group called Garfunkel and Oates? I don’t know if you’re familiar…

CO: Oh, yeah.

TJ: But she just has a really cool podcast where she talks to her friends who are actors, directors, producers, casting directors, just about their journey in the industry and you know, that’s just part of the Nerdist industries that I listen to.

CO: I first heard of them when they were on the Nerdist Podcast, but I haven’t heard any more since then, so I’ll have to check it out.

TJ: Yeah, so all of them have huge comedy giant friends, so I’ve listened to interviews by every… You know I love WTF by Marc Maron. SO I listen to a bunch of comedians talking.

CO: So you were talking about your awesome cast there. Until I investigated things, I didn’t realize what an amazing cast you had. First of all: Jami Gertz. Like I say, I’m a little bit older, and so I remember her from back in the Square Pegs days. And I see her in The Neighbors and I’m thinking “When did Jami Gertz become my step-mother? And yet somehow still milfy, I don’t understand. Let’s forget about that part.

TJ: No, no, she is so beautiful. It’s hard to describe, like… You look at someone like her and you’re just… You know, I know who she is, this is Jami Gertz, but at the same time you’re like, man she is so beautiful. I dunno, I think it really comes from the inside. When I see here I see like one part my friend’s mom, like the coolest mom, like the coolest version of my friend’s mom, slash, someone who is still so amazingly beautiful. She is so beautiful. Like in Episode 4 I think, when “my mom” pretends to be a Jersey Housewife? I think both those women looked so stunning, so beautiful.

CO: I thought the same.

TJ: Both of them, right?

CO: Both of them. I was like wow.

CO: The other actor I wanted to mention, which blew me away, you know, the geek connection there: Doug Jones!

TJ: Yeah, so he was in the first episode and then the third episode, so we hung out for a while. And so I was still nervous. This was a like big job for me. The first time, I went up to Doug and I was like, “I’m sorry to do this, but I’m a giant nerd and I’m just a huge fan of all your work.” And he was the most gracious guy, the most amazing… You know, if you want to geek out to somebody, he will take it and love you for it.

CO: That’s good to hear. That’s awesome.

TJ: And appreciate it. He’s just an amazing guy. So gracious.

CO: So what’s been your favorite line for your character, “Mister Jackson”?

TJ: My favorite line? Oh that’s tough, there’s so many good ones. The scripts are brilliantly written, but there are a lot of chances that Dan Fogelman, our creator, gives us, or the directors give us a chance to throw in a different line or they’ll say “Why don’t you try this?” A lot of these lines that you see on the show are last-minute choices or improvs, you know? But in this last episode [Episode 7, “50 Shades of Green”], you’ll see it, it’s not scripted, and it didn’t show up until Dan Fogelman walked on set and was like “Hey Tim, why don’t you do this kind of laugh?” and I was like “okay.” And we did it and it actually made it into the show, so that’s probably my favorite one. And it just aired, so you can watch it. It was just a laugh, but that’s probably my favorite “line”.

CO: Now that you’ve established yourself, you’ve started your “back nine”, what have you learned from this experience that you hadn’t from your previous work as an actor?

TJ: It’s funny because I’m still learning. Like even yesterday I had an interesting day on the set where I learned a lot, but this job is almost… Everything I’ve learned in these previous jobs I’m spending this job to apply it all. And at the end of the day it makes this job that much more of a pleasure. And it’s less about me but more about, you know, my crew members and making sure that everyone’s happy–is what at the end of the day that I want to walk in and out of work with: That we’re a team and we’ve gotta pass, we gotta shoot… Ah, I dunno, I’m not a sports guy, I’m a geek, ya know? I don’t play sports.

CO: [laughs]

TJ: We’re a team! We can go super-hero with this: We’re a team, you know?

CO: There you go. I was just speaking with another podcaster about this while preparing, Giovanni Giorgio, who you might know if you’ve ever listened to Adam Carolla, and talking about your show. And I compared it to Coneheads and he asked me “How does it compare to 3rd Rock?” And my answer was, “It’s not as rapid-fire jokey. It’s still as funny, but the jokes aren’t nonstop.” How would you compare it to other similar shows?

TJ: 3rd Rock was like a live multi-cam show, right? So it really needs to be quick, punchy kind of jokes. But with our show I’m still struggling to give it the best comparison, so I would say that it’s a mixture of The Wonder Years meets Galaxy Quest meets The Simpsons.

