OBIE award-winning actor and writer Edwin Lee Gibson has a storied theatrical career that spans 40 years having performed in more than 100 U.S. and international theatre productions. Gibson currently appears on the hit series “The Bear” and in a recurring role on FX’s “UnPrisoned.”
Gibson will also star as Stephin Fetchit in Will Power’s “Fetch Clay, Make Man” at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City, California for the Centre Theatre Group and LeBron James’ Spring Hill Company.
What interested you about the role on “The Bear?”
It was really about who was associated with the project. My manager impressed upon me that I should read for the role because of who was involved, and the fact that because of those folks it was bound to be something very good. It turned out that the person that created the piece had seen me in Chicago some years before and he said he always wanted to work with me. I couldn’t find a reader initially to read with me, so I sent the audition in as a monologue. As much as I’ve done, I still have that kind of attitude that it doesn’t have to be handed to me and it’s not going to be handed to me. When I feel something moves me, you got to find a way to get it done.
What do you think people can take away from your character?
What I hope I’m able to do with this character is to show that there is a side of normalcy and just a connection to the average person that goes about their day. It’s a side that people don’t get to see, how they operate with other chaos going on, and it shows that my character is solid. That wasn’t something that was directed, but it is something that the showrunners allowed me to do, and recognizing one of the things that they do well is recognize what people do and give them space to operate.
I hope people take away from the character that they can see someone who’s had a good life, the journey of a character, and the journey of a person.
What are some things you’ve learned throughout your career?
The person who says they “can” and the person who says they “can’t” are both correct. That’s one of the main things I learn. I’ve just always wanted to grow and challenge myself to grow as an artist and a man, and I think I’ve accomplished that pretty well. I don’t wait around for things.
My manager is great at understanding me, but even after I got with my agent, manager, or whomever, I never wait, I’m still hustling for work. I’m a son of a garbage man and a postal supervisor. I don’t do the jobs they did, but I do what I do, the way they do their jobs. It’s about hard work.
