JJ Condon is an actor/writer best known for his work on OUTSIDERS , BLUE BLOODS and “FRYDAY”

 

JJ your career starts 2009 in the business. When did you first discover your passion for the world of Entertainment?

I actually was really shy growing up. Anxiety and what not, but when I went to college I had found a speech class. A class that helped with phonetics and public speaking. It was really interesting but nerve racking for sure. I had to go to speech therapy as kid because I had a hard time forming certain letters and words, so I thought maybe this would be another helpful class.

I ended up making friends with a class mate( my first college friend actually) who thought I was funny. Anyway, one night I was cutting through the theater building to go home, (I’d walk home from college it was only 1.5 miles, cut through the theater building right through the grave yard up the hill and I’d be home). And I saw this friend rehearsing for the show he was in. I was fascinated by it. He told me I should check the show out, I did. And it was really awe inspiring to watch.

Outside of some school plays they made us watch during middle school, which was great because we skipped class. I had never seen live theater before. Afterwards he saw how much I liked it and he suggested I take an improv class with him. Since then I’ve just gobbled up as much as I could and ended up getting my B.F.A in acting and continue to pursue this weird passion of mine

 

The first time i looked Outsiders is just some weeks ago. How did you get cast for the role as Enoch?

So I had auditioned for a different role, early on and then they brought me back for a producer session, it went very well. They liked me and said I fit the universe so they kept sending me auditions for the show, then eventually one clicked, but the callback was in Pittsburgh the next day. So I got on a midnight bus From NYC.

I could barely sleep due to being surrounded by people, and eventually got into Pittsburgh around 7 A.M. I had never been there before so I’m wandering around trying to find the office. I find it. I change my clothes and brush my teeth in the street and walk in. There I meet the director Jon Amiel, great guy, and we do the scene and some improv stuff. Afterwards, I call my agent and sit on a bench and eat a sandwich walked the city for a bit then got on a 1pm bus back to NYC and got in just in time to go bartend at my job for the night. My agent called me the next day saying I got the part.

 

 

How would you describe Enoch's role in the family? Enoch is definitely mischievous in nature, but not as smart as he thinks he is. He tends to be rather impulsive which can get him in all sorts of trouble. I think he’s very caring about his kin. He’d go to bat for anyone of them, which is what makes the the fractioning of the family very hard on him. Internally he does’t want to choose a side, but like everyone he must choose a side. Could you share some funny, remarkable, weird stories regarding the filming of your scenes? It was a great time shooting. Most of the mountain stuff was shot about 40 mins away from the city and then thee van would take us to camp, where we’d get another van as far as that could go and then we either hiked further. Into the woods or jump on the back of an ATV and go even further into the forest. Like big foot territory. I believe there was one time we were shooting down at the still, where Krake, (Mark J Miller, another amazing human and actor) and I are in a group that are coming up with a plan to deal with the situation the family was in at the time.

And there was a lot of breaks in-between camera set ups so the group of us were talking to a lot of the locals who were on set and talking about the woods and how people they knew had encounters with Bigfoot. That was a lot of fun hearing all those stories. Another thing that was really sweet was that a couple locals working on the show got together and had a shirt made for me which really meant a lot to me.

 

The series was surprisingly canceled after the second season. how was the ending received by the actors?

Well I think that is was unfortunate, I know the extras loved being there, but that’s the way this industry goes sometimes. We’d see the same people everyday so it wasn’t like random people it was like a big family, which worked because we were all playing a big family. I think there were some stories that still had some juice left in them. My character’s concluded but there were other things occurring on that mountain, mystical things, that can always change .

 

Please finish the following sentence: “Looking back at working on Outsiders …”.

I’m very grateful for the time on set, I got to work with some wonderful directors, and actors and genuine good people. Thats all you can ask for in this business

 

 2014 you had a role in Blue Bloods. How was it work with Tom Selleck and Donnie Wahlberg?

I actually didn’t have a scene with either of them.

 

Do you still have a dream of a movie or series you would love to play?

Oh sure, well my current dream is to make this short film a reality. Its a piece very personal to me. In terms of dream characters, I think as long as I can find the humanity in them, or find what it is that scares them and they try to. Confront it, in what ever way works for them, that always is interesting to me. Even if they fail.

 

What was your personal highlight as actor so far? It was a highlight meeting and working with David Morse on Outsiders and then working with Jefferey DeMunn and Karen Allen in a staged reading we did a few years back. It was called “ Until Death” by Sarah Schwab. Larry moss directed one of the readings and it was really a great learning experience for me as an actor.

 

What does the future hold for you? Anything you would like to plug to our readers?

I’ve just finished up some Video Game V.O. work which is always fun. Another video game “ Horizon Forbidden West”. Just came out and I play a character in that called Kavvoh. I’ve been doing some theater in the city as well. But my main focus is getting this short film off the ground, as I said early its very personal to me so has we being pre production a lot of focus is being given to make sure it’s as great as it can possibly be.

 

Is there anything else you would like to let your fans know?

I mean, the fact that I have fans is astounding to me. But uh I guess if I were to say anything, its that I’m very appreciative of you, and it means a lot that you like and support my work. You can check out my website JJCondon.com for more updates about what I’m doing.

 

Thank you JJ Condon and all the best for your future and i hope to see you one day in Germany.