TV preview
“Leverage”
9 p.m. Sunday, TNT
For three years on “Leverage,” Timothy Hutton has led a wily team of professional thieves and con artists, all with their own issues, as they play Robin Hoods trying to right corporate wrongs.
His Nate Ford is a guy weighed down by personal demons, which will continue to disrupt his life – and possibly those of his teammates -- in the fourth season of the TNT show, which premieres Sunday.
Calling from New York, Hutton, 50, chatted about the direction of the show this season as well as his love of the Red Sox and the contents of his iPod.
Q. The first episode looks rather frosty. Where was it filmed?
A. It must have looked miserable! We filmed at Mount Hood, about an hour from Portland [where the show usually films]. It was great because the cast flew in from different places since we had been off. We arrived in Portland and got on shuttle buses up to the mountain and were stuck in a blizzard. But at least we got in some snowball fights.
Q. How do you think your character of Nate has evolved?
A. He started off in such a dark place with not a lot left to live for with the loss of a son and a marriage and no hope for the future. He's a flawed person with a drinking problem, but he's become a more reliable person. He's still obsessed with the mission of helping people. That's an addiction for him as much as anything, this need for redemption.
This season, we’re making the drinking something that is an issue for the other team members because it puts them in danger.
Q. What's going on with Nate and Sophie?
A. They got hot and heavy at the end of last season so they're wondering where that's going to go and trying to define it. Each one is delicately dancing around whether they should tell the rest of the team. There are some interesting things going on with the Parker/Hardison [characters] dynamic, too.
Q. You're heading into the fourth season of the show. Do you feel like you've gotten more support from TNT than you would have from one of the major networks?
A. I can't really say, but I would hope so. It really is extraordinary how supportive TNT is when it comes to their programming. To be working on this show and to see how much they care about the tone of the shows and bringing eyes to the screen and getting the word out in so many creative ways. It's really a great home for this show – and for any show.
Q. You're pretty active on Twitter. I gather from some of your tweets that you are not a Yankees fan?
A. I am a Red Sox fan and a fan of anyone playing the Yankees!
Q. You're also a big music buff. What are you listening to?
A. Yeah, I love music. Let me look on my iPod [pulls up playlist]…I've got The Kills' 'Black Balloon,' PJ Harvey's 'Black Hearted Love,' Cat Power's 'Metal Heart,' The Funky Lowlives' 'Latazz.'
Q. Eclectic stuff.
A. I do have eclectic taste. I find that after a day of filming, I'll have dinner and work on the next day's scenes and when I'm done I like to go online and find music. What can I say? I like to sample.
About the Author
