The actor was reluctant to play William Frawley (aka Fred Mertz) in the film but learned a lot by working with the filmmaker.
J.K. Simmons was reluctant to appear in “Being the Ricardos.” But reading Aaron Sorkin’s script, “I was able to see the gift that Aaron was giving to each of the actors.” It’s a gift exchange: Simmons is so versatile and talented that he brings gifts to any filmmaker he works with. Oscar voting runs Jan.27-Feb.1. Simmons has been getting some awards buzz, but deserves more: As an actor, he has the blessing/curse of always making it look easy so he’s sometimes taken for granted. But with “Ricardos,” as with everything else, he seems so perfect that you can’t imagine anyone else playing the part. He’s definitely a supporting-actor contender. Simmons and Sorkin go back to 1990, when the actor was an understudy in the Broadway production of Sorkin’s breakthrough “A Few Good Men.” When Simmons stepped into the role, a producer urged Sorkin to come watch. Sorkin was impressed and now says he wants the actor in every movie he makes. (Amazon’s “Being the Ricardos” is Sorkin’s third film as director and his 10th as a writer.) When Simmons first heard about “Being the Ricardos,” he says, “I wasn’t all that interested, despite Aaron’s involvement. I’ve always been reluctant to portray real people, especially 20th century people who have been in the public eye.” But Sorkin emphasized, “We’re not interested in mimicry; we’re interested in who these people are.” Simmons says, “That was all the reassurance I needed to get over my fear. It was a scary prospect for all four of us to play these iconic people,” he says, referring to Nicole Kidman, Javier Bardem and Nina Arianda as, respectively, Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz and Vivian Vance.
