Expect the unexpected – Glass Man speaks to William Jackson Harper, star of The Good Place, on decision making, belief and finding success at the perfect time
For someone who considers himself to be quite shy and somewhat lacking in confidence, William Jackson Harper is actually incredibly brave. A veteran actor on stage and on camera, he comes across as this modern-day renaissance man, seamlessly gravitating towards the creative scene. And no, he doesn’t do it for fame, fans or the chance to bask in the spotlight. Over the course of our conversation, I start to see Harper as a sort of Hollywood anomaly, driven by something rare to find among today’s actors: sincere passion.
Harper’s love for acting and telling stories began early in his life, almost two decades before he took up the mantle of the ever-affable ethics professor, Chidi Anagonye, on NBC’s The Good Place. While studying theatre at the University of Santa Fe in California, he and the rest of the drama department became transfixed by the late Philip Seymour Hoffman. They would obsess over “anything he [Philip Seymour Hoffman] did just because he was so strange and so interesting. He took such big swings and it was like ‘Oh God. That’s the kind of acting we all aspired to do’.” While watching Hoffman perform in the dark-comedy flick Happiness, Harper remembers a particular light-bulb moment, “I wanted to one day be that good.”
William Jackson Harper. Photograph: Heidi Tappis
Jacket,trousers DRIES VAN NOTEN
And if you’ve followed Harper’s career since, what with him being the star of NBC’s The Good Place, it’s easy to believe he’s achieved that university dream. Since premiering back in 2016, the show and its cast have garnered renowned critical acclaim, winning everything from a Critics Choice for Most Exciting New Television Show to a Peabody Award with countless other nominations. But to assume it’s all been smooth sailing for Harper would be quite wrong.
At 40 years old, Harper is in a place where he can look back at his years in the Off Broadway scene with the wisdom of age. Tough, turbulent, but insanely rewarding, Harper speaks about his early Off Broadway career with warmth and affection. “I enjoyed being a stage actor because that’s what I really wanted to do.” For Harper, it was the “most interesting medium” where he could truly explore his creative depth. “You go into a room for four weeks, you ask really interesting questions, you make a bunch of strange choices, you fail miserably at least once a week in rehearsal (if not every day) and then you finally find your groove.”
But alas, the groove of the stage couldn’t last. As the years passed, Harper discovered his dream of a life in New York City and a career in Off Broadway was simply unsustainable. Leaning on his support network of brilliant motivators, like his “rock” and long-term girlfriend, Harper made the decision to branch out into roles on screen. It wasn’t his first choice, but “it was really just a matter of survival.” And with the stress of numerous television auditions, Harper sought encouragement from fellow actors and close friends, one of whom happened to be Chris Chalk. Through Chalk, he began to see it was “possible” for him to land a coveted television role. Through Chalk, Harper dared himself to take risks and stop allowing himself to be “afraid of being successful.”
Success came, of course. But as for those early years of struggle, Harper isn’t at all bitter. Rather, he’s thankful for the foundation Off Broadway gave him to weather the challenges of television. “I do feel if I had pursued an on-camera career earlier I would not have been ready or confident enough to know what I was doing and to actually just sort of relax and create.”
William Jackson Harper. Photograph: Heidi Tappis
Top COMME DES GARCONS
Create he did. Harper went on to land roles in a ton of popular television shows like Law and Order, 30 Rock, the remake of the Electric Company (which also starred Lin-Manuel Miranda) before finally making a starring debut with The Good Place. Interlacing timely issues of morality with angels, demons and flying cocktail shrimp, the light-hearted sitcom was picked up by Netflix and is now on its fourth and final season. Like anything in life that comes to an end, Harper is finding saying goodbye to the show somewhat bittersweet. “The environment on set is amazing. It’s kind, it’s open, it’s spontaneous and I feel that allows us all to do our best work. It allows us to feel empowered.”
That “us” Harper is referring to are his fellow cast-mates Kristen Bell, Ted Danson, Jameela Jamil, D’Arcy Carden and Manny Jacinto, who have all joined him along this wild journey through Heaven, Hell and Earth. “We’ve all become really close over the years. For all the talk we do about ethics and morality on the show, I feel like the set was a prime example of how to move through the world in a way that puts as much good as possible back out. It was a great little bubble to be in for a while.”
William Jackson Harper. Photograph: Heidi Tappis
Top ISSEY MIYAKE Jacket HILTON
And in that bubble, Harper’s character Chidi was an instrumental force in driving poignant philosophical discussions. With Harper surrounded by questions of ethics and morality for three years, I wondered whether he found himself crushed by the existential agony his character had often suffered. “I think that playing Chidi has been kind of cautionary tale of what it is to allow your brain to spin out,” he quipped. While Chidi struggles with the anxiety of what many of us perceive as simple decision making, Harper found a personal refuge from the stress by being a philosophy “layman”, with much of it flying right over [his] head.
Unlike his character, Harper has always seen the benefit of making tough calls through “utilitarian or particularist” methods, essentially that gut decision we all have that makes us human. “Even if you wind up having to apologise later or you make a mistake, at least it’s coming from you making the best decision you could at the time. That is something you can wholeheartedly get behind.”
