Drew Waters heads back to Texas for his latest role in the HBO Max mini series, “Love and Death.”
“Love and Death” is a riveting, psychological drama from David E. Kelley (HBO’s “The Undoing” and “Big Little Lies”) and directed by Lesli Linka Glatter (“Homeland”), Love & Death tells the unbelievable true story of Candy Montgomery (Elizabeth Olsen), a 1980s Texas housewife accused of murder. Despite a loving family, a picture-perfect home, and an active presence at church, Candy is unable to shake her sense of suburban ennui. After an unexpectedly charged moment with fellow church member Allan Gore (Jesse Plemons), Candy finds just the risk-taking thrill that’s been missing from her life. Their ensuing, meticulously strategized affair unfolds mostly as planned – until their respective spouses, Pat (Patrick Fugit) and Betty (Lily Rabe), each discover their secret… and someone picks up an axe.
The series is based on the book Evidence of Love: A True Story of Passion and Death in the Suburbs by former Dallas journalists Jim Atkinson and John Bloom, and a series of Texas Monthly articles.
After eight years of service in the U.S. Navy, Drew decided to make a major shift in his life and pursue his true passion in the entertainment industry. Shortly thereafter, he was discovered by a modeling scout, signed by a top agency, and began a successful career in fashion. As an international print model, he appeared in campaigns for designers like Ralph Lauren, Prada, Structure, Versace, Hugo Boss and Guess. During that time, he also walked the globe’s top runways and graced the covers and ad pages of GQ, Vogue, Men’s Fitness, and Men’s Journal, among others. When world-renowned fashion photographer Bruce Weber discovered Drew’s unique talent, he encouraged the young model to try his hand at acting.
Today, Drew has more than 80 credits to his name. His television credits include roles on such shows as “Surface,” “Chase,” “Victorious,” “Bones,” “NCIS: Los Angeles,” AMC’s “Breaking Bad,” HBO’s “True Detective,” and NBC’s Emmy® Award winning hit show “Friday Night Lights.” He has also appeared in numerous feature films opposite the likes of Diane Keaton, Matthew Broderick, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Paul Giamatti, and Marcia Gay Harden. Behind the camera, he has produced and directed multiple films as the co-founder of Argentum Entertainment.
Check out our interview with Drew:
So first off, how did you get involved with the show?
Drew: My agency actually reached out to me and originally I read for another part. I sent it in and then production reached back out and said, ‘Hey, let’s have Drew read for this role.’ And so they flopped the role on me which is better, it was a better role. And the rest is history. And it was good to go back to Texas because after I moved out of Ohio, Texas was my home for 20 plus years.
Who did you originally read for?
Drew: Oh, gosh. If my mind was sharp enough I would remember that. Luckily, I’ve done multiple projects since then. I want to say his name was Richard. He was one of the neighbors. In the storyline, the three neighbors that are friends with the main characters, they get called up and asked to check on the wife and we go in, meet up, start searching the property, walk into the house and find spoiler alert, her and the baby. But the craziness of it is, I built a house in Sachse, Texas when I got out of the military in ‘98 and Wylie, Texas is an eighth of a mile– I mean it’s the next town over. Me and my daughters go eat breakfast there and, you know, do multiple things there and you’d hear little stories you know, just people talking about, ‘remember that time… remember when this happened…’ And then full circle, here I am playing a character within it.
So you knew about the Candy Montgomery case prior to joining the project?
Drew: I knew a little bit about it just because of the locals talking about it through passing. It was crazy. But I never knew the full details of it until I got the script and read it. My jaw just dropped. I couldn’t believe it.
I know, it’s crazy.
Drew: The other funny thing is she moved here to Georgia and became a career counselor. And I didn’t know any of this until after the fact. Now I live in Georgia. We moved out of LA in ‘19 and just moved our production company to Georgia because we’re doing a lot of work here, and peace of mind and all that, but it seems like I built a house and Sachse right next to where it all happened and stuff and now she lives a town over in Georgia from me, or she did. I don’t know where she’s at now.
That’s kind of creepy, not gonna lie. So, in this show, you play Jerry McMahan. What exactly is his role in all of this?
Drew: So Jerry is a friend of the family and a neighbor.. They’ve been neighbors for quite a while and he’s trusted. And [Allan Gore] when he goes out of town, he reaches out to us saying he can’t get ahold of his wife. His wife and children are supposed to be home and he hasn’t been able to get a hold of her all day. He asks that myself and Richard and Lester, the other neighbors to go check on her, he calls us all individually, and we meet up and have a conversation and that’s when we start going through the process of searching for her and finding out what actually happened. That then leads on to the whole legal process of getting answers or answering questions, finding out more truth, going into the courtroom and going into the legal portion of it.
