Atlanta actor who bared it all in ‘Hunting Wives’ calls role a gift
Warning: Spoilers regarding “The Hunting Wives” are included in this story
Nobody is going to say they didn’t see enough of Atlanta actor Michael Aaron Milligan on Netflix’s soapy summer hit “The Hunting Wives.”
The show, which revolves around a Yankee woman (Sophie) adjusting to life in a small Texas town where she meets women full of intrigue, mystery and secrets, became a surprise smash over the summer. It spent five weeks on the Netflix global top 10 despite only airing in the United States. (The second season will be available in nearly all countries Netflix airs.)
As Kyle, the drugged-up brother of lusty lead character Margo (Malin Akerman), Milligan makes an unhinged appearance when Sophie (Brittany Snow) shows up at his trailer unannounced seeking clues to prove her innocence in a murder.
Kyle surprises Sophie by opening the door stark naked holding a handgun, looking wildly about, then quickly shoving her inside.
“It was one of the biggest shocks of the entire series,” which had plenty of shocking moments, said Milligan in an interview at Press and Grind coffee in Virginia-Highland, a spot he used to frequent when he lived in the neighborhood. “He’s a dangerous character. I was able to show up in a real way.”
Milligan, who now lives near downtown Atlanta, spent a lot of time before the scene talking with the producers to ensure he was comfortable with the scene.
In the end, he said, “I was pleased with the edit.”
And by the way, “we didn’t use prosthetics.”
His mom, Sammi Blake, was both proud and nonplussed, especially since her son warned her ahead of time.
“I gave birth to him,” Blake said. “Whatever he did is within character.”
“The Hunting Wives” was not originally a Netflix show. It was first set to go on pay cable network Starz, which may be why it’s so racy. But Lionsgate, the studio that created the show, reacquired the rights to the series after Lionsgate and Starz separated this past May. Netflix wisely picked it up.
“It landed in good hands with Netflix,” Milligan said. “It was an absolute kiss.”
As Kyle, Milligan wears a ludicrous Mohawk and a kimono-style robe. He offers Sophie info in exchange for a ride that ends up involving guns and $20,000. After Margo, now married to an oil tycoon and gubernatorial candidate, thinks about turning herself in for murder, Kyle convinces her to stick to her guns and figure out a way to keep her gravy train going.
“There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for Margo,” Milligan said. “I am the one who will ground her and make her remember she isn’t too far from her past,” which was packed with illegal activity, including a carjacking shown in a flashback.
In the season finale, Kyle confronts and threatens Sophie, who hits him with her car, knocks him out, drags him to a quarry lake, steals his phone, then drops him into the water.
Is he dead?
“I wasn’t shot, so maybe not,” Milligan said. “She definitely thinks I’m dead.”
“The Hunting Wives” creator Rebecca Cutter declined to comment on the future of Kyle Season 2.
But she called Milligan as Kyle “electric. Like Kyle, Mike has something a little bit wild, a little bit unpredictable about him, which obviously works for the character. And you could sense that from the very first audition tape. But luckily for me, Mike is also really sweet, talented and hard working, and not someone I am afraid will murder me. ”
Milligan came to Atlanta from California as a teenager and was part of the first graduating class of Woodstock High School in 1999.
Neither an academic or an athlete, he loved dancing and music, so after graduation, he spent three years as part of boy band Next Page when NSYNC and Backstreet Boys were at their peak. Next Page toured schools teaching values via breakdancing and back flips. Milligan was proud of his Michael Jackson imitation.
“It taught me discipline, grit and tenacity” he said of being in the group. “We were doing three shows a day. We were in a 15-passenger van and stayed in the dumpiest hotels in the Southeast.”
But when boy bands became passé, Next Page disbanded. Milligan decided to pursue acting, moving to Los Angeles in 2005. He struggled to break through, bartending, landing commercials and dabbling in stand-up comedy.
In 2013, his grandmother was ailing in Atlanta and with acting opportunities booming in Georgia, he decided to come back. “My family needed me,” he said, “and I needed to get out of Hollywood.”
He also landed a new agent, Alexander White. “Mike was known in Atlanta as a talented guy but a wild man,” White said. “He had a reputation of disagreeing with his reps. I told him not to fight me on stuff. Believe in me. He did.”
Milligan said White gave him a lot of “tough love” and helped him land roles in projects including the short-lived Fox drama “24: Legacy” and 2017 Oscar-nominated thriller “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” where he got to share scenes with Sam Rockwell, whom he greatly admires.
White said what has enabled Milligan to land work is his “odd magnetism. It’s an energy that is dangerous and risky but also endearing. I like risky art and Mike takes risks.”
Whether or not Kyle will be around for Season 2 of “The Hunting Wives,” Milligan said he was grateful for the exposure.
“I got to be a loose cannon,” he said. “I could go a million miles an hour. I could be as loud as I wanted. Kyle became this charming crackhead.”
His agent White is optimistic that Milligan will be able to parlay this opportunity into meatier and more prominent film and TV roles.
‘’The Hunting Wives’ feels like a starting gun we’ve been planning for Mike for a decade,” White said. “This is enabling us to tell producers that he’s a phenomenal actor who can go deep on whatever he does.”
How to watch
“The Hunting Wives,” Season 1 available on Netflix
About the Author
Rodney Ho writes about entertainment for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution including TV, radio, film, comedy and all things in between. A native New Yorker, he has covered education at The Virginian-Pilot, small business for The Wall Street Journal and a host of beats at the AJC over 20-plus years. He loves tennis, pop culture & seeing live events.