CO: Alright, I like that description.

TJ: And even Freaks and Geeks I would love to throw in there. I know you’re like “Whoa, Tim, hold on,” but just in the sense that it’s got a lot of heart. Freaks and Geeks had so much heart and I think this show… I hope that when it resonates with people it’s not because of strictly the comedy, but it’s because of the relationships and the heart. …And the love between the characters.

CO: So as a geek (and if you ever get some time to come on the podcast, we’ll go into this in more detail) What are your favorite things when it comes to current comics, TV, games, or movies?

TJ: The last thing I read was Craig Thompson’s Habibi. Are you familiar with that?

CO: Well I know who Craig Thompson is, but I have not read Habibi.

TJ: Well, you know he wrote Blankets, right?

CO: Right.

TJ: Yeah, well his Habibi is just an amazing graphic novel. It’s haunting. It sticks with you. It’s still sticking with me. So I love good graphic novels cause I’m not a very good reader; I fall asleep. Words put me to sleep and pictures keep me awake so I love a good graphic novel and that’s what makes me feel smart, when I read those. And then when I want to start reading some more fun stuff I love Batman stories. I love Batman as a character. I love all the graphic novels and animated shows about Batman. I’m a huge fan. And Marvel-wise? I dunno. I’m really looking forward to the new X-Men shows or the new Marvel Animated stuff.

CO: Yeah, well they’re doing so well with their live-action stuff.

TJ: Yeah, I can’t say I’m a huge fan of everything Marvel Animated, I think the DC Animated world is amazing. And I’m pretty hopeful actually, for Marvel. They’ve gotten… They’ve acquired some pretty crazy things like… I think now that I’m part of the Disney family, Marvel’s part of my family AND Lucasfilm’s a part of my family? I’m pretty geeked out.

CO: Yeah. So if you could be a voice actor, who would you play from the entire Disney family?

TJ: That’s really interesting. That’s a great question. Let’s say for animated… I love it when the animated world and the film world collide. Sort of like how the Super Hero Squad, they got so many great voice actors that actually portrayed the characters in the live-action film, you know? If they had Amadeus Cho? In Super Hero Squad? How awesome would it be to go and play him in Avengers 2 or something? I don’t know, it’s really reaching, but…

CO: Well yeah, but…

TJ: Just because I always said, you know, there’s not many Asian super-heroes, so it’s either I get to play Jubilee or Amadeus Cho.

CO: [laughs] That’s my new baby daughter’s middle name.

TJ: Really?

CO: Yeah.

TJ: Well congratulations.

CO: Thanks.

TJ: That’s a great name. Wait, is she “Jubilation” or is she Jubilee?

CO: Nah, we went straight to Jubilee

TJ: Okay, cool. That’s awesome.

CO: Yeah. Oh, and I said “animated” cause there you’re not pigeonholed into that “Oh, I’m the Asian actor so I better play the Asian part…”

TJ: Yeah. I always thought… you know, any of the X-Men characters, but I always dreamed of playing… of doing voiceover work. My dream director, if you asked me, I would say Andrea Romano. That’s my dream director. You know Steven Spielberg, blah blah blah, Scorsese… No, mine is Andrea Romano.

CO: I love her. Have you met her?

TJ: No, but anything she’s done… If you watch anything and she’s the voice director, that’s all I need as a stamp of approval to know that I’m gonna enjoy whatever I’m watching.

CO: It’s true. I’ve met her a bunch of times–usually I end up being the cameraman, recording interviews with her. But she is just the sweetest, warmest, most insightful person you could ever meet.

TJ: I’d have to imagine because I get really intimidated doing voiceover, to do even ADR stuff, even just dub over things on my show. It’s really nerve racking, so I’d have to imagine the the person directing me for a whole movie or a whole television series would have to be pretty pleasant and make me feel pretty comfortable.

CO: I was just at Comic-Con this year and talking with the folks from Grimm and speaking with Reggie Lee, and he answered a question about the standard “Asian role” and how he tries to avoid those with his career, just to not perpetuate ugly stereotypes. Have you seen any of that?