What’s it like portraying a character who was a real person versus getting to create your own character through a more fictional story?
Drew: For me, I appreciate and enjoy true stories. I like being able to have a platform to start on and an actual person to create from, then the challenge becomes: Can you imitate them in a way to where they feel like they‘re watching the story and not themselves or themselves and not somebody playing themselves in the story? So I think it’s more challenging to be honest with you because when you’re creating a character, you’re starting from scratch a lot of times and a true story, you have to do justice to those characters because a lot of them are still alive and, you know, a lot of family members know them and know their personalities and their quirks. It’s, it’s more intriguing and exciting and scary, it has all these feelings, I guess you’d say.
What was your preparation process like?
Drew: A lot of research. We did a lot of research and, of course, you do it with every project you get, but when it comes to true stories, you want to really dive in and do your due diligence and try to talk to as many people as you can. Talk to production and the writers because they have a lot of knowledge. And we do a lot with pictures, if there’s any out there. You can’t hide from the web anymore. You can find a lot of things online.
Your show is actually the third retelling of the Candy Montgomery case. What do you think makes the story so interesting that we just keep talking about it?
Drew: Well, I mean, I think it’s Candy, herself. I think it’s the fact that all this happened and at the end of it, she was found innocent. It’s just mind blowing. But, you know, it’s like everything. Everybody has a way of telling a story. And there’s no really right or wrong way of doing that outside of how you’re trying to make the audience feel and what you’re trying to drive home. And I think what is different from the other ones like the Hulu Candy, is that we dive in deeper. We really go the distance within the characters so you can understand them. And Elizabeth [Olsen], oh my gosh, she is just amazing. Her preparation and the way she approached Candy is unbelievable. And so I think the dynamics of it and the honesty of the HBO release is, to me, special. Not because I’m in it, I just think it is. I think they really took the time to hash out the characters and the true story with the players within that. And I appreciated that a lot.
I love that. I’m a huge fan of true crime. What is something that you are most excited for people to see when the show airs.
Drew: It’s a period piece. It’s the ‘80s, so we have the lovely hairdos and the wardrobes which they just did an amazing job with. But again, I think it is the story, the way it flows, the honesty of it. They rebuilt the interior of all the homes in the warehouse and it is a perfect blueprint and footprint of what was built back in the ‘80s. I guess there was no skipping any step on this one. They really put their heart and soul into it and you could tell. And I think it’s going to come out in the story. Lesli , she’s an amazing director. She is an actor’s director, in my opinion. She directs with a soft hand and she knows exactly what she wants. It just starts there.
What’s up next for you? Are you working on anything or have anything coming out soon?
Drew: Actually, yes, I have a few things. As I mentioned, we have a production company and we just finished producing three projects and we inhouse produced and directed a Christmas movie that’s in post right now that will be sold mid May. And we’re excited about it. It’s called Festival of Trees. It’s my second feature directorial debut and it’s our eleventh of production. And then I just booked a new series with Peacock that I’m excited about. It’s called “Hysteria.” It’s about the Satanic Panic back in the late ‘80s. It’s another period piece and it’s another ‘based on a true story.’ And so I’m excited about that. I play the character, Rex, whose son is murdered and I’m fighting to get justice for him throughout the season. And I get to wear a mustache!
Oh, that’s awesome!
Drew: Here’s the fun fact. I’ve got like 80 plus credits and I’ve never just played a character with a mustache. I’ve always wanted to, but have never done it because I can never grow one. And I had a full beard and mustache when I booked the role. We started out wanting to keep a full beard and mustache, and then Jordan [Vogt-Roberts], the director said, ‘let’s look at a mustache,’ and I said I would love to do that. So, I’m gonna try to wear my own throughout the whole thing. It’s a change, definitely, but I’m excited about it. And we’ll see what happens. I may have to shave it for something else but, you know, depending on what’s going on and how long the first and second seasons run, but maybe not. Maybe this is a new look for me, who knows? Every time you get a new character and stuff, you get to play around with a new look and so you never know what’s gonna stick, what’s gonna be hot, and what’s gonna be not.
If people want to stay up to date with your work, where can we find you?
Drew: Instagram, Facebook. @ddrewwaters on Instagram, IMDb, Drewwaters.com. It’s hard to stay private anymore, so we figured we might as well put it out as much as we can.
Is there anything else you’d like to add about “Love and Death”?
Drew: Just watch it. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised and intrigued by the story that HBO Max tells in this series. I can’t wait and I’ve read it. I can’t wait to watch it.
