PAGE 8 • TV
THE BULLETIN • APRIL 1 - 7, 2021
What’s Available NOW On
“Cesar Millan: The Real Story”
(April 9)
This 2012 National Geographic
documentary from writer/director Doug
Shultz (“Blue Collar Dogs,” “K-9 Border
Wars”) tells the story of the titular “Dog
Whisperer” Millan, who rose from
poverty as an illegal immigrant from
Mexico to become the dog trainer to
the stars and an international celebrity
himself.
BY GEORGE DICKIE
“The Last Ice” (Available now)
Combining politics and climate change,
this 2020 documentary from National
Geographic and first-time filmmaker
Scott Ressler chronicles the story of
the Inuk people of the Arctic, who are
divided between modern and traditional
lifestyles and Canadian and Danish
political systems — divisions that are
being exacerbated by the warming
northern climate.
“Night at the Museum”
(Available now)
Exhibits come to life at the Museum of
Natural History, much to the alarm of
a security guard (Ben Stiller) who finds
himself the target of extinct creatures, in
director Shawn Levy’s comedy-fantasy.
Beyond the plentiful, well-executed
special effects, the picture is notable for
the solid roles it gives a couple of true
showbiz veterans: Dick Van Dyke and
Mickey Rooney.
“Sharks of the Bermuda
Triangle” (Available now)
The 500,000 square miles that make
up the Bermuda Triangle are most
famous for phenomena like disappearing
aircraft and ships and malfunctioning
compasses. But for marine biologist Dr.
Austin Gallagher, the most fascinating
revelations may rest among this region’s
sharks. Gallagher has spent much of
his life pursuing the holy grail of shark
research: finding the top-secret breeding
ground of tiger sharks.
Nasim Pedrad
What inspired the character of
Chad?
(Laughs) Weirdly, it’s directly teleported
from my own awkward adolescence. ...
I love writing about the awkwardness
of adolescence and I wanted to write
something that felt authentic to my own
experience growing up as a child of
immigrants, where you’re sort of caught
between these two cultures and in my
case certainly just so desperately wanted
to fit in at school. And you know, Chad
has a far more rigid determination to be
popular than I did.
But I think everyone can relate to the
feeling of wanting to fit in and I think
teenagers are already struggling to find
their identities and also be accepted by
their peers. And then in my case, being
an immigrant kid, there’s a little bit of
a desire to distance yourself from the
other-ness that comes with being foreign
and it feels like this extra obstacle in
your effort to fit in that certainly I could
relate to.
Are there unique challenges in
playing a character of the opposite
gender and a much different age?
OF ‘CHAD’ ON TBS
(laughs) and are just sort of in the middle
of living it. So I thought if Chad was
played by an adult who could bring that
perspective and specificity to the role,
you could actually push the comedy a lot
further. You know, funny moments get to
be funnier and less sad if you’re sitting
there laughing at me and not an actual
Iranian child.
And then I thought I personally could just
disappear into looking like a little boy
more so than if I were playing a girl with
Part of what got me excited about this
the help of the wig and the eyebrows
was to think of creating a character
and the baggy clothing and the posture.
within a coming-of-age story where
When I envisioned the character, I felt
the teenager at the center of it was
played by an adult who’s in on the joke. like a little boy could get me further
Because teenagers themselves don’t know away from myself in a way that would
be helpful to my performance.
what’s so funny about being a teenager