Initially, John Stamos did not like to play a basketball coach at his last show, “Big Shot”.
“I was a band geek at school, I’m a band geek now – I’ve never played sports, I’ve never watched sports,” Stamos, 57, told The Post. “It was harder for me to learn basketball lingo than medical lingo when I was on ‘ER’ playing doctor, I’m not kidding.”
For the first time on Friday, April 16, on Disney + (with new weekly episodes), the sports drama series focuses on Marvyn Korn (Stamos), a men’s basketball coach who ends up working at a private high school for girls. at the expense of his NCAA job – to his despair.
“I got a call from my agent saying, ‘You’ll get an offer on the new David Kelley show,'” Stamos said. “And I was like, ‘Oh, I love David Kelley! I play the role of a lawyer, is he like one of those dark characters in “Big Little Lies?” And they said, “It’s a basketball show.” And my heart just sank. Of all things! I said, “Am I a player?” and they said, “No, you’re a coach.” And I said, “OK, great … what does a coach do?” ”
Despite reservations, Stamos stepped in to investigate, he said, spending time with NBA legend Jerry West, who was inducted into the 1980 Basketball Hall of Fame.
“He told me it was called ‘practice,’ not ‘rehearsal,'” Stamos said.
But it wasn’t just the subject that bothered the actor. Marvyn’s character was also outside her comfort zone.
“It was nothing like what I ever did and it was nothing like me,” Stamos said. “It’s unlikely, he’s not a man, he has no charm.”
Once on the set, Stamos decided that the best way to live in the stupidity coach was to keep it to himself.
“I did not have any external interaction with the distribution. I didn’t want to know the girls very well, I wanted to find out about the girls like Marvyn did. It was hard for me, because that’s not how I usually work, “he said.
In the end, Stamos managed to impress him enough to impress Jerry West, as well as one of his idols: Howard Stern.
“I was getting texts from a number in New York that I didn’t recognize and I got one that said, ‘Get up, it’s Howard and Beth! “And he did FaceTimed, and they went on and on about how much they liked the show. He’s a hero of mine and a friend and someone I admire.”
Stamos occupies a rare place in Hollywood because he has been prominent for several decades, with a number of successful shows under his belt (“General Hospital”, “ER”, “Full House”, “You”) and has not seen failures or disappeared into obscurity like many stars of the 1980s and 1990s.
He attributes the longevity of the industry to his attitude.
“I think the days of primadonna are on the door – the days of” I’m not out of the trailer! “If someone does that, it’s like, ‘OK, next!’ “There are so many actors and actresses out there who need work.”
He gets it, in part, from the lessons he learned from his father, the late restaurateur Bill Stamos.
“My father had a great influence on me in many things. My father had restaurants and he treated the boy in the back room washing dishes in exactly the same way he treated his best client. I’m trying to keep this. “
Stamos is himself a relatively new father, as his son Billy (with model actress / wife Caitlin McHugh, 34) is 3 years old. Staying home with the little one, named after Stamos’ father, was the silver line of last year’s pandemic, he said.
“I would never have imagined that I would have so much time with him. But it also really touches on what is important and what is not important. Observing your career towards me is one of those things that I realize is not as important at this time. ”
Quality time also includes watching children’s television together and presenting snippets of children’s food that Stamos has made in the past, such as the musical “Bye Bye Birdie”.
“But mainly I watch children’s shows with him … It certainly makes you say, ‘Oh man, I’m glad I paid attention to the kind of television I did that was for kids.’ . because It is a bit of responsibility, ”Stamos said, referring to his long stint as Jesse Katsopolis at“ Full House ”(1987-1995).
The 57-year-old Stamos is younger, but that doesn’t bother him.
“I’m glad I have the time, energy and patience to spend time with a 3-year-old right now and I don’t have to worry about my career or money, or the things a lot of people need to have. to do with. I am very lucky and grateful. ”