Having the success of The Good Place under his belt, Harper developed a creative confidence that pushed him into a variety of creative projects. A particularly eye-opening experience was his playwriting debut, Travisville, in 2018. Set in Harper’s home state of Texas, the play captures the complexity of the civil rights movement while exploring the ways in which individuals have fought for social justice.
“It was one of the hardest things I think I’ve ever done and for all the right reasons,” Harper admits. Having his vision poked and prodded by actors and director tested his patience, but every moment of stress was worthwhile. “There’s a lot of anger in the play, there’s a lot of biting humour. But in the end, I felt like I was heard. That’s a feeling I don’t get a lot.” In typical Harper fashion, he follows this with a laugh, “Not to say that I’m some sort of misunderstood artist or something like that, I’m not that cliché.”
I agree. He’s not cliché in the slightest, especially after I learn about his soft spot for the horror genre. Harper’s favourite film is Rosemary’s Baby. (Oh yes, you read that right). Despite having a career thus far in drama and comedy, Harper made the decisive leap into the world of all things frightening in director Ari Aster’s 2019 film, Midsommar. He jumped at the chance of playing Josh in the movie after being captivated by Aster’s previous film, Hereditary.
William Jackson Harper. Photograph: Heidi Tappis
Jacket, trousers DRIES VAN NOTEN Shoes ALEXANDER MCQUEEN
Devan: Top, trousers DRIES VAN NOTEN Shoes PRADA
“I was just incredibly excited by how well observed Hereditary was as far as an examination of grief. I felt like it was less about archetypes and tropes, and more about grief, and what does a family look like once they’ve lost somebody.”
While Hereditary deals with grief, Midsommar is centred on the idea of belief. Set in Sweden, the plot follows a group of young American anthropology students visiting what initially seems like an idyllic Nordic midsummer festival with the Hårga people. Having watched the film myself, I was instantly drawn by the concept of a horror movie that takes place in bright daylight. But for Harper, who played the character Josh, his fascination with the story is grounded on belief.
“I grew up super religious, not that my religion was anything like the Hårga,” he quickly adds with a nervous laugh, “but there is something about belief. You can’t talk people out of it. For me, not being able to sit down and reason with someone because of what they believe or what they feel about the order of the world is really frightening.”
So what should we, the audience, take away from a film featuring gory cult practices, human sacrifice and trippy hallucinogenic scenes? “If anything, [Midsommar] really does want you to be honest, honest with yourself and honest in your relationships.” As we watch Danny and Christopher (actors Florence Pugh and Jack Reynor) struggle to come to terms with the demise of their relationship, we should be motivated to live for ourselves and never to please anyone else. “Sometimes that pain that you feel at the front end of doing something that is really tough will possibly spare you a lot of heartache and maybe even your own hide.”
William Jackson Harper. Photograph: Heidi Tappis
Tracksuit CRIMINAL DAMAGE
Shirt VIVIENNE WESTWOOD at PECHUGA VINTAGES hoes COMMON PROJECTS
Devan: Tracksuit BJAMES Shoes NIKE
If you’re wondering what’s in the pipeline of someone who can play an adorable ethics nerd with a love for horror and social justice, the answer is just as eclectic as the man himself. In January 2020, Harper will return to the big screen alongside the likes of Anne Hathaway and Mark Ruffalo in the film Dark Waters, based on the early 2000s environmental scandal surrounding the DuPont chemical factory. Rather than follow the “little guy beats the big guy” play by play, Harper insists this story “is a little more nuanced”.
“At its heart [Dark Waters] is really about what it takes to effect some kind of change. It’s about what it actually takes and how persistent you have to be and how much resistance you’ll meet along the way.” In line with the Green issue of Glass, I asked if Harper saw the value of bringing awareness to environmental issues through film. “I think it’s incredibly important,” he assured me, “if you can make a statement without preaching at people that feels really engaging and truthful, then do it.”
William Jackson Harper. Photograph: Heidi Tappis
All clothing LOUIS VUITTON
Devan: Top DOLCE & GABBANA at PECHUGA VINTAGE Trousers IZAYLA
Shoes NIKE
We can also expect to catch Harper on the next season of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan. But if you’re waiting to see him perform wild stunts, you better hold your breath. “Quite honestly I play a guy behind a desk,” he joked. “As much as I would love to hold a gun and roll over the roof of a car, I don’t think that’s safe for anybody for me to be doing that.” Knowing what I know now about William Jackson Harper, I’m sure this won’t be the case for very long. “Maybe next year I’ll get to wield some weapons and zip up some kind of really fancy looking cool vest.”
Ever up to a challenge, Harper is constantly on the search for “new work, new plays” and projects that are “completely different” from his previous experiences. “I’m sort of open to whatever the world throws at me.”
Rest assured Mr Harper, we’re all expecting you to do the unexpected.
by Maria Noyen
Taken from the Glass issue 40 – Green
To make sure you never miss out on a copy of Glass, please visit here to subscribe
Glass and Glass Man are available in 25 countries, check out the website for our stockists
Photographer HEIDI TAPPIS
Stylist KRISSIE TORGERSON
Grooming CANDICE BIRNS at NEST ARTIST using ERNO LASZLO SKINCARE and R&CO HAIRCARE
Female model DEVAN at FREEDOM MODELS
Talent WILLIAM JACKSON HARPER