TJ: I’ve been pretty fortunate to book jobs that I really got to play outside of myself and play different types of characters, but it all comes down to who’s writing it. But yeah, I’ve come across a few auditions where I’m like “Well, that’s a pretty stereotypical approach to writing this kind of character, right?” But at the end of the day, I can’t be too picky and choosy, but what I can do is make choices that don’t make these stereotypes so… that the stereotypes aren’t the character, you know what I mean?

CO: Yeah.

TJ: I can have a character named “Ping Pong”, and when I go in for the role, which I have gone in for roles like that, can I find somewhere in that character that doesn’t make me feel like I’m playing a “Ping Pong”? Does it make me feel like I’m playing a Peter? Or does it make me feel like I’m playing a Steven? That’s the goal. I don’t want to be playing a stereotype ever. I think it’s avoidable–sometimes it’s unavoidable of course. But when it is avoidable I think that’s the fun part of the challenge.

CO: We talked about comics and animation. Are you a gamer at all?

TJ: I have departed from my gaming ways for a bit but… Ya know, I just bought Halo 4 yesterday… And I put it in, and I think I had to wait like forty-five minutes for my Xbox to system update. And then by then I was so sleepy I just turned it off.

CO: [laughs] So what are your hours like on set?

TJ: When we’re on set on the Disney lot, it’s usually we get in around six, and then we can wrap it around six on a good day, or go a little bit later. About twelve to sixteen hours is the average workday it seems, here at The Neighbors.

CO: That’s no joke. And that’s five or six days a week?

TJ: Five days a week. And I’m one of the lighter characters, so my parents and the Weaver adults, they’re here. They have no life outside of this while we’re in production, really.

CO: I guess so. So When are you scheduled to be finished?

TJ: In February, now.

CO: Whoa. Well all right. Well hey, I think I’ve had you on for almost a half hour now, and like I say, I’d love to have you on the regular podcast and actually be able to feature your voice as well as transcribe stuff.

TJ: Yeah, I feel like we could chat forever. We have barely gotten into even how nerdy I can get.

CO: Well, I’d love to have you on the ComicsOnline Podcast.

TJ: Yeah, if people want to know how nerdy I am, I’ll open it up, I’ll go there with you, Kevin.

CO: Alright, excellent, man. Thanks for your time today and I will talk to you another time.

TJ: Thanks. Oh and one more: Do you have anything the you can recommend for me to read? That you’re enjoying right now?

CO: When it comes to comics?

TJ: Comics.

CO: I still love The Walking Dead, even though something terrible happened in issue #100…

TJ: I know! Okay, one of my friends gets to play him in real life.

CO: Oh really?

TJ: And I was there at Comic-Con… And so we were in his room in his hotel and there was a comic book. And I was sitting there, and he’s like “Tim, check this out!” And I opened it up and it was the most… Ugh! Horrible… It still tears me apart to think of that.

CO: Me too!

TJ: Oh my… You know, I hadn’t read like… I stopped reading around issue sixty or something? So… So sad.

CO: It is sad.

TJ: Have you kept up with Invincible?

CO: I’m about three issues behind, but I have them waiting for me.

TJ: Are they good?

CO: Oh yeah, they’re great. Yeah, Invincible‘s great.

TJ: Oh good. I think I’m going to start back up on that. I haven’t read any of those in such a long time. The last thing I was reading was Fables, Invincible, Walking Dead… a whole slew of things, but I haven’t read them in quite a bit. I haven’t picked up any books.

CO: Yeah, the only things that I… See, I don’t read as much as I used to. I started looking at the Avengers vs X-Men stuff and I thought whoa, I’m going to need to just buy them all. And I don’t have time for that at the moment so I’ll wait until they’re all out in trades and then I’ll just grab them all but…

TJ: Yeah, that’s smart.

CO: I checked out Buffy Season 9… If you’re a Buffy fan from back in the day, that was kinda cool.

TJ: You mean like they went into comic form, right?

CO: Yeah. So they had seven seasons of the show and then they had “Season 8” which was, I dunno, forty issues of comic books, and then now they’re in Season 9.

TJ: And it’s good?

CO: Yeah, I like it.

TJ: Good.

CO: So yeah, let’s definitely talk some more and thanks for your time, man.

TJ: Yeah of course. Thanks so much, Kevin! And I love that picture!

CO: All right, cool!

TJ: Thanks, dude!